Event information
Kinnes van Somers arrives at the Baxter Studio as the second Finest of the Fest winner from the 2026 Zabalaza Theatre Festival, reworking the Afrikaans folk legend of Antjie Somers, a shape-shifting figure said to walk between light and lie in the shadows of a small community. The production is devised and performed by an ensemble of five, including co-director Tamsyn Alexander, who collectively bring Antjie and the story's other characters to life.
Directed by Tamsyn Alexander and Hanro Cloete, the piece draws on childhood warnings, whispered kitchen questions and inherited fear, tracing how a bedtime cautionary tale can blur into something a child grows to embody. The work leans on folk drama and shadow play, staged with props including enamel kitchenware and cobalt blue overalls tied to the character's traditional image.
Sylvaine Strike, credited as mentor and creative supervisor on the production, also oversees the companion Finest of the Fest winner, Until I Arrive, running the week before in the same venue.