Musa "Queen" Njoko should be dead, if statistics are anything to go by. She contracted HIV at a time when treatment wasn't available; was hit by four bouts of TB, including life-threatening meningeal TB; was physically threatened when she publicly revealed her status; and close friends were murdered or died as a result of the virus.

Yet, against all odds, more than 20 years later Njoko is around to tell her story.And tonight she'll be telling that story on stage when her musical In My Own Voice, has its world premier at Durban's Playhouse Theatre on the final evening of the International Aids conference.Njoko is a seasoned performer with three gospel albums under her belt and a wealth of experience as an Aids activist and educator.The musical, she says, is her journey with HIV told against the backdrop of the South African situation.Don't expect doom and gloom, she says. "I have a message but the reason I wrote this musical was to create a different space to teach, learn and reflect - to find courage."Most people won't get up and go to a workshop. The musical is full of humour, it is uplifting, celebratory, it is entertaining. It ends with a concert where I present my music in a way that it's never been heard."The musical, directed by Edmund Mhlongo, has a 16-strong cast and a five-piece band. It is choreographed by Delani Makaye and, she says almost bursting with pride, her son Thami Njoko.Thami was 22 months old when his mother was diagnosed. She had been going to hospital for her monthly checkups. She had not been responding to her asthma pump and the doctor recommended she check for what was then called Aids."She told me that I fitted the profile - black, young, from a township, with a child. I waited two weeks for the test results. The doctor told me that I had Aids and that if I made it to Christmas it would be a miracle."When her son's second birthday came around she gave him a huge party. This was her turning point, her time to educate herself, help others and fight the disease and the attitudes it bred.She's battled against stigma all her life. Thrown out of her church, threatened by her gun-brandishing partner when she made her status public, she also found herself organising the funeral of co-activist Gugu Dlamini, who was murdered by a mob for disclosing her status. It was almost a decade before Njoko was able to access ARVs. But, she says: "Looking after myself emotionally, psychologically and spiritually constituted 90% of my wellness."The musical, she hopes, will touch people in different ways."We are still battling stigma - external and internalised stigma. In my opinion it is the biggest problem we face. We need to reach out to people on every level. A musical like this can take us to uncomfortable places in a safe way."In My Own Voice runs at the Playhouse Theatre from July 21-24. Book at Computicket...