Category: Theatre

A JOYOUS FESTIVAL, THIS YEAR’S KLEIN KAROO NATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL, LIFTED THE SPIRITS

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Another Klein Karoo National Arts Festival has come and gone but what lingers are the artists, their originality, dedication, blood, sweat and tears and delight that they provide in a lopsided world which is difficult to navigate. DIANE DE BEER finds nourishment, inspiration and novelty in the imaginative and ingenious artistry of our creatives:

I have to be honest from the start. Festivals always have a strong emotional impact on me. I am in the fortunate position as an arts journalist to be invited to see as many productions as I can squeeze into the run of an event and at this year’s Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees (KKNK) there was still a post-Covid frisson with the festival at full strength for a second year.

When a festival goes into full swing, it can be quite daunting and I’m not sure whether I want to be there, but as excellent productions and artists climb into my head, I go into full festival mode where I’m simply thrilled at being overwhelmed by the local arts community.

Being an artist isn’t an easy profession, even if many on the outside feel that they had a choice and simply have to bite the bullet. That they have a choice is arguable and to produce excellence year after year, often with few rewards and never under ideal circumstances, can be daunting and not for the fainthearted.

And yet they go full tilt as they battle extreme circumstances like pandemics or vitriolic social media, all in the name of art.

More than anything, whatever anyone says, we cannot  resist them. For me it is a huge blessing and privilege to witness and write about our uniquely original creatives.

Post-festival, an overview of the festival is always a personal reminder of and reflection on everything extraordinary, yet it’s tough to choose which among all those actors and productions, to highlight. There are simply too many that demand attention and especially this year, the scope was exceptional.

I always feel I want to bring something of the flavour of a particular festival to those who weren’t there. Perhaps one of my favourite pieces might pop up somewhere and a reader might be encouraged to go, or even more ideally, someone who has always thought about festivals but never attended might be encouraged to go.

The enchanted Die Swartmerrie withTheo Witbooi and Chantell Phillipus. Pictures: Ryan Dammert.

I have to start with Karoo Kaarte. It’s one of the dream projects of the KKNK, simply ticks all the boxes and grows more impressive every year since its first inception with special mention of last year’s winning production, Droomkrans Kronieke, which landed with such impact because of its energy and precision. How can you not win when developing the underdeveloped artistic talent of the previously disadvantaged by implementing a programme that empowers those who wish to make it in the arts.

It’s inspiring and this year’s production, Die Swartmerrie, is a site-specific piece set on dilapidated terrain with a set of train tracks, an imagined train, and a rundown platform. Two people, a man and a woman (Theo Witbooi and Chantell Phillipus) are waiting, both traveling but not with the same destination in mind. There is a past, the tracks and possible journey points to a future, but this notion disappears with the wind.

It is breathtakingly beautiful and hauntingly gripping as the two talk and tackle their issues with delicate determination.

Afrikaans is an especially emotive love language and when spoken in the specific Karoo accent, warm and intimate, the sounds are as captivating and meaningful as the actual words being spoken.

I was surprised by this couple alone on stage and also electrified that the team (in this instance Neil Coppen – a facilitator of the whole project with Vaughn Sadie – and Oudtshoorn’s Tiffany Saterdacht) decided to go this route but, of course, this is a company packed with the unexpected, and hopefully it is a production that will become an institution in Oudtshoorn and won’t be limited to the festival. You don’t want to miss out on these performances and such a quality production. They should keep pushing the repeat button and keep it as part of their arsenal.

Karoo Kaarte further packed a punch with its art exhibitions, as well as walking tours done by young Oudtshoorn inhabitants all participating in turning the town’s current and future narrative into an inclusive one. The community is constantly gaining strength thanks to Coppen and Sadie who have invested their creativity in this wonderful way, all the while bringing their local learners on board.

It’s a marvellous investment in the future of this town (and hopefully others across the country will follow) and fingers crossed that a smart investor will see the potential going forward.

Because we were born in such large numbers, our generation is referred to as the baby boomers (born from 1946 to 1964) and probably that’s why ageing and the lifestyles of those growing older has become part of today’s theatre language. We are also fortunate to have some amazing artists who keep on practising their craft while ignoring any barriers that might come their way.

They know how to choose, break out and try new things and simply keep audiences flocking to their performances. Names like Sandra Prinsloo, Antoinette Kellermann, Jana Cilliers, Elzabe Zietsman, Amanda Strydom not only arrive with new productions, they’re also constantly adding skills to their resumés.

Cilliers took up playwrighting for the first time with Veelhoek, a two-hander with herself and Ludwig Binge directed by Marthinus Basson, and the wisdom and writing were quite overwhelming. Who would have thought that, apart from all her other accomplishments, she would now add writing to the list – and then perform it with such clarity as she tells a story that lies close to the heart?

Zietsman is another one who keeps shifting those barriers and I am so delighted that she has added the magnificent Tony Bentel to accompany her on stage. He is one of those pianists who brings much more than just the music to the performance and it shows. Vier Panado’s en ‘n Chardonnay again has Zietsman expounding on life, singing brilliantly and with heart – and cherishing cabaret as it should be performed. The content, which deals with resilience,needs hardly any acting by this actor. Most of it is probably her life which she has shared heartily and hastily over the years. And she will always rise…

Do we need to say anything more about those two great dames, Sandra Prinsloo and Antoinette Kellermann? How lucky are we to witness them in performance after performance as they just keep surging ahead.

Die stoele with Antoinette Kellermann and Chris van Niekerk. Picture: Hans van der Veen.

Kellermann tackled the Ionescu tour de force Die Stoele, accompanied by a much-too-rare performance by Chris van Niekerk. Marthinus Basson adds genius to the production, which can be seen over and over again as it deals with something we all have to confront ­­– LIFE. The content might be terrifying but to watch, quite hysterical. As always Kellermann is in with everything she’s got and what she does with her body tells a story all its own.

