Kassanga began her career as a child. After being discovered by
MK Vibe, Kassanga made her
West End debut in 2007 as Young Nala in
The Lion King at the
Lyceum Theatre (
Alexia Khadime played Older Nala). She also formed a band called MjeliK with Natalie Chua and was age eleven when she won the 2008
UK Unsigned singing competition. Kassanga subsequently featured in Fagin's (
Rowan Atkinson) gang in the
Oliver! revival at the
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, and as one of the children on the U.K. tour of
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. In 2018, Kassanga returned to the West End, starring as
Diana Ross in
Motown: The Musical at the
Shaftesbury Theatre. The following year, she was standby for the roles of Zoe Murphy and Alana Beck in the West End production of
Dear Evan Hansen at the
Noël Coward Theatre. After the
COVID-19 lockdowns, Kassanga starred as Deena Jones on the U.K. tour of
Dreamgirls in 2021. For her performance, Kassanga was nominated for Best Female Performer at the
Mousetrap Awards. In 2023, Kassanga featured in the West End transfer and revival of
Crazy for You at the
Gillian Lynne Theatre, taking over the role of Irene Roth from
Merryl Ansah. She also originated the role of Bella in the musical
Berlusconi at the
Southwark Playhouse. In autumn 2024, Kassanga joined the cast of
Moulin Rouge! The Musical at the
Piccadilly Theatre in the lead role of Satine opposite
Dom Simpson as Christian. == Stage ==