More than just a gathering, the night offered meaningful engagement with culture, honest reflection on the state of human rights today and a shared conviction in the power of the arts to amplify unheard voices and spotlight hidden figures. 

Speaking on the first night held alongside the Foundation for Human Rights, Chief Executive Officer of The Market Theatre Foundation Tshiamo Mokgadi said partnering with The Market Theatre was about investing in people and the stories that shaped their place in society. 

“This institution,” continued Mokgadi, “has never been built by infrastructure alone—it has always been built by people. And tonight is about people. It is not just a dinner. It is not just a performance. It is an intentional space where organisations like The Market Theatre and the Foundation for Human Rights come together with individuals who have the ability not only to appreciate the arts, but to shape its future.” 

The sustainability of institutions like The Market Theatre Foundation depended on relationships anchored on shared values.  

Throughout the three evenings, guests were treated to an intimate viewing of a powerful and thought-provoking exhibition featuring works by Justice Mukheli, Fhatuwani Mukheli, Siphamandla EX, Steve Maphoso, Thabiso Dakamela, Toni Mac, Tshepiso Seleke.  

Again, they watched “Under the Shade of a Tree I Sat and Wept”, a piercing and irreverent new play that explores national reconciliation and public forgiveness through South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and Kosovo’s Movement for the Reconciliation of Blood Feuds.  

The performance was introduced by Artistic Director Greg Homann, who also served as the play’s dramaturg. Staged in the 30th year since the TRC – chaired by Archbishop Desmond Tutu – began its business, the play tackled the complexity of forgiveness, reconciliation and healing.  

The TRC’s 30th anniversary coincides with 50 years of The Market Theatre being “a custodian of history, a space of resistance, and a driver of contemporary cultural dialogue,” according to Mokgadi. 

Foundation for Human Rights Executive Director Dr. Zaid Kimmie stressed the power of memory, noting, “As we age out as a new generation, the past really is a different place. And part of our task is to continue to bring that past and our history to people. The world outside, as we’ve seen, is a grim and dark place, and getting grimmer and darker. And that should serve as a warning to us that as bad as things may look, they can get substantially worse, and we have to put in some hard work.” 

Janet Jobson from the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation echoed Mokgadi’s remarks, describing The Market Theatre as a space that “refused to look away” but boldly held the mirror to a country that couldn’t dare look at itself. Archbishop Tutu, she told the room, “loved people who refused to look away” like The Market Theatre’s decades-long record.  

Jobson was addressing the second night of the Cultural Experience, with a strong focus on the role of Archbishop Tutu in championing healing, justice and reconciliation both as an activist and the face of the TRC process.   

The third and final episode of the evenings was held on Friday, 17 April 2026. It brought together the nation-building and reconciliation legacy of Nelson Mandela, as well as The Market Theatre’s anti-apartheid resistance in one room. Like previous experiences, the night offered rich moments for reflection on current affairs, while reimagining a prosperous future for all. 

Addressing guests, Mbongiseni Buthelezi – Chief Executive Officer of the Nelson Mandela Foundation – said more work still needed to be done to realise President Mandela’s dream for a better life for all. “In South Africa today, we are still confronted with inequality, division, and unresolved pain,” Buthelezi said. “Art has the power to hold up a mirror to society, not to shame us, but to ask: who are we becoming, and who do we still need to be?”   

As critical conversations simmered and networks were formed, visceral artworks that blended photography and paintings lingered on the walls, beckoning everyone to remember not to forget.  

“The exhibition expresses the essence of presence, and the presence expresses the essence of truth. If you go through all these images, you will see little glimpses of moments that you remember,” stated Nomad’s creative director Kenosi Malebye.