Goed wat wag om te gebeur with an actress I would love to see more of, Emma Kotze and Gideon Lombard.

She’s also a part of the magnificent cast (Kellermann, Emma Kotze and Gideon Lombard) of Philip Rademeyer’s Goed Wat Wag Om te Gebeur. I had seen the English version most recently but also this one a few times, and this latest run proved how good theatre improves with time. It’s the best the production has been and I know the director agrees.

Prinsloo brought her masterful Master Class, a piece of classical theatre, to the festival and, also as is her nature, she teamed up with the exceptional David Viviers in a Teksmark original Op die hoek van Styx en River is Nora per Abuis met die Dood Oorgeslaan (playwright Henque Heymans). It’s a novel work which showed flickers of what it could be in time (always a scarce commodity).

Like Rademeyer’s Goed Wat Wag Om te Gebeur, Monsters, (produced, directed, adapted and translated by Tinarie van Wyk Loots) which has had runs at other festivals previously, found a remarkable rhythm that lifted the text and the performers into another realm . It was rewarding to experience and again I was reminded what a precious entity the different circuits are because single theatres cannot afford to take many risks and festivals add an extra buffer in this precarious world – to the benefit of arts audiences.

Michele Burgers in Monsters. Picture Stephanie M Gericke.

We haven’t seen much of the versatile Michele Burgers, who will hopefully return to stage more often in the future and who was beautifully supported by the talented René Cloete, Ntlanhla Kutu and Elton Landrew.

Die Vegetariër with Tinarie van Wyk Loots and Melissa Myburgh who as young actress has shown her mettle magnificently . Picture: Nardus Engelbrecht

Smartly directed by yet another multi-talented artist, Tinarie van Wyk Loots, she also featured in Jaco Bouwer’s hard-hitting Die Vegetariër (adapted and translated by Willem Anker) which also benefited from another run, as well as in the latest probing Anker text, Patmos, also brilliantly staged and directed by Jaco Bouwer, who always challenges and pushes boundaries with his choice of productions, casts and presentation.

The visually captivating Patmos with Melvyn Minnaar and Tinarie van Wyk Loots. Picturess Hans van der Veen.

Without these art warriors our art landscape would be barren. They keep us returning to theatres time and again with their unique approach, their determination to do their best under trying circumstances, including a lack of time and money, and simply their excellence.

Nataniël, for example, returned from an extensive tour to New Zealand and Australia during the festival yet put together one of his distinctive shows with flamboyant costumes, mind-blowing text and two musicians (Marcel Dednam on Piano and Leon Gropp on guitar) who created a spectacular rhythm to underpin his songs and singing quite magnificently.

I could go on forever, there were simply too many highlights, yet I cannot go without honourable mentions of the following, no less important than those already mentioned:

Jefferson J. Dirks-Korkee in a return of the soul-stretching Rooilug.
Fietsry vir dommies. Picture: Gys Loubser
Hallo, is Bettie wat praat with Dean John Smith.
Marianne Thamm

Solo shows: the return of Rooilug with the delightful Jefferson J. Dirks-Korkee; Fietsry vir Dommies (masterful text by Tiffany Saterdacht and deftly directed by Dean Balie) which showcased the enormous talent of Eldon van der Merwe, who was also rewarded with a Kunste Onbeperk prize for Young Voice. Dean John Smit shone in his now full-length solo production of Hallo, is Bettie wat Praat; the craftily current My Fellow South Africans by Mike van Graan, starring the physically and mentally dextrous Kim Blanché Adonis; Vuisvoos, maar nog regop, where journalist Marianne Thamm delivers a gloves-off and much needed monologue, incisive if laugh-out-loud, on the state of the nation; a shout-out to much missed director, Jenine Collocott, who teamed with actor Klara van Wyk to present the hysterical Monika, it’s me:

The mesmerising ‘n Lewe in die dag van ‘n vrugtevlieg ensomeer with David Viviers and Wessel Pretorius. Picture: Hans van der Veen
The Old Man Who Thought He Had a Dog with Merwe van Gent and Angelique Filter.

Double-up: David Viviers and Wessel Pretorius returned as a popular duo in a follow-up to their successful Klara Maas with ‘n Lewe in die die dag van ‘n vrugtevlieg, ensomeer and hopefully many more encores in the future, they were missed; an innovative new duo, Stellenbosch students Angelique Filter and Merwe van Gent, soared with the tragicomedy The Old Man who thought He had a Dog;

The delightfully funny Marc Lottering.
KG Mokgadi- Weighing In.

Stand-up (not my speciality) yet: Who can resist the always energetic and enthusiastic funny man Marc Lottering who always delivers?; as well as my comic standout of the festival, KG Mokgadi. It feels as if these two have something more to say than just one-liners.

Ken Jy Vir Dewie with , Joshwin Dyson, Crystal Donna Roberts and Robert Hindley

Productions: The original Ken Jy Vir Dewie was cleverly staged with themes that target the whole family and as the play was dealing with bullying, the setting for everyone, actors and audience alike, was a classroom; and again, it was directed by yet another versatile artist, Margit Meyer-Rödenbeck, who has exchanged Dowwe Dolla for Ouma, again a sign of the times. She cleverly started the play outside with audience and cast waiting to enter the classroom!;

The joyous Braam en die engel with Rehane Abrahams, De Klerk Oelofse and Timothy Isaacs. Picture Hans van der Veen

And Craig Morris grabs the attention in Die Rooi Ballon.

Children’s Theatre: It’s not something I usually see at festivals but, as I did, I was encouraged by the effort made by the KKNK to look after these tiny tots who are of our more enthusiastic audiences: My favourites included Braam en die Engel and Rooi Boeties.Watch out for them as they might travel.

Dance: is back with brilliance because of the clever choice of productions, only two of them but with some of the most innovative names in contemporary dance: Dada Masilo who choreographed one of three pieces, Salomé, for Joburg Ballet; and Grant van Ster and Shaun Oelf  with the Figure of 8 Dance Collective (pictured), who brought in other creatives like Nico Scheepers on text, Andi Colombo on lights and Franco Prinsloo on original music. Both companies were sublime.

