Discipline of Music, Drama and Performance

Press Release

Durban, KwaZulu-Natal — The Centre for Jazz and Popular Music (CJPM) presents Twosday: Jazz and Poetry Offering, featuring award-winning South African performance poet and author Thandiwe Nqanda, on Tuesday, 13 October 2026 at 17:30.

Nqanda brings her distinctive fusion of poetry, jazz and live storytelling to the stage in an immersive performance exploring memory, loss, love, healing and spiritual reflection. Rooted in personal and collective remembrance, her work gives voice to experiences that are often left unspoken, creating space for audiences to reflect, remember and connect.

The performance forms part of CJPM’s Twosday series, a platform that encourages artistic exchange and collaboration across disciplines. By blending musical styles and disciplines—in this case, poetry and jazz—Twosday encourages cross-genre collaboration and creates innovative performances that push the boundaries of the traditional concert experience.

Nqanda is the author of the debut poetry collection No, Time To Mourn (2023). Her work has featured at major literary and arts platforms including the Open Book Festival, National Arts Festival and Poetry Africa, while her poem “the mourners” was published in New Contrast in 2024. She also co-wrote the theatrical production Grieve, That Is How You Survive, which premiered at the National Arts Festival in 2023.

Her engagement with jazz includes the musical poetry show IT IS TIME and collaborations with jazz musicians including Kujenga, Vuyo Viwe and the Guftahs.

For this Durban performance, Nqanda will be joined by Makgashule Thothela on piano, Zolile Mgqantsa on bass and Bayanda Msomi on drums, with Thando Fuze appearing as guest poet.

Fuze is a Durban-born poet, performer, writer, curator and cultural activist whose work explores identity, gender, sexuality and contemporary social experience. She is also the founder of SHEfted Minds, a platform supporting and amplifying women artists and creative voices.

Together, the artists will create an intimate evening where poetry and jazz meet in a shared space of rhythm, memory and reflection.

Tickets: General: R130, Pensioners: R100, Students: R70

Cash at the door or via Webtickets https://www.webtickets.co.za/v2/event.aspx?itemid=1599391395

Getting there: Please use Gate 3 or Gate 8 off Rick Turner Road.