Swiss director Boris Nikitin and filmmaker Tšeliso Monaheng present KIDS, a live cinema odyssey in inner-city Johannesburg, from 2 – 4 October 2026.

Acclaimed Swiss director and writer Boris Nikitin joins forces with Johannesburg-based filmmaker, cinematographer and cultural journalist Tšeliso Monaheng to present KIDS, an ambitious live cinema production that transforms the streets of inner-city Johannesburg into a cinematic stage. The production will premiere at the Market Theatre Laboratory from 2–4 October 2026.

Part theatre, part film, and entirely live, KIDS follows a group of young people wandering through Johannesburg after dark. Born in the early 2000s, they have come of age in a world shaped by economic instability, global conflict, social fragmentation and digital hyperconnectivity. They inhabit a multicultural society, but not necessarily an equitable one. Curious, angry, hopeful, ironic and deeply vulnerable, these young people refuse to hide their uncertainty. Instead, they turn it into a source of power.

These kids are not children. They are poets, witnesses and visionaries navigating the contradictions of contemporary life.

“KIDS explores the emotional landscape of a generation that has inherited uncertainty yet continues to imagine new possibilities. Their vulnerability is not a weakness but a form of resistance and a way of seeing the world with radical honesty,” says Boris Nikitin.

Each performance unfolds simultaneously across the streets of inner-city Johannesburg and inside the theatre. Equipped with cameras, the performers move through the city in real time while their journey is broadcast live onto a large screen at the Market Theatre Laboratory. The audience witnesses both the intimacy of individual encounters and the vast social and architectural landscape of Johannesburg itself.

The result is an immersive and dynamic work that blurs the boundaries between documentary, fiction, performance and cinema. The city becomes a living stage, and the theatre transforms into a space of collective witnessing.

“Johannesburg has always been a city of contradictions, movement and reinvention. Through live cinema, we are able to capture the immediacy of the city and the emotional reality of the young people who inhabit it. Every performance becomes a unique encounter between the audience, the performers and the city itself,” says Tšeliso Monaheng.

KIDS follows Nikitin’s critically acclaimed production DÄMONEN (DEMONS), first presented at Theater Basel in 2022, which earned praise for its innovative fusion of live performance and cinematic language. The production forms part of a broader ten-part live cinema cycle investigating the emotional realities, anxieties and aspirations of young people in the twenty-first century.

“KIDS asks us to look at young people beyond the labels and assumptions often placed on them. What emerges is a generation that is deeply aware of the world it has inherited, yet determined to create new meanings and possibilities within it. Johannesburg becomes both witness and participant in that journey, offering a space where vulnerability, imagination and resistance can coexist.” — Mongezi Ntukwana, Assistant Director Bringing together international and South African artistic voices, KIDS offers a compelling portrait of contemporary youth while presenting Johannesburg as both a subject and collaborator in the work. Through its blend of live filmmaking, documentary observation and theatrical storytelling, the production creates an unforgettable urban odyssey that speaks to audiences across generations.

Critical Acclaim for DEMONS

“Incredibly good… ‘Demons’ is a huge, insane, pumping organism that you leave with a surprising sense of confidence. A world with such youth is not lost. Far from it.” — Bajour

“Sometimes everything comes across as casual and everyday, as in the Nouvelle Vague, sometimes it has the wit and aggression of Tarantino films. An intoxicating scene event, precisely planned and rehearsed, dance of death and exorcism in one.”

— German National Broadcast

Performance Information

World Premiere Performances 2, 3 & 4 October 2026

Johannesburg

Ramolao Makhene Theatre, Market Theatre Laboratory

Basel

Kaserne Basel Lugano FIT – Festival Internazionale del Teatro

Further Performances

11–12 December 2026 – HAU Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin

Language: English (German surtitles in Basel)

Format: Live cinema and theatre, transmitted live from Johannesburg

Artistic Team

Concept, Text and Direction: Boris Nikitin

Director of Photography and Conceptual Collaboration: Tšeliso Monaheng

Director of Photography: Bantu Mahlangu

Cast: Chioma Mphelo, Chrisophocus Seboka, Kenzo Hendrix, Nidaa Husain, Thabang Chauke

Sound: Matthias Meppelink

Costume Design: Nthabiseng Makone

Costume Assistant: Molebogeng Phiri

Dramaturgy: Annett Hardegen

Outside Eyes: Neo Muyanga, Sebastian Nübling

Assistant Directors: Mongezi Ntukwana, Ngwedi Ramphele

Johannesburg Production Manager: Thantaswa Mthembu

Switzerland/Germany Production Manager: Alexa Tepen

Johannesburg Technical Director: Michael Inglis

Switzerland/Germany Technical Director: Sebastian Sommer

Production Credits

Direction: Boris Nikitin

Co-Direction: Mongezi Ntukwana

Director of Photography: Tšeliso Monaheng

Camera Operator: Bantu Mahlangu

Co-commissioned by: Kaserne Basel, HAU – Hebbel am Ufer Berlin, Festival Spielart München und FIT Lugano.

Supported by: Gessnerallee Zürich; Fachausschuss Tanz & Theater of the Kantone Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft; Pro Helvetia; Ernst Göhner Stiftung; Goethe-Institut International Co-Production Fund; Stiftung Landis & Gyr.

Media Enquiries:
Noluthando Teedo Love Rotwane Love Infinity Media
E-mail: Thando@loveinfinitymedia.com
Phone: +27 78 198 9416

High-resolution production images, press materials and interview opportunities are available on request.

Bongiwe Potelwa
bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za
079 967 3441
The Market Theatre Foundation
http://www.markettheatre.co.za