Nosiphiwo Samente

Nosiphiwo Samente earned a BA from Unisa in 2009, with majors in psychology and arts & culture.

Nosiphiwo Samente reflects a new generation of Unisa alumni: Internet- and social media-savvy, liberated, yet in sympathetic touch with South Africa’s past. One of her most acclaimed roles has been the iconic Saartjie Baartman, an early 19th-century Khoi woman who was shipped to Europe to serve in carnival freak shows as “The Hottentot Venus”, in the stage performance CARGO: Precious. After matriculating from Cape Town’s Trafalgar High School in 2005, Samente trained with the Jazzart dance company and became a professional company member in 2008. She remained with Jazzart until 2011 and during this time, completed her studies with Unisa. She then joined the Johannesburg-based Vuyani Dance Theatre and in 2013, the Forgotten Angle Theatre Collaborative, winning standout reviews with both companies. Samente also came into the broader public eye as a judge on SABC 1’s Jika Majika dance show.

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