Lucky Pakkie (Packet): Thanks to the brilliant team of Llandi Beeslaar and Stephanie Gericke, this is another of the KKNK delights because of their dedication and hands-on approach. It needs that because what you have is three lucky packets of four 15-minute productions each; the three sections embrace easy viewing to soft touch to pushing the envelope as much as possible, and artists who cannot manage a full production or perhaps just want to say what they need to say in this time and on this platform are vetted and included in a fun-filled programme.

The original Karli Heine. Picture by Stephanie M Gericke

There are too many to name, but for starters … what about Karli Heine, who turned herself into a pot plant and blew my mind … for script, performance and imagination!

It is impossible to cover everything and I haven’t given the art exhibitions a mention, even though curator Dineke Orton again broke down barriers and took us on a visual trip. But these are just some of my thoughts on a festival that felt like one joyous merry-go-round. Try and catch some of these through the year as they travel to different theatres and festivals.

Here’s holding thumbs!

And finally, on the last day, even the weather seemed out of sorts…

SOPHIE JOANS, AN ISLAND OF INSPIRATION

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The luminous Sophie Joans in a solo performance of a play she has written.

Theatre review of ÎLE finishing this weekend at Sandton’s Theatre on the Square by DIANE DE BEER

PICTURES: PHILIP KUHN

ÎLE

WRITTEN AND PERFORMED BY: Sophie Joans

DIRECTED BY: Rob van Vuuren

DATES: Today at 7.30pm; tomorrow at 5pm and 8pm

When you’ve been around in the arts for as long as I have, it’s always an unexpected  thrill to discover a new talent.

Solo performances are obviously a handy talent to have in your bag of tricks because of the precarious nature of theatre and the performing arts. If you have to rely solely on managements, festivals and directors to keep your career going, it could be disastrous  –  and tough on your anxiety levels.

With the ability to write and perform, you can create your own work, pack a bag and travel from stage to stage or whatever entertainment platform you prefer. If you have presence, which is something that’s difficult to explain, (you either have it or you don’t), it’s a gift that should be cherished.

Sophie Joans has all of the above and more. It’s a powerful package. She’s also obviously smart to not go it completely alone but to have the skilled Rob van Vuuren on board, someone who has made the stage his home, as director.

She bounces on stage bubbling with energy and enthusiasm and launches into a travelogue with Mauritius and her mother as the main destinations – and right from the start, she holds your attention with a smart and hilarious script. She taps into the ever-fraught relationship between mothers and daughters, where the one is wise if weatherbeaten and the other knows all the answers and doesn’t want to be prompted on how to proceed in life.

We all recognise family foibles in some fashion, but this is where the writing is witty and wise. Yes, it sounds hellish and many of us will think of our mothers and their lesser indiscretions with relief, but the way Joans reflects on and rants about her family is so cleverly charged, even when it dangerously skirts the edges, that  there’s always something to hold onto as the younger Joans finds a way to explore her mother’s sometimes ferocious guidance.

It’s all about family narratives, the way mothers and daughters pass on a specific legacy that never seems to change. We all know how damage is done by those who have experienced that same pain themselves. We just have to look at the world we live in today to find all the examples needed.

While all of this might seem way too serious for someone who started in stand-up comedy, with some tweaking she has turned her sights to a more specific stage. Having just come from an arts festival, I know how  exposed the stand-up stages can be, so she obviously knows how to handle a critical crowd.

This is something quite different. She presents Île as quite a personal story, enters the stage with very little but two large boxes which she moves around, and is aided by the best weapons: her words and her warmth.

She’s a storyteller, someone who holds her audience with confidence, and with a generosity and a gentle yet gregarious approach to her performance. She aims straight for the heart. If you can possibly make it in the time left over (it only runs till Saturday), Joans is a winner.

And I can’t wait to see where and how she goes from here. We’re a rather small theatre community, so when someone with such obvious performance genes hits all the right notes, it’s a time to celebrate and embrace.

She has travelled this play from small beginnings to world stages so obviously she has made a huge splash, but for me she’s the new kid on the block. And I could not be more delighted!

Thanks Daphne Kuhn (producer and artistic director of Theatre on the Square), your theatre smarts are always appreciated.

SOCIAL MEDIA RUNS CIRCLES AROUND CLUELESS USERS, TURNING THEIR LIVES UPSIDE DOWN

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Pictures: Daniel Rutland Manners.

Mother (Charmaine Weir-Smith) and son (Nicholas Hattingh) in selfie mode…

DIANE DE BEER

EXPELLED

Expelled is described as a family drama which focuses on the largely ungoverned world of social media.  Alex, a matric pupil at an elite school, gets caught up in a viral scandal and is suspended. Once shared, lives alter in seconds, what’s seen cannot be unseen.  The ramifications for his family are profound.   

Rosalind Butler’s new South African play

PRODUCERS: How Now Brown Cow Productions in association with The Market

DIRECTOR: Craig Freimond

CAST: Anthony Coleman, Charmaine Weir-Smith and Nicholas Hattingh

VENUE: Mannie Manim Theatre at the Market, Joburg

DATES: Until March 31. Performances will take place Wednesday to Saturday with evening shows at 7pm and matinees on Sunday and Saturday at 3pm. There will be additional schools’ performances at 11am on Thursdays during the run.

Living in an online world.

There are few people who won’t be aware of the devastation of social media on normal lives. We all know there’s the good and the bad but taking into  account the recent banning by the US Senate of the Tik Tok app on government devices, the results are too often disastrous and, apart from this surprising development, with few guardrails.

It is with an eye on the pitfalls that Rosalind Butler wrote this play which Freimond had huge fun putting on stage and screen – which it lends itself to. If you want to know how to get younger audiences to theatre, this is it. You’re talking their language and the play offers the chance to play with different generations and their approach to social media.

