Former Amakorokoza star, Frank Malaba, better known by his screen name of Dr Phumza, is reaffirming his new-found status as a gay artiste in the showbiz industry in South Africa.
The dreadlocked actor recently hit headlines with a veiled admission that he is involved in a gay relationship on his facebook page.
The tongue-in-cheek admission linked Malaba to a practice in Zimbabwe regarded as taboo. President Mugabe has spoken strongly against the practice, referring to its participants as worse than dogs and pigs.
Malaba is working as a producer and host of a radio talk show called Outspoken which is beamed from the Cape Point to Tanzania on DStv audio channel 169.
He was involved in the making of a movie in South Africa called Naties Garage set for release in September where he plays a chef who has lost his job and has to find alternative means of survival to sustain his family.
He also teamed up with top South African female poet Napo Masheane in scripting a production called Lejwe which means stone in Sotho.
Frank Malaba says "in this play I am an 8-year-old boy who has been sexually abused by a family friend and grows through to face his demons as a man."
The dreadlocked actor has also recently been in a Wits University theatre project whose name and overview he could not be drawn into revealing as it is not in circulation yet. The production is set to embark on a tour of Africa.
He also revealed that he was also writing a one-man piece which will premiere in Port Elizabeth in August. In this solo effort Malaba plays a gay man who is challenged by his life in hetero-normative society. It will also be performed in Europe.
He says, "I will start off in The Netherlands, then possibly Miami and San Francisco for now . . . . Depending on availability of sponsorship it might go further."
The project seems to reaffirm Malaba's conviction in his new-found status as a gay and confirms all speculation about his sexual preferences. To take issues further, Malaba will on 16 May make his debut on LA Talk Radio in North Hollywood.
Frank Malaba said I am the new voice on a show called The Alternative. There I cover the progression of gay rights in Africa and how they are fairing in the light of homophobia sweeping across Africa.
Most African countries have outlawed homosexuality. Malawi has made two arrests of a gay couple who solemnised their union. Uganda is crafting legislation to curb the practice but has faced fierce criticism from Western countries.
http://www.chronicle.co.zw/inside.as...tid=8600&cat=3
