Skip to content

Nzinga

A creation by the Centre du Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui and the Théâtre de La Sentinelle

As part of Black History Month, Théâtre français de Toronto presents Nzinga, a one-woman show presented in French with English Surtitles.

Born in the Congo, Tatiana Zinga Botao grew up in Brussels before moving to Quebec. As an adult, she discovers that she shares her name with a queen who ruled over a vast African territory in the 17th century. Alone on stage, the artist retraces the ancestral thread that connects her to her namesake while following the Congo-Belgium-Canada triangle she herself has traveled.

Co-written by Alexis DiamondMarie Louise Bibish Mumbu, and Tatiana Zinga BotaoNzinga portrays exile as a stance of pride and dignity. With the collaboration of French-Congolese director Albertine M. Itela, the creators set out to tell their own stories in their own way, while sharing their vision of a world where women take their rightful place in positions of influence and power.

Credits

Cast: Tatiana Zinga Botao
Text: Alexis Diamond and Marie Louise Bibish Mumbu with the collaboration of Tatiana Zinga Botao
Director: Albertine M. Itela
Assistant director: Josianne Dulong-Savignac
Set design: Xavier Mary
Lighting: Valérie Bourque
Soundscape: Larsen Lupin
Video: Joy Boissière
Costumes: Ange Blédja Kouassi
Movement: Claudia Chan Tak
Make-up: Audrey Toulouse
Scenic painting: Véronique Pagnoux
Video integration: Vladimir Cara
Stage manager: Ariane Brière
Production manager: Marie-Christine Martel
Technical director: Xavier Côté

February 26
to February 28, 2026

Tickets are Regular: $60 | Seniors: $50 | Under 30 & Artists: $22.50 | Same-day rush tickets: $15, $20, or $25 | Group rate (8+): $20 per ticket

Venue

Franco Boni Theatre

Performance Dates

Thursday, February 26 – 8pm
Friday, February 27 – 8pm
Saturday February 28 – 3pm

This performance is 70 minutes

Lindy smiling at the naming event to close the capital campaign
November 25, 2025
From Artistic Director Aislinn Rose “We, and the artists and community who have found a home at 1115 Queen Street West, shall be forever grateful. Thank you Lindy.” Lindy Cowan and Chris Hatley being celebrated at the naming event for The Theatre Centre’s Franco Boni Theatre in 2016, and the closing of our capital campaign. I...

Facing a Widowed Father by Alten Wilmot

Directed by Andrew Moodie
When Alliston, a high-achieving graduate student, discovers that the $35,000 from his mother’s life insurance – meant to cover his tuition – has gone missing, he spirals into crisis. As he enters desperation, he is forced to confront his estranged father, Daniel, and the unresolved grief that has fractured their relationship.

Set against the backdrop of university life, the play explores the tension between personal ambition and familial obligation within a Caribbean immigrant household. Through humour, heartbreak, and moments of deep vulnerability, Facing a Widowed Father examines how grief shapes the way we love, forgive, and move forward.

Cast:
TBA