With phones an additional accessory, few people can resist writing and sending off messages in abundance and often with more haste than hesitation, which would be a tool to keep in mind. Once you push that button, the harm’s done.

Parents: Charmaine Weir-Smith (right) and Anthony Coleman.

And in this version it’s all done in full colour and with the scenarios taking real issues which will cause havoc as they go viral. We’re living in a world where too many are completely unaware of the sensitivity of certain issues.

Families allow schools to dictate norms while these institutions see their roles as strictly educational, refusing to meddle with the morals of their young charges. It is a recipe for disaster, especially with all the tools available in today’s communication circus where everyone is encouraged to participate.

Butler’s text races off at breakneck speed, almost mirroring the record times messages are sent and read while disrupting and destroying lives. There’s very little chance of pulling back once the release button has been activated. And while we all know and understand the world we live in – fast and furious – we still don’t stick to the safety precautions.

It’s a topic that encourages a contemporary social media approach and Freimond with his cast go at it full tilt. Nothing has to be explained or embroidered because we all know the playing field with all its inviting yet often devastating intrigue.

Phone gymnastics.

The cast is perfect as they play their characters and their often-vacuous natures to perfection – all at different tempo yet with a serious approach only possible in our deranged contemporary landscape that encourages these public meltdowns with humiliating outcomes. Weir-Smith’s mother and wife has captured a type we all recognise, so wrapped and isolated in her own tiny world, she’s completely unaware of the destruction she leaves in her wake.

In turn her husband (Anthonty Coleman) is blinded by his own importance, with his wife and son marginal figures in his corporate universe.

Their son (Nicholas Hattingh) is focussed on the love of his life with no understanding of the effect his public vitriol might have on his mostly invisible life.

We can all see the avalanche of disaster which will soon obliterate this family teetering on the edge already, but, fortunately because of the very nature of social media, many mini scenarios are being replicated all around them.

Because we’re all au fait with social media, it’s fun to witness something so familiar unfold as we recognise and might even have participated in similar scenarios. A good edit (a cut of approx. 15 minutes) would have avoided repetition and landed a near perfect play. It might come across as fun and games, but we all recognise that in many lives it could also be deadly serious.

LAST CHANCE TO FLY TO PANTOLAND WITH HONEYMAN AND HER FABULOUS PLAYERS

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By Diane de Beer

Janice Honeyman’s Peter Pan at Joburg Theatre’s Nelson Mandela Theatre

Cast: Richard Richard (Smelly Smee), Ben Voss (Mr Darling and Captain Hook), Kensiwe Tshabalala (Mrs Darling), Kiruna-Lind Devar (Wendy), Matthew Berry (John), Diego Hamity (Michael), David Arnold Johnson (Clementina Coconut), Manyano Ngoma (the dog, Nana), Virtuous KIandemiri (Thokolina Tinkerbell), Sandi Dlangalala (Peter Pan), Lesedi Rich (Sam Spaginyol), Gareth Meijsen (Seb Scumdawg), Dirk Joubert (Sparkey), Gugu Dhlamini (Curley), Sarah Leigh (Nibs), Brian Ngobese (Tootles), Bo Molefe (Slightly) and Tania Mteto (Princess Lotus Lily) and the ensemble

Associate Director: Timothy le Roux

Production Designer: Andrew Timm

Lighting Director: Johan Ferreira

Sound Designer: Akhona Bozo

Choreographer: Khaya Ndlovu

Costume Designer and Co-ordinator: Mariska Meyer

Dates: Until December 24 (so get going!)

If you have seen as many pantomimes as I have, you need some incentive (especially when you’re no longer the target market).

For me there were two big ones; Janice Honeyman and my two favourite little ones. Just the fact that I can still stomach a pantomime has everything to do with someone who is completely ruled by her inner child when writing and staging the annual panto.

Not only does she know how to negotiate an audience of young and older children but she also shares her panto story with loads of fun clues for those with many more years on the planet to keep their minds spinning once they’ve seen enough of all the silliness and have had enough festive cheer.

She has also found a compromise with the LED screens and all the bells and whistles they add to this production, while holding on to some of the more old-fashioned sets and designs, which breathe life into the rapidly developing technology.

It’s a miracle just to watch her each year as she finds ways to build novel glitz into the show. She has established her nimble dance to deliver the goods – and that she does with sparkle – time and time again. Small wonder they can’t let her go as she just keeps pushing those stakes higher and higher each time.

This is probably somewhere in the region of my 30th Honeyman panto production and the fact that I can keep going and writing willingly, says everything.

This time it’s Peter Pan and one of the delights which has been been happening for a few decades is the transformation of the South African stage. I know some might ask whether we still have to touch on these colour issues, but it is especially the popular shows that had to get it right and had the most impact. Of course Ms Honeyman did just that. And it easily gets better every year.

                     David Johnson as Clementine Coconut.

She has created many stars and again, a few are stepping out smartly to show their stuff. I have to confess, I have always been a David Johnson fan. Perhaps he’s not the obvious choice for the panto dame, but that’s another of Janice’s tricks up her sleeve. She doesn’t opt for the obvious and then she delivers another bit of magic by getting a performance that’s different, yet works. Clementine Coconut could have some fun with her costumes which already delivered the goods and to boot, Johnson added some swish and style to his panto tart.

                    Ben Voss as Captain Hook

Ben Voss, another panto and Honeyman regular, did double duty and delivered a devilishly evil Captain Hook with a smart swagger and punch, which might have scared some and tickled others, and then quietly slipped into the shoes of the more demure Mr Darling.

         Virtuous Klandemiri as Thokolina Tinkerbell with Sandi Dlangalala as Peter Pan.

If you have a very traditional view of what and who Thokolina Tinkerbell should be, Honeyman flipped that applecart as well and gave us the sparkly Virtuous (could there be a more apt name!) Klandemiri as well as the light-on-his-feet Sandi Dlangalala who starred and shone as as Peter Pan in this debut performance.

