SHEILA'S DAY Opens 3/12 At The Market Theater, South Africa

The 20th anniversary landmark production of Sheila's Day--a rousing musical celebration of the human spirit--opens on March 12th at the famed Market Theatre in Johannesburg, South Africa. The Crossroads Theatre Company production is presented in association with The State Theatre of Pretoria and The Market Theatre of Johannesburg, South Africa. The cast and creative team have been in residence at the Market Theatre since mid-February rehearsing the play written by Award-winning playwright Duma Ndlovu. This historic production of Sheila's Day returns to open at Crossroads Theatre on April 16.

Ricardo Khan, Crossroads' Artistic Director, began working more than a year ago with Malcolm Purkey of the Market Theatre to make this historic collaboration a reality. Marshall Jones III, Crossroads Executive Director, stated this week that "Considering that Crossroads was on the brink of bankruptcy, it's astounding that we are able to mount an international production--especially in this economy. Everyone has worked very hard to make this happen, and we look forward to welcoming all to share in this musical play that celebrates the ability of the human spirit to overcome."

Prior to traveling to Johannesburg in February, Khan reminisced about the artistry of mounting the original production at Crossroads in 1989 and the contemporary vision. "Twenty years ago we brought a South African cast to the United States. Now we're bringing the American cast there--and where you rehearse it is where it's created. Now we have the American and South African cast working together and that is what this piece is about." Sheila's Day is directed by Mbongeni Ngema who is also its co-creator with additional material provided by Ebony Jo-Ann .

Sheila's Day is an exhilarating musical celebration of the human spirit that is set in Perry County, Alabama, and Soweto Township, Johannesburg, South Africa during the turbulent 1960's. This musical drama is a timeless history of racial oppression in both countries that follows two women and their extraordinary stories as it parallels the civil rights struggles in the United States and apartheid in South Africa.

A cast of eleven women from both countries represents the on-stage domestic workers of the world known collectively as "Sheilas." Their high energy movement and dance along with rousing blues and gospel along with stirring Zulu chants becomes an integral part of this exhilarating production that raises the spirit and provides for a collective sense of triumph.

Sheila's Day was originally created in 1989 at Crossroads Theatre with South African artists in residence Duma Ndlovu and Mbongeni Ngema. The musical play went on to major theater houses and festivals around the world: New York, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., South Africa and Toronto, and has been performed for Nelson Mandela-- South Africa's first black president.