bIOGRAPHY
Princess Zinzi Mhlongo was born in eMalahleni, Witbank in Mpumalanga, and completed her Bachelors Degree in Drama in 2007.
Her professional directing debut was a production of AND THE GIRLS IN THEIR SUNDAY DRESSES presented at The State Theatre Edinburgh Festival and the Festival Afrovibes in the UK to name a few. In 2010 she was selected to be part of 12 theatre makers from across the world to participate in the Theatre Foreman Festival in Braunschweig Germany.
Subsequent to this, Princess was selected as one of four international young directors to take part in the Salzburg Austria Young Directors Project for 2012, where she showcased her production TRAPPED. In the same year, she was awarded the Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year for Theatre 2012, during which time she directed TRAPPED at National Arts Festival Makhanda and at the Salzburg Festival. In 2014 she directed COOKING WITH ELISA which debuted at the National Arts Festival Makhanda and for which she received 6 Naledi Theatre Awards nominations! For seven years, she also ran an independent performance space called The Plat4orm, attending to the need to develop new uncensored work in the industry. In 2014 and 2016 she directed Gogo and Big Sister based on the Legend Thembi Mtshali Jones musical life. The play was showcased at The National Black Theatre Festival in North Carolina in both years. In 2016 she directed a new musical Divas Of Kofifi based on the lives of Dorothy Masuku, Abigail Kubeka, and Thandi Klassen with sold-out shows. In 2017 - 2019 she explored music management working with one of the country's biggest stars Samthing Soweto. Most recently she was selected to be part of the Georgetown University Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics as one of ten Fellows in the 2020-22 cohort. In 2022 she produced The Black Circus of the Republic of Bantu which has an international tour 2023 aswell as a feature Inkabi The Hitman to debut on Netflix 2023.
Mhlongo is also the managing director of African Entertainers, a company that seeks to develop new voices in film and performance art.
Her professional directing debut was a production of AND THE GIRLS IN THEIR SUNDAY DRESSES presented at The State Theatre Edinburgh Festival and the Festival Afrovibes in the UK to name a few. In 2010 she was selected to be part of 12 theatre makers from across the world to participate in the Theatre Foreman Festival in Braunschweig Germany.
Subsequent to this, Princess was selected as one of four international young directors to take part in the Salzburg Austria Young Directors Project for 2012, where she showcased her production TRAPPED. In the same year, she was awarded the Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year for Theatre 2012, during which time she directed TRAPPED at National Arts Festival Makhanda and at the Salzburg Festival. In 2014 she directed COOKING WITH ELISA which debuted at the National Arts Festival Makhanda and for which she received 6 Naledi Theatre Awards nominations! For seven years, she also ran an independent performance space called The Plat4orm, attending to the need to develop new uncensored work in the industry. In 2014 and 2016 she directed Gogo and Big Sister based on the Legend Thembi Mtshali Jones musical life. The play was showcased at The National Black Theatre Festival in North Carolina in both years. In 2016 she directed a new musical Divas Of Kofifi based on the lives of Dorothy Masuku, Abigail Kubeka, and Thandi Klassen with sold-out shows. In 2017 - 2019 she explored music management working with one of the country's biggest stars Samthing Soweto. Most recently she was selected to be part of the Georgetown University Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics as one of ten Fellows in the 2020-22 cohort. In 2022 she produced The Black Circus of the Republic of Bantu which has an international tour 2023 aswell as a feature Inkabi The Hitman to debut on Netflix 2023.
Mhlongo is also the managing director of African Entertainers, a company that seeks to develop new voices in film and performance art.