                  Michael Richard as Smelly Smee.

Michael Richard added a performance with flair and wisdom enhanced by decades of experience as Smelly Smee and the youngsters in the cast kept the energy up and the artistry pumping.

It’s a gran show. This time we sat on the balcony and it was fascinating to get this different yet complete view. I know many people regard the lower level as the better seats. My small companions had seen last year’s panto from the front row.

                          The full splendour.

But in the end, the balcony offers a complete appreciation of the Honeyman approach. It allows you to focus on the whole rather than individual performances for example but also accentuates the detail that comes together in the design. It’s easy to understand why Honeyman draws you in time and again.

A CELEBRATION OF KKNK’S TEKSMARK IN GAUTENG

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Pictures: Reinhard Bodenstein

Ketsia Velaphi in Tankiso Mamabolo’s Don’t Believe a Word I Say.

Teksmark has been running for a few years now in Cape Town (see previous post) and recently KKNK CEO Hugo Theart decided it was time for Gauteng (with the helpof the well placed Foxwood team providing the venue) to show their stripes – and predictably, they came out in full force. DIANE DE BEER picks a few personal favourites:

Teksmark has been one of my favourite outings from the start because it keeps me in touch with new (and often young) playwrights, what they are thinking about and how they find the words to tell their story.

It has also opened the KKNK’s profile to embrace a much larger slice of the arts and in this somewhat geographically challenged country of ours, we need everyone in the arts community to reach out and hold hands. We have amazing stories to tell, but the audiences are limited and the cohesion of the arts community, nationally, is important.

Director and playwright Obett Motaung (centre with microphone) in conversation with CEO Hugo Theart and his cast.

Obett Motaung cleverly started with a catchy title, A Street Taxi Named Desiree, and plaed with just that. The play is a series of sketches with taxis as the hot and happening topic.

What he does especially smartly is use all the South African tropes that everyone will recognise even those who never use taxis. Coldrinks? Does anyone not know what that means when for example a traffic cop or policeman stops you?

Or the rules that are there, yet not for taxi drivers? The fact that everyone recognised these foibles in the room, says much about the South African landscape.

And this is also what made this such a smart piece of writing. It grabs you with laughter yet slips in quite a few serious issues, again, instantly recognisable.

Christo Davids (playwright) with his cast for Laaitie Mettie Biscuits.

We all know or perhaps think we know the problems special needs individuals face on a daily basis. Some of that is captured in Christo Davids’ courageous text which has him facing rather than ignoring the problems.

His play titled Laaittie Mettie Biscuits is about a differently-wired young man who gets into trouble with the police and because of a misunderstanding and the difficulty society has of dealing with anyone or anything that isn’t “normal”, things quickly get out of hand.

And making the point even more sharply, following the reading, most of the discussion was focussed on the need of a Down syndrome individual to be cast in the role. Anything else would defeat the purpose of the story, no matter the challenges.

Asked about his reason for writing the play, Davids explained that he hoped to spark a different conversation or at least, thinking about people who because of different physical or mental challenges have to operate in a world that didn’t easily acknowledge and make provision for them.

Holding a mirror to society is one of the many positives of theatre and no more so than with this truly brave attempt. Let’s hope that we see it given life on stage.

Tankiso Mamabolo selling her delightful Don’t Believe a Word I Say.

Playwright Tankiso Mamabolo’s says Don’t Believe a Word I Say was written as a play on memory and how we often embellish these remembrances over time, to protect us from trauma or to fill in the gaps that have appeared over time.

She had everyone delighted when she pointed out that the play was written in the style of ADHD, wrote it in fact in exactly the way she thinks – and luckily for those of us watching, she has an imaginative mind worth interrogating.

What do we choose to remember and what devices do we use to reach back? These are the issues she spotlights.

“I have a team of black women dissecting, reminiscing and recreating black girlhood in a way that utilises humour without dehumanising black girls and instead focusses on the nuances of their vulnerabilities with the complete understanding that they are complete bad asses. I wrote a play about my childhood that gives voice to parts of black girlhood that are often overlooked eg, we also can be hopeless romantics despite of the world and what is happening around us.”

And in the process, she gave everyone a lesson in how to present their play. This is someone who knows what to do with an opportunity and I can see it paying off – as does her play.

It’s fun as Tankiso explained, she was featuring young black women, usually an ignored section of society – and think about that! She already has an audience right off. And with her talent, there will be more. She’s got what it takes.

Farce has never been my favourite medium but if anyone can pull it off, it is Nico Luwes. And knowing all the rules to get things off on the wrong foot, which is the key to any farce, Nico also made sure the best ingredient for this kind of performance was in place – the cast.

A cast to die for with playwright Nico Luwes (right)

He pulled out all the stops with Koebaai, ou Koba!: Henrietta Gryffenberg, Tobie Cronje, Elzabé Zietsman, Pietie Beyers, Rina Nienaber, Gert van Niekerk, Peter Terry and Ryno Hattingh, all veterans in the business and some not seen on stage for a very long time.

But the names are recognisable and an audience is out there waiting. They will be salivating to see this ensemble – and we could see why. Yes it will cost, they won’t make much money, but they will draw the crowds.

That’s the thing about this kind of theatre. Because it is sometimes viewed as an easy ask, not enough attention is paid to the staging and performers. But if you do it right, you have a winner as the director/playwright proved here.

Op die hoek van Styx en River is Nora Per Abuis Met die Dood Oorgeslaan by Henque Hymans with David Viviers and Gretha Brazelle.

When everything comes together in a play, it always makes you smile. That’s what happened with Op Die Hoek Van Styx en River is Nora Per Abuis Met die Dood Oorgeslaan written by Henque Heymans staged with actors Grethe Brazelle and David Viviers who meet at some point between life and a transfer to another place.

