ZENZO Nyathi is probably the most talented actor of his generation.

Nyathi was born the fifth in a family of 9 children. He did his primary education at Lotshe Primary School and his secondary education at Mzilikazi High School. What is most interesting is that he didn’t do drama at school only to take it up when he came to Amakhosi.

Nyathi trained as an artist at Amakhosi Performance Arts Workshop between 1993 and 1995. He trained in scripting, acting, dancing, singing and directing.

He made his stage debut in Children On Fire in 1993. the play was written by Cont Mhlanga and directed  by Sihlangu Dlodlo. In that same year he performed in Games and Bombs, appearing as a naughty school boy. The play was written and directed by Cont Mhlanga.

In 1994, he featured in another play by Cont Mhlanga called The End and in 1995, he was to feature in the musical, Njini-Njini, as a dancer and an actor.

“I believe this is the play that made my breakthrough as an actor and a performer. It toured Europe and gave me a lot of experience, and at last I felt like a true artist. It was my first time to do something really professional in terms of set, choreography and so forth,” he said.

In 1996, he featured as an actor in a Ramsey Kasawaya production titled, Abalamu. In the following year, he appeared in Somkhence, a township opera as an actor and a poet. The play was written and directed by Ramsey Kasawaya. This was just a few years after he had completed hi s training.     

In the same year, Nyathi appeared in an international production, White Lies And Black Myths, written by Gorgon Teater and directed by Norwegian, Piere Roar. 

The year was a busy one for the young artist as he also appeared in three other productions making them six. The other three were Don’t written and directed by Cont Mhlanga, Once Upon Time which he co-wrote with Mandla Moyo and Wiling Mhlanga and directed by Mandla Moyo and Kudliwa Ulimi, which he wrote with Mandla Moyo and was also directed by Moyo.

It is befitting that in 1998 Nyathi only had to appear in Street Life, written and direct by Mandla Moyo, because in the following year he appeared in three plays one of them an international production. In 1999, he appeared in Giya Ngonyawo as a dancer. It was his production. In the same year he appeared in Members, a play that has become a classic in Ndebele theatre lore. The play was written and directed by Cont Mhlanga. Operation Swart Boy was done with Ukumwe theatre Project, a Namibian Company and it was directed by Cont Mhlanga.  

At the turn of the millennium he celebrated the phenomena by appearing in four productions; Love A Fever by Cont Mhlanga, his own production Dance Ipito, Witnesses and Victims written by Raisedon Baya and directed by Sihlangu Dlodlo and Screams and Tears written by Raisedon Baya and directed by Cont Mhlanga. 

In 2001, he appeared in five productions; his own production, A Walk Across Africa, Making A Difference written and directed by Cont Mhlanga, Two Cheers For A Patriot written by Raisedon Baya and directed by Cont Mhlanga, Dare/Enkundleni written and directed by Cont Mhlanga and a Thulani Mbambo production, What’s Left? as a dancer. 

In 2002 he acted in a Raisedon Baya adaptation of Athol Fuggard’s Hello And Goodbye as an actor. He also helped with the music of the play. He also appeared in an AIDS awareness play, Vikela, written by Raisedon Baya and Cont Mhlanga and directed by Bigboy Ndebele. In 2003 he did Madmen and Fools by Raisedon Baya and Honourable MP written by CH Musengezi and directed by Mackay Tickeys. In the same year he also appeared in Raisedon Baya’s plays; Rags And Garbage I and Rags And Garbage II and Tomorrow’s People.  In 2004, he appeared in South African playwright, Nicholas Elenbogen’s Kukweta. The play was produced by Mandla Moyo.

Nyathi has appeared in various television dramas. In 1997 he appeared in School Terror, a play written and directed by Sihlangu Dlodlo and in 1999, he appeared in one of the most memorable Ndebele television drams, Hlengiwe Mntanami, again written and directed by Sihlangu Dlodlo.

In 2002 he appeared in short plays, Omunye Umngcwabo written by Sikhangele Ngwenya and Bamqgibela Ephila written by S. Thebe. The plays were both directed by Cont Mhlanga. In the same year he also appeared in the popular sitcom, Sinjalo, written by Cont Mhlanga and directed by Pedzisayi Sithole. In 2003 he acted in Isililo written and directed by Raisedon Baya. He is currently part of the soap, Amakorokoza, where he is playing Mzambane. 

Nyathi has conducted a lot of workshops in schools and for various organizations that include Chitungwiza Youth Club, Youth Health Organisation (Y.O.H.O ) Botswana, Sigangatsha Home Based Care (Kezi), Chipawo Children’s Theatre and Tiyanjani (Zambia). He is coach of various disciplines such as theatre skills, traditional dance, staging, traditional music, stage combat, improvisation in drama, script development and staging and poetry.     

In 2000, he did a radio drama, Yellow Card, written by John Ribber and Andrew Whaley and directed by Pedzisayi Sithole and between 2002 and 2003 he was in Mopani Junction, a radio soap, written by Mandisi and Styx Mhlanga and directed by Memory Kumbota. 

Nyathi is a married with 2 children.

“To stay afloat in the industry one needs hard work,” said Nyathi.

“My future as an actor looks bright as they say a man makes his own lucky, I’m looking forward to doing more as I feel I have got a long way to go.