{"id":56675,"date":"2026-04-20T12:59:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T12:59:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=56675"},"modified":"2026-04-20T12:59:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T12:59:23","slug":"utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignsouth-african-veteran-actress-cynthia-shange-dies-at-76","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2026\/04\/20\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignsouth-african-veteran-actress-cynthia-shange-dies-at-76\/","title":{"rendered":"South African veteran actress Cynthia Shange dies at 76"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"mvp-content-main\">&#13;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_190589\" style=\"width: 610px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-190589\" class=\"wp-image-190589 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/South-African-veteran-actress-Cynthia-Shange-dies-at-76.jpg?resize=600%2C363&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"363\" srcset=\"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/South-African-veteran-actress-Cynthia-Shange-dies-at-76.jpg 600w, https:\/\/fakazanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Cynthia-Shange-1-300x182.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-190589\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Cynthia Shange has died<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Veteran actress and former beauty queen Cynthia Shange has passed away at the age of 76.<\/p>\n<p>The legend died in the early hours of Monday, 20 April 2026, at a hospital in KwaZulu-Natal following an illness, her family confirmed.<\/p>\n<p>The news was also shared by her daughter, Nonhle Thema, who paid tribute in an emotional message.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith a heavy heart, I share the news about our dear mother. Please keep my family in your prayers during this difficult time,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n<p>Tributes have since begun pouring in, with many remembering Shange as a woman of grace and compassion.<\/p>\n<p>A memorial message described her as \u201ca graceful and compassionate soul whose presence brought warmth, dignity, and kindness to all who knew her,\u201d adding that funeral arrangements will be announced soon.<\/p>\n<p>Shange rose to prominence in the 1970s when she made history as the first Black woman to be crowned Miss Africa South, breaking barriers during a time of racial segregation.<\/p>\n<p>She later represented South Africa on the global stage at the Miss World pageant in London in 1972, where she placed fifth.<\/p>\n<p>Her influence extended into television, where she built a celebrated acting career.<\/p>\n<p>She became widely known for her role in <em>Udeliwe<\/em> and later portrayed Mkabayi in <em>Shaka Zulu<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Years later, she remained a beloved figure on screen through her appearance on Muvhango, introducing her talent to a new generation of viewers.<\/p>\n<p>Throughout her career, Shange received multiple accolades recognising her contribution to the arts, including a Lifetime Achievement Award at the South African Film and Television Awards and honours from the Simon Mabhunu Sabela Awards.<\/p>\n<p>She is survived by her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, with her family noting that her legacy will continue to live on through the many lives she touched.<\/p>\n<p><!-- CONTENT END 4 -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#South #African #veteran #actress #Cynthia #Shange #dies<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#13; Cynthia Shange has died Veteran actress and former beauty queen Cynthia Shange has passed away at the age of&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":56676,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-56675","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56675","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56675"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56675\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56677,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56675\/revisions\/56677"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56675"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56675"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56675"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}