Their conversation is all about misunderstanding. The instructor is bored with a conversation she has regularly, while the listener doesn’t know that she’s died. This sudden meeting has her completely perplexed.

It’s confusion which turns into a conversation of much merriment and originality.

And … Action! with Jane Mpholo (playwright) and Ronda Mpiti.

And as I run out of space,  I want to include two more remarkable participants: Jane Mpholo’s  And…Action! who wanted to sketch South Africa in full colour but in a bantering, light way, yet still including bite; and another example of how the Teksmark works,  Ek Sal Jou Leer Om Die Melk Te Deel, a play that was accepted previously and now with some work, was featured again most successfully. With a theme of mothers raising the children of others, while not having enough time with her own, it’s something that touches all South Africans in different ways. And again, it makes everyone think especially playwright Lwanda Sindaphi who kept reworking.

Anele Situlweni (sitting) and Maude Sandham in Ek Sal Jou Leer om die Melk te Deel.

As you can see, it is about the people and the plays, the topics that are addressed and argued about, the potential that is discovered and nurtured – and in conclusion, the general health of the theatre industry.

How can we not celebrate?

(Thanks to KKNK, NATi, Foxwood and ATKV.)

KKNK INITIATIVE TO DEVELOP TEXTS AND OFFER PLAYWRIGHTS OPPORTUNITIES, TEKSMARK, ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING ARTISTIC ENDEAVOURS

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Pictures: NARDUS ENGELBRECHT.

The delightful cast from Khanya and her Golden Dream.

The 8th Teksmark in collaboration with NATi, the Baxter Theatre Centre and the Het Jan Marais Nasionale Fonds again presented a wealth of 18 scripts by 20 playwrights, performed by 60 actors with 18 directors which was showcased to potential investors with lively discussions following every performance. The brilliant brainchild of Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees artistic director Hugo Theart, generating 125 texts through the years with 36 text ideas becoming fully fledged productions. DIANE DE BEER gives her impressions of her favourites at the most recent market held as always at Cape Town’s Baxter Theatre from August 30 to September 1:

*To follow is a report on the first Gauteng Teksmark which was held earlier this month.

With established writers like Mike van Graan, Philip Rademeyer and Ingrid Winterbach featuring, some celebrated Teksmark virgins like Andi Colombo delivering a second time round and a handful of new finds, all round, it was as always a revealing event.

Some contemporary issues were addressed, some writers ventured into new territory and others expanded on familiar themes yet tackled with a fresh eye. Covid didn’t necessarily feature, but it did offer quite a few playwrights the time to write a new play, which just shows that there is always a silver lining.

Ingrid Winterbach (centre) speaking about her play Moedswil en Muitery with director Gideon Lombard and interviewer Kabous Meiring.

Take insightful writer Ingrid Winterbach for example, probably serious will always be somewhere in the description about her novel writing. Yet when she decided to turn to playwriting again, it was playfulness that became the focus.

With a show of skilful writing, she looked at our past, Jan van Riebeek and his wife Maria in fact, and had some fun as she put a fresh spin on the arrival of the early colonialists with the stated intention of planting a flag.

But we all know there was much more planting intended than what was divulged – and it’s here where she has some fun with her wise words, which she so craftily uses to play devil’s advocate.

Part of the fun of Teksmark is that Theart in discussion with the writers assigns a director and then actors to specific plays and often this is where a meeting of true minds can make real magic. This was indeed what happened with this one as director Gideon Lombard bought into the text and his sassy cast with Wessel Pretorius (who is becoming the Tobie Cronje of his generation) setting the tone for the rest of the team including Hannah Borthwick, Geon Nel and Lombard.

It’s going to be a hit with audiences as the writing, directing and acting all promise sublime merriment.  And then we haven’t even started with setting and style yet.

Prolific playwright Mike van Graan always keeps the South African pulse beating vigorously.

The prolific Mike van Graan hit a high note (while his latest My Fellow South Africans aimed at the ’24 elections was running concurrently at Gauteng’s Theatre on the Square see https://bit.ly/3PdseY7) with his Teksmark offering.

Typically titled The Good White, what I find so appealing about his current work is that he sharply hones in on touchstones in our political life that everyone is aware of but few speak about. And there are no holy cows here.

Some weren’t happy with what they referred to as stereotypes, but in the current state of the world (and it has really come to that if you look around), if our writers don’t have some serious fun with some sharp truths that makes for wincing if weirdly wonderful introspection, how else do we deal with it?

In The Good White, it is especially the older generations that will react because it zooms in specifically on a struggle white man, that rare species who was part of the cause pre ’94. He was considered one of the good guys, as there weren’t that many.

Now he is teaching at University but the students are unaware of his model past and his struggle credentials don’t absolve him anymore and he constantly finds himself moving on quicksand. It’s hilarious if perhaps too close to the bone for some, but that’s always the Van Graan medicine. It cuts deeply across the full spectrum, which means everyone pays and performs.

And clever of him to throw this one into the lion’s den at Teksmark. Why not hear what prospective audiences have to say before it goes on stage?

He has found his niche and no one else is doing it this focussed, and with such fierceness and regularity. Until they listen, I will keep shouting, is his premise.

Packing up in Dying in the Now with Celeste Loots

Two of the most promising texts came from Andi Colombo who had previously made her mark with her first work Dying in the Now and like then, when I wrote about the gentleness, generosity and probing text, she has done it again.

Her writing and the ideas she plays with are exciting and something you want to hold close. Hers is a rare talent which is paying dividends and hopefully she will be encouraged to keep writing

This time she takes a place, Verlorenvlei, which she visits and knows and has obviously given her heart. The name already says it all.

Emma Kotze and Shaun Oelf in Andi Colombo’s Verloren.

Verloren started as a short film which won a Standard Bank ovation prize and Colombo decided to expand the text for the Teksmark. It’s poetic, it catches you by the throat and she deals in issues that are crucial yet in a way human- rather than issue-driven. She is a playwright with a wonderfully rare talent who has stolen my heart.

