Sasha Fourie , Nadine Mckenzie(from Unmute Dance Theatre) will perform at Fame Week Africa 2026
South Africa’s only full-time professional inclusive dance company will perform Timelapse and join a panel on accessible production environments at the Fame Week’s Inclusive Lens Awards
CAPE TOWN, 26 October 2026 – A dance company whose work has been staged in South Korea, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Russia and Réunion Island will perform at this year’s FAME Week Africa, which opens at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on Wednesday, 28 October, and runs until Sunday, 1 November.
Cape Town-based Unmute Dance Theatre will present Timelapse on Thursday, 29 October, at 17:00 as part of the Inclusive Lens Awards. The company’s artistic director and co-founder, Nadine McKenzie, will speak on a panel shortly before the performance.
FAME Week Africa brings together filmmakers, producers, broadcasters, distributors and other professionals from the continent’s film, television and content industries. These are the people who commission work, cast productions and decide who gets hired. Unmute’s presence puts artists with disabilities directly in front of them.
A work that has travelled
Timelapse looks at how the experiences of a lifetime shape a person. Through movement and physical expression, the dancers trace the memories, emotions and relationships people carry with them, and the moments when they change or start again.
The piece has already been performed at KIADA in South Korea, at the Festival des Arts de la Marge in Réunion Island and at JOMBA! in Durban. The Cape Town performance gives South African industry audiences a chance to see a work that international festival programmers have already chosen.
The conversation before the curtain
McKenzie’s panel will look at how production companies can create safer and more accessible working environments, with a focus on accessibility, wellbeing and sustainability in the creative sector.
“For too long, disability has been left out of the rooms where creative decisions are made. Being part of FAME Week Africa is an opportunity to change that, not simply by putting artists with disabilities on stage, but by ensuring their voices, expertise and creative vision help shape the industry itself,” says McKenzie.
“Inclusion must be built into the way we work, create and collaborate, so that accessibility becomes standard practice rather than an afterthought.”
Thirteen years of professional practice
Unmute was formed after Remix Dance Company closed, leaving a gap in South Africa’s inclusive arts sector. Three of Unmute’s founders had developed their artistic practice at Remix and set out to continue the work.
Thirteen years later, Unmute employs and trains artists with disabilities on a full-time professional basis, the only company in the country to do so. Its work has been presented at No Limits Festival in Berlin, Tanz Kongress in Mainz, IntegrART in Switzerland, December Dance in Belgium, the Liverpool Biennial, Grenzgängerfestival in Munich and Proteatr in Moscow, among others.
At home, the company has performed at the National Arts Festival, JOMBA!, Suidoosterfees, Infecting the City, Kucheza and Sibikwa Arts Centre’s Body Moves.
Its recognition includes:
- Standard Bank Ovation Award, National Arts Festival Fringe (2015)
- Cultural Affairs Awards 2015/2016, Best Project Promoting the Involvement of Persons with Disabilities in the Visual, Performing and Literary Arts
- School Enrichment Awards 2025, first runner-up for Best Choreography of the Year and second runner-up for Best Dance Facilitation of the Year
Why it matters
According to Statistics South Africa’s Census 2022, about 3.3 million people in South Africa have a disability, roughly 7.5% of the population. Broader measures suggest the figure is considerably higher. People with disabilities still face barriers to employment, participation and representation across society, and the creative industries are no exception.
Unmute’s position is that being seen on stage or screen is only a starting point. Artists with disabilities also need workplaces where they can earn a living, lead projects and take part in creative decisions.
Event details
- Event: Inclusive Lens Awards, FAME Week Africa 2026
- Venue: Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC)
- Dates: 28 October to 1 November 2026
- Panel and performance: Thursday, 29 October; Timelapse at 17:00
