The Lewis Center for the Arts’ Program in Theater and Music Theater at Princeton University presents Paivapo ’76, a new musical by Princeton senior Tanaka Dunbar Ngwara. The musical centers on the demonization and erasure of traditional practice during colonial rule and the Liberation War in Zimbabwe, told through the eyes of a young woman rediscovering her culture’s traditions. The work explores themes of spirituality, community, first love, and grief. The production is directed by senior Sabina Jafri with Ngwara, a music major pursing a certificate in music theater, serving as music director, costume designer, and dramaturg. Performances are May 3 and 4 at 8 p.m. and May 5 at 2 p.m. in the Wallace Theater at Lewis Arts complex on the Princeton campus. Free and open to the public, tickets can be reserved through University Ticketing. The Wallace Theater is fully accessible with an assistive listening system. The May 5 performance will be open captioned. Guests in need of other access accommodations are invited to contact the Lewis Center at LewisCenter@princeton.edu at least one week prior to the event date. The production is cosponsored by Princeton’s Department of Music.
In the musical, Mirirai’s childhood best friend, Chamai, returns home in 1976 from boarding school in the United Kingdom to find his town of Domboshava much changed by the last few years of the Zimbabwean Liberation War. While hiding in the forest during a raid on the village, it becomes clear that Mirirai’s spiritual beliefs clash with Chamai’s newfound view of the world. When Chamai disregards important traditions and disappears at a sacred water site, Mirirai must rally the community to perform the correct rituals to appease the spirits and win him back.
The title of the musical, Paivapo, is derived from the equivalent of “once upon a time” in Zezuru Shona, a Bantu language of the Shona people of Zimbabwe.
Cast members in rehearsal for the premiere of Tanaka Dunbar Ngwara’s new musical, Paivapo ’76. Photo credit: Allison Ha
Ngwara draws from the memories and stories of her father and other family members who lived through the Zimbabwean Liberation War; most of her extended family still live in Zimbabwe. The war represents a key time in the country’s history, and she was interested in the clash of traditional spirituality and Christianity during this period with the musical centering on Shona rituals and belief system, including spirits that protect the environment.
Ngwara undertook extensive artifactual and literary research in preparation for writing the musical, in addition to collecting family oral histories. The project represents her senior independent work in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree in music composition and certificates (similar to a minor) in theater and music theater. With Lewis Center funding through the Alex Adam ’07 Award, last summer she traveled first to London for a month to dive into the Southern African diasporic music scene, experience examples of Zimbo-fusion music, and attend performances by South African choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo and others at music festivals. In London, she also viewed Zimbabwean garments and other artifacts at the British Museum and studied with a Shona language tutor to further inform her creative work. Concluding her summer in Harare and Domboshava, Zimbabwe, she consulted historical newspapers in the National Archives, interviewed family members to learn about the Njuzu Ritual that is central to her piece, and collaborated with friends on how to incorporate traditional Shona rhythm, scales, and instrumentation into the music, and translate Shona lyrics for her show. Upon her return to campus in September, she had been working on the piece for eight months and was ready to consult with her on-campus advisors, Associate Professor of Music Nathalie Joachim and Lecturer in Theater Shariffa Ali, to finalize the book, lyrics, and music. Rehearsals began in early February with further refinements to the musical through the rehearsal process.
Costume design for the production serves as Ngwara’s independent work for her theater certificate. She has worked in the Lewis Center’s costume shop for three years and had designed a couple of productions already. She derived inspiration for her designs from copies of Parade Magazine from the late 1970s that she read in the National Archives in Harare, as well as Shona garments and artifacts that she studied in the British Museum.
Ngwara, who is from Berkeley, California, grew up performing musical theater in school and in youth theater companies, and near the end of high school she discovered an interest in costume design. On campus she has been involved as a performer and costume designer for several Lewis Center theater productions, sang in the Princeton University Glee Club her first two years, and is involved with student groups such as Princeton University Players, Theater Intime, and Princeton Opera Company. She has worked as a “student stitcher” in the Lewis Center costume shop and as a mend leader with the Office of Sustainability. After Princeton, she plans to attend the Royal Academy of Music to pursue a Master of Music degree in music theater vocal performance.
Director of the production Sabina Jafri is a senior from Maryland majoring in economics and pursuing certificates in theater, music theater, and finance. She has directed several shows for the Program in Theater and Music Theater, including Lost Girl by Kimberly Bellflower, Bodywork by Juliette Carbonnier ’24, and Mine by Asher Muldoon ’23, which she took to the 2023 Edinburgh Festival Fringe following its premiere at Princeton. On campus, she has served as general manager of Theatre Intime and on the boards of other student theater groups. She will be living and working in New York City after graduation.
The rest of the student cast includes Runnie Exuma, Allan Gikonyo, Jeielle Habinam, Carrington Johnson, Wangari Karani, Whitney Njogu, Joshua Nanyaro, Tony Owens, David Smith, Sasha Villefranche, Kathy Wanju, and Le’Naya Wilkerson.
In addition to Jafri and the multiple roles Ngwara is undertaking, student members of the production team include Erin Macanze and Tecla Mafa as set and props designers, Sahaf Chowdhury as lighting designer, Dominic Dominguez and Kasey Shao as co-sound designers, Kate Stewart as choreographer, Elena Milliken as stage manager with Khalil Benjamin, Steph Chen, and Nina Shih as assistant stage managers, and Rowen Genue as publicity coordinator.
Visit the Lewis Center website to learn more about this event, the Lewis Center for the Arts, and the more than 100 public performances, exhibitions, readings, screenings, concerts, lectures, and special events presented by the Lewis Center each year, most of them free.
