A theatre worth R150 million  has been built in Soweto, making the township one of the most developed in South Africa.

The magnificent Soweto Theatre is made up of three massive cubes of three colours; red, blue and yellow. The original concept designer, Clara da Cruz Almeida, said the idea was to make the building accessible to local residents.

The theatre, which is situated in the Jabulani CBD, is expected to generate a lot of income for businesses in the area.

At the opening night on Friday, Jazz legend Khaya Mahlangu will jam with the Soweto Jazz Orchestra, before a performance of Soweto-born writer and literary critic Es’kia Mphahlele’s short story ‘The Suitcase’, which has been adapted for the stage by director James Ngcobo .

“This is the first step, we need more space for creative people to express themselves,” Mahlangu told the Sowetan.

Acting chief executive, Steven Sack, said the new theatre was an iconic building that would serve to celebrate the historical significance of the famous township.“I hope the theatre will become a symbol of Soweto, a township of 1.5 million people that has been home to Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu and was the scene of the 1976 Soweto uprising against apartheid policies,” he said.

Soweto Theatre spokesperson Innocent Xaba told the paper that “the theatre’s main objective is to produce performing arts in a wide variety of genres that will stimulate discussion on a variety of challenging issues, thereby actively contributing to the vision of transforming the City of Johannesburg into a ‘world-class African city’.”

Tickets for the opening night will cost between R40 and R60.

Will you be there?