Alice Childress’s thought-provoking and ground-breaking play puts a spotlight on sexism and racism in Trouble in Mind. Set in New York in the 1950s, it follows the challenges and tensions faced by a group of actors - both black and white - as they come together to rehearse and perform a play. The New York Times described it as “a fresh, lively and cutting …”


Childress was the first black playwright to win an Obie Award. Fleur du Cap winner Mdu Kweyama (Reza de Wet’s Missing, Woza Albert, The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?) tackles this play-within-a-play, highlighting the contrast between the characters' public personas and their true feelings and frustrations. Stage, film and television blueblood, Thembi Mtshali-Jones, leads the formidable cast which includes members of the Baxter’s resident company.