The play, Phinda Ubuyele, is a recollection of memories knitted together by a brother (LUNTU) and a sister (THANDO). They spent their childhood under the surveillance of an abusive father and an ailing mother. In their adulthood, they are each other’s refuge as they begin to remember the events of their past in order to uncover the hidden narratives of their own lives.

The play deals with many different themes, including generational trauma, regression, and survivor’s guilt. The two siblings have to examine the inherited traumas of their past which often cause them to revert to earlier stages of their development as a defence mechanism. In the play, the siblings shift from the adult ages of 32 (LUNTU) and 28 (THANDO) to their time of early childhood of about 10 (LUNTU) and 6 years of age (THANDO). The complicated relationship with time and memory is juxtaposed with their nuanced relationship with the guilt each child/adult carries about their role in the demise of their family unit.