And someone entering this realm, Nell van der Merwe, captured many hearts not only with her playwriting but also with her obviously overwhelming passion for theatre. It’s all in the writing. There’s a classic feel about her approach to language which is captivating and stops you in your tracks.

It’s almost not about what she’s saying, but how she says it. Whimsical and wise, dealing in myths and fairytales, which she feels is a way to play with the politics of people. And basing her text on Leipoldt’s Die Laaste Aand, Dryfhout deals in much that has gone wrong in this country as it looks at heritage, the entitlement of the ruling class and the changing perceptions and acknowledgement of the painful past inflicted on people.

Others that also made their mark included Sibahle Mabaso with Khanya and her Golden Dream, a family production with many lessons embedded cleverly in the text; Jason Jacobs and Devon Delmars’ Kontrapunt, which is an exciting shift for Jacobs and a clever idea which should be explored further; Praat Gou Weer by exciting theatre contributor, Khanya Viljoen, who interrogates internet dangers; and then included in quite a few texts was gender based violence, the South African scourge which cannot be tackled enough.

As with all the previous years, the excitement was tangible, the texts tantalising and the productions just a taste of their eventual potential. I cannot wait to see which of these will be developed to take on the bigger stages.

What has been clear apart from new playwrights emerging, many who found initial success just keep going and some established names have discovered what an explosive platform this can be. It is constantly expanding and the results simply mean that theatre gains.

Well done to Hugo Theart and his amazing team for this initiative which benefits and reaches far wider than the Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees. And to Baxter CEO Lara Foot for the support.

Read more next week about the first Teksmark held in Gauteng early in November.

THE DELIGHTS OF BODY MOVES 2023 WILL DAZZLE

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There’s an unusual dance event BODY MOVES 2023 on your doorstep in Gauteng. Celebrating dance in its truest, most inclusive form, it is happening at the Sibikwa Arts Centre in Benoni from November 20 to 26. Anyone who is interested in the impact of dance on both able-bodied as well as disabled dancers, should pay attention writes DIANE DE BEER:

From the whirlwind success of last year’s debut, the Body Moves International Inclusive Dance Festival returns for what promises to be a triumphant second edition.

Set against the backdrop of Disability Awareness Month, the festival showcases an unparalleled array of workshops by esteemed international and local facilitators, live-streamed discussions, and breathtaking afternoon performances on November 25 and 26.

Once again according to the unshakeable Sibikwa mover and shaker Phyllis Klotz, Body Moves steps up the beat, accentuating cultural exchanges and collaborations. With participating companies spanning from Kenya, Madagascar to Ireland, Flanders and various regions of South Africa, the festival embodies the spirit of diversity and unity. Among the highlights:

Flatfoot Company in performance.

  • Workshops: From a sign workshop with the talented deaf dancer, Andile Vellem of Unmute, to Ondiege Mathew’s exploration of choreography through improvisation, Fanny Vandesande’s deep dive into the lived experiences of people with disabilities, a satellite workshop at Moving Into Dance in Newtown, and more.
  • Performances: Featuring works such as Chosen, highlighting the plight of a village through the eyes of a visually impaired dancer; to TWOTFAM, a thought-provoking piece that brings to the forefront the overlooked challenges faced by individuals with disabilities.
  • Live-Streamed Discussion: To be hosted in partnership with ADDN, at Sibikwa and on the Sibikwa Arts Centre Facebook page, at 6pm on November 23, their aim is engaging conversations inspired by the impactful 5-minute videos from Introdans and Unmute.

Moving away from the hustle of town, yet not too far from the comforts of home, Sibikwa offers a perfect locale for audiences. See below for a detailed line-up of Festival events, or visit sibikwa.co.za/BodyMoves2023.

Mover and shaker Phyllis Klotz, founder of Sibikwa.

Supported by the General Representation of the Government of Flanders, Embassy of Ireland, Department of Sport, Arts & Culture, Gauteng Department of Sport, Arts, Culture & Recreation, and Federation of Gauteng Community Arts, the festival is more than just an event; it’s a celebration of local and international talent, a nod to cultural vibrancy, and a testament to the belief that arts and dance know no bounds.

Tickets for performances at 2.30pm on November 25 and 26 are now available on Quicket link https://qkt.io/BODYMOVES23 at R120 per person. Special group rates apply at R100 for groups of 10 or more. On-the-day tickets will be available at the door for R140. For those travelling from Johannesburg, a shuttle will be available from Rosebank Mall, the price for this ticket (including shuttle and entry) is R250.

For organisations interested in hosting a workshop or for more details, reach out to caryn@sibikwa.co.za. Additional performance and event specifics are available upon request or at sibikwa.co.za/BodyMoves2023.

About Body Moves:

A pioneer in its field, Body Moves Inclusive International Dance Festival seeks to disrupt societal norms, championing inclusive dance and fostering collaboration across borders. It stands as a symbol of hope, understanding, and the transformative power of the arts.

Contact: Caryn Green|caryn@sibikwa.co.za | 0114224359

See more detail on the programme below:

PERFORMANCES

SOUTH AFRICA

Company: Flatfoot Dance Company (Durban)

Flatfoot Dance Company has a 28-year history of working in integrated arts. It is particularly well known for its 6-year-old integrated programme fondly referred to as Flatfoot Downie Dance Company. This unique dance programme is unprecedented in South Africa and is a celebration of the power of dance to shift lives and to negotiate difference and inclusivity. This particular dance programme celebrates community across the divide of race, gender and ability.

Title: The Infinite Space Between Us

Choreography: Lliane Loots in collaboration with the dancers

Dancers: Jabu Siphika, Ndumiso ‘Digga’ Dube and Julia Pitt

Short Description of dance work: In an intimate dance journey taken by three dancers, Lliane Loots’s collaborative “the infinite space between us”, delves into how we hold, walk and wheel past or towards one another as we attempt to find or break connections. Working with FLATFOOT’s Jabu Siphika, Ndumiso Dube, and Julia Pitt, Loots’s own on-going choreographic interrogations into the intimate politics of relationships, is given a unique spin as the dancers play around with duet, trio, solo formats – and a wheelchair.

