Mama Afrika, comes to The Apex in Bury St Edmunds celebrating the life of iconic South African singer and civil rights activist, Miriam Makeba

Mama Afrika, at The Apex in Bury St Edmunds on November 12, celebrates the life of iconic South African singer and civil rights activist, Miriam Makeba.

Known for her role in championing Black rights and her resistance to apartheid, Miriam Makeba’s rise from the townships of Johannesburg to international stardom is a testament to her resilience, activism and love for music. Anna Mudeka’s evocative one-woman performance captures the indomitable spirit of the woman affectionately known as ‘Mama Afrika’.

Describing her inspiration for the show, Anna told us: “When I was growing up as a young girl in Zimbabwe, Miriam Makeba was one of the women singers I admired, who made me want to sing and perform. When she performed with Paul Simon in Harare in 1987 it had a big impact on me, and I became more aware of her story – that she had been living in forced exile from South Africa and had been outspoken against the apartheid regime. I always had in mind I would like to tell her story.

“This became a bigger idea after she died in 2008. By then I was living in England and developing a career as a singer. I worked with Norwich Arts Centre on an idea and the more we looked into Makeba’s life the more it seemed to cry out for a performance show.”

Explaining the lengthy development process of producing a show such as this, Anna said: “In 2010, I performed a storytelling version of her life, but it wasn’t quite right. I parked the idea. However, at that time I developed a one woman show about my own life called Kure Kure, describing my own upbringing in Zimbabwe and the experience of coming to England as a young woman in the 1990s. We did a tour of this show, and it gave me the confidence to perform in a one-woman format, so soon we returned to the Miriam Makeba idea.

“In 2016, I received an R&D grant from the Arts Council and this enabled me to further research Miriam Makeba’s life and to work with a team over two years to develop the show. This led to some initial performances and then a tour in 2024, which received an amazing reception. Now we’re taking it to bigger venues.”

Anna draws on her own Zimbabwean roots to pay tribute to this towering figure in African music history with her heartfelt storytelling and some of Makeba’s best-known songs, including Mbube, Pata Pata, and Soweto Blues.

Makeba’s indomitable spirit is highlighted through key events like the Sharpeville massacre, her forced exile, her testimony to the United Nations, her controversial marriage to Black Panther Stokely Carmichael, and her later role as a Pan-African ambassador.

“I conceived this show 15 years ago, so it’s gratifying to see it grow and perform it in bigger theatres around the country and bring the inspiring story of Miriam Makeba to new audiences.”

In Mama Afrika, Anna offers a powerful narrative of hope, determination and song. “It’s a great show for anybody interested in apartheid era politics in South Africa, or Makeba’s music, or just to hear an inspiring story of a woman who stood up to powerful governments until she became known throughout Afrika as a symbol of determination and independence widely revered as ‘Mama Afrika’.”

Anna Mudeka’s Mama Afrika is at The Apex on Wednesday, November 12, at 7.30pm. See theapex.co.uk or call 01284 758000