Welcome to Jozi… but not as you know it. In this near-future South Africa, the internet is controlled, books are banned, and messages are monitored.

Most people do not question it. But Khanya does. Bored, curious, and always pushing the rules, Khanya’s life flips upside down when she crosses paths with a mysterious fugitive and discovers something illegal: a real, physical book. That one moment pulls her into the Underground Library – a secret movement hiding beneath the city, risking everything to protect knowledge the government wants erased.

What starts as curiosity becomes a full-blown mission. With drones in the sky, police on every corner, and a powerful new surveillance system about to take over, Khanya must decide: play it safe or fight for the truth.

The Underground Library by producer Charl Henning with second-year drama students of the University of the Free State (UFS), will be on stage from 21 to 23 May at the Scaena Rehearsal Room on the main campus of the UFS. The piece was written by Jon Keevy and has an age restriction of 13.

Henning says, “This is not just a story about books. It’s about who controls what you know, and what happens when you take that power back.”

Told in a bold, comic-book-inspired style, The Underground Library explodes onto the stage with high-speed chases, underground hideouts, hacking, secrets, rebellion and a group of youths who refuse to be silenced.

The show on 21 May starts at 16:00, at 18:00 on 22 May, and at 11:00 on 23 May.

Tickets cost R25 for school groups, R40 for students and pensioners, and R60 for adults. Tickets are available at the door and webtickets.co.za.