Company: Moving into Dance (Johannesburg)

Happiness in dance.

MID was born in the cruel turbulence of 1978 Apartheid South Africa. It was an artistic response to the destructive policy of apartheid. The vision was to draw on the creative capacity of the human spirit to connect enliven and transcend. In keeping with its founding vision Moving into Dance introduced its ‘Enable Through Dance’ programme in 2016 which seeks to inspire confidence and self-esteem in the physically disabled through creative means especially dance.

Title: Remember our Time

Choreographer: Lesego Dihemo

Short Description of dance work: This piece is a reflection on the change that time brings and how it has affected culture.  It is looking back and acknowledging the what we had and celebrating how we have adapted and progressed. 

Company: Unmute Dance Theatre (Cape Town)

Unmute Dance Theatre is a company of artists with mixed ability/disability using physical theatre, contemporary and integrated dance to create awareness on accessibility, integration and inclusion of people with disability within the main stream of society. The company came into existence in 2013 after a performance entitled Unmute. Within the past 9 years, Unmute Unmute has developed various inclusive projects that have created access and integrated people with and without disability in one environment.

Title: Isikhalo Sendoda (The Cry of a Man)

Choreographer and Dancer: Andile Vellem

Short Description of dance work: As an African man, culturally, he is not permitted to show emotion or to cry. This dance piece, inspired by his late son, is the beginning of Vellem’s healing.

Work commissioned by Sibikwa Arts Centre (Benoni)

Title: bells and sirens

Choreographer: Thapelo Kotlolo

Performers: Lethabo Shai, Keaoleboga Seodigeng, Thapelo Kotlolo

Short Description of dance work: For most young queer individuals club life is an important element of self-image. The club is a place of refuge, a protected space where they are able, and allowed, to enjoy a little freedom. The nightlife means an opportunity to become self or at least who and how they wish to be seen. While at the same time this is not always a true reflection of their day to day lives. The work explores themes relating to queer bodies escaping into the night.

Ga-Rankuwa Requesters.

The Ga-Rankuwa Requesters began in 1984 under the leadership of music composer Lucas Kopaopa. The group initially had 9 male members in total, 8 were visually impaired and 1 was partially sighted. The group worked together at Are Itereleng Centre for the Blind, in Zone 2 in Ga-Rankuwa. After the formation of the group, now known as the Ga-Rankuwa Happy Boys, they released 3 acapella albums. As the group’s journey continued and new members joined and old members left, they formed the Ga-Rankuwa Requesters in 2005. They have entered music competitions convened by the South Africa Disabled Musicians Association and have won a recording deal. Over the past year they have been performing Lifted – Let the Blind Sing at the State Theatre under the musical direction of Zakehele Mabena.

FLANDERS

Title: TWOTFAM The Works Of The Flesh Are Manifest

Choreographer: Fanny Vandesande

Dancer: Anna Dujardin

Music Composition & Performance: Kobe Boom

Short Description of dance work: The works of the flesh are manifest and focuses on the creation of intimacy on stage and the power relations that it carries forward. The performance departs from Anna D’s diary entries, illustrations and poetry, which is presented through movement.

FANNY VANDESANDE is currently conducting research in intimacy, sexual agency, autonomy, and social perception with people living with disability.

MADAGASCAR

Nacelle Somoh (also seen on poster) from Madagascar

Company: Lovatiana

Created in 2002 in Antananarivo by the choreographer Lovatiana Erica Rakotobe.  In 2009, people with disabilities were integrated into the company and the company currently has 8 members who work in the artistic, social and educational sectors in Madagascar. The company organises different events, including a multidisciplinary in inclusive festival Miaraka, which takes place every two years.

Title: Chosen

Choreographer: Lovatiana Erica Rakotoba

Dancer: Nacelle Somoh

Short Description of dance work: Dance piece inspired by the story of young children chosen to save the people of the village often threatened by floods.

KENYA

Company: Dance Into Space

Dance Into Space (DIS) is a Kenyan contemporary dance company fostering training, practice and appreciation of dance in conventional and unconventional spaces.  DIS champions’ inclusiveness through works with people with disability in East Africa in a mixed ability dance program exploring existential issues creatively. The company has established a growing centre for implementing mixed ability and contemporary dance projects in Siaya County.

Title: NYANAM (Daughter of the Lake)

Choreographer: Ondiege Matthew Oyango

Dancer: Pamela Jura

Short Description of dance work: Re-imagining a Kenyan myth that has previously promoted patriarchal behavior. Nyanam challenges the traditional power play by demystifying myths and suggesting new narratives where women are seen to be empowered and play a stronger role in the hierarchy.

WORKSHOPS (2 to 2 and a half hour in length)

  • Ondiege Matthew: A mixed abled dance workshop discovering how the body with disability in contrast to the body without a disability explores space, direction, levels and approaches choreography through improvisation.
  • Lovantiana Erica Rakotoba: The workshop will be based on inclusive dance working through body weight and fluidity and exploring different bodies in space; sharing the choreographic repertoire of the piece running at the Festival.
  • Andile Vellem: Presenting a sign dance technique workshop established by UNMUTE, using the basics of sign language and finding ways to translate it into creative movement.
  • Fanny Vandesande: This workshop delves into the difficult challenges people living with disabilities confronts regularly, which includes, intimacy and sexual agency.
  • Cindy Cummings: This workshop, titled ‘Serious Play’, will focus on the ever-changing dialogue between people. Pairs and small groups will use improvisational structures to experiment with specific tools for this kinesthetic dialogue to reveal how everyday actions can be crafted into a unique and original dance through the lens (and practice) of Noticing.

IRELAND

CINDY CUMMINGS is a freelance