South African actress Ama Qamata is set to make her United Kingdom stage debut in the world premiere of Ryan Calais Cameron’s new play The Afronauts at London’s prestigious Royal Court Theatre. The production, which opens on 14 November 2026 and runs until 19 December, marks a significant milestone for the Blood & Water star as she steps onto one of Britain’s most influential stages.
Qamata will play the role of Matha in the ensemble cast. The play is led by Zimbabwean British actor Lucian Msamati, best known internationally for his work in Game of Thrones, who takes the central role of Edward. Fellow South African actress Pamela Nomvete, remembered by many for her iconic turn in the long-running soap Generations, also joins the company.
Other cast members include Ivanno Jeremiah, Chomba S. Taulo, Munashe Chirisa, Lukwesa Mwamba and Prince Kundai.
The Afronauts is inspired by the remarkable true-ish story of Zambia’s short-lived space programme in 1964. Shortly after the country gained independence, schoolteacher and freedom fighter Edward Mukuka Nkoloso assembled a group of young dreamers in a field outside Lusaka.
With improvised equipment and boundless ambition, he trained them as “Afronauts” with the goal of reaching the moon ahead of the United States and the Soviet Union. The play transforms this forgotten chapter of African history into a vibrant exploration of imagination, resistance, and national possibility.
Playwright Ryan Calais Cameron, whose previous successes include the Olivier-nominated For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When the Hue Gets Too Heavy and Retrograde, co-directs the production with Monique Touko. Touko has previously directed the sold-out G at the Royal Court and the West End transfer of Jaja’s African Hair Braiding.
Their collaboration closes the Royal Court’s 70th anniversary season in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs.
Qamata expressed her excitement on social media shortly after the casting news broke. “Next stop is the UK! Can’t believe I’m going to be an Afronaut!! I absolutely love this story & I just know you guys will LOVE it too. Thank you for this incredible opportunity let’s take it to the moon,” she posted.
About the Actress
Born Amamkele Lithemba Qamata on 2 September 1998 in the Eastern Cape village of Cala, Qamata moved to Johannesburg as a young child. She attended Reddam House Bedfordview and briefly studied theatre and performance at the University of Cape Town before leaving to pursue acting full-time.
Her screen career began with small roles in My Perfect Family and Rhythm City. She rose to national prominence as Buhle Ndaba in the Mzansi Magic telenovela Gomora and achieved international recognition as Puleng Khumalo in Netflix’s Blood & Water, Africa’s longest-running original series.
In recent years Qamata has expanded her range. She starred in and co-produced the feature film Fight Like a Girl, which premiered in London and later in the Democratic Republic of Congo, earning her a Rising Star Award at the Naples International Film Festival and a Best Actress nomination at the African Movie Academy Awards.
She has also appeared in the Netflix series Marked and serves as a L’Oréal Paris Sub-Saharan Africa ambassador. Her move into theatre continues a trajectory that has steadily taken her from South African screens to international platforms.
The casting of two South African actresses alongside an established British African lead underscores the growing cross-pollination of talent between the continent and the UK theatre scene. Nomvete, who has worked extensively on both sides of the Atlantic, including in Coronation Street and on stage at the National Theatre, brings deep experience to the production.
Msamati, a founder member of Zimbabwe’s Over the Edge theatre company and a regular presence at major British venues, anchors the story with gravitas.
Cameron has described the play as “a love letter to the dreamers history forgot.” It examines what happens when imagination becomes a form of resistance and when a newly independent nation dares to claim its place among the stars.
In an era when African stories continue to gain greater visibility on global stages, The Afronauts arrives as both historical reclamation and contemporary statement.
Tickets for the limited run at the Royal Court are already on sale, with prices ranging from £15 to £74.50 and various concessions available. Press night is scheduled for 23 November 2026. For Qamata, the production represents more than a career first. It places a young South African performer at the centre of a bold new work that celebrates African ambition on one of London’s most important stages.
As the Afronauts prepare for lift-off, audiences in the UK and beyond will have the chance to witness a story that proves dreams, however improbable, remain powerful.
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