The Playhouse Studio is set to transport audiences to apartheid-era South Africa with Sizwe Banzi is Dead, a thrilling tale of identity and freedom. Directed by former Everyman and Playhouse Director in Residence Matthew Xia, this momentous, play comes to the Studio following a sell-out run at London’s Young Vic from Tuesday 10th to Saturday 14th June.

Sizwe Banzi is Dead exposes the struggle for freedom and identity in apartheid-era South Africa, unravelling the brutal absurdities of everyday life under oppression. Set in 1972 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Sizwe Banzi’s passbook gives him just three days to find work. With no work and he’ll be deported and that was four days ago. When Sizwe stumbles across a dead body with a passbook, he asks himself – does his identity card really define who he is? Could he give up his family and his name in order to survive?

The play, co-produced by Eclipse Theatre Company and the Young Vic, is directed by Matthew Xia who helmed Scrappers in the Playhouse’s space ‘upstairs’ last year. He said, “Athol Fugard and his collaborators have created a brutally honest portrayal of the everyday struggle faced by millions of South Africans under the apartheid regime. Despite the collapse of apartheid in the early 90’s the wider themes of immigration, identity and survival resonate all too loudly today.”

The two-hander features Sibusiso Mambo, whose credits include Richard E. Grant’s 2005 film Wah Wah, and Tonderai Munyevu (Othello, Watermill Newbury/Rose Theatre, Kingston).

The play has enjoyed two sell-out runs in London’s Young Vic, firstly in The Clare and then in The Maria Studio, and finishes its national tour at the Playhouse Studio.

Tickets for Sizwe Banzi is Dead are available from the Playhouse Theatre Box Office, by telephone on 0151 7094776 or online at www.everymanplayhouse.com. Tickets are priced at £12 and £10 for the Tuesday and matinee performances.