All My Ex-Lovers Are Dead, a quirky, witty and heartfelt one hander
By Tonderai Chiyindiko
The play All My Ex-Lovers Are Dead written and directed by Dara Beth and featuring the inimitable Qondiswa James is a quirky, witty and heartfelt one hander which explores familiar themes in a funny, relatable and at times self-deprecating way all the while keeping the audience spellbound and engaged.
In this piece, the story centres around a character chronicling past loves, ‘situation-ships’ and even entanglements in the hot mess that is modern relationships which often start unexpectedly, and are mediated by and eventually come to their predictable demise on social media.
One handers are not for the uninitiated and in Qondiswa James’ flawless and masterful performance, one almost as one should – when a character is so vividly brought to life by a supremely gifted actor – forgets that this is not her story but the story of Dara Beth. By immersing herself so seamlessly in the character, Qondiswa takes the audience on a rip-roading ride riddled with dark humour and tragicomedy.
All My Ex-Lovers Are Dead was part of the NEXT DRAFT showcase at the Joburg Theatre organized by forward-looking theatre producing machine POPArt Theatre. It was also a selected text for Artscape’s New Voices Programme (2021) and STAND Foundation’s Pen To Paper Programme (2022), after which it had a full run at Toyota SU Woordfees 2023. In 2024, the show was performed at the National Arts Festival as part of the Curated Programme and in Cape Town at the inaugural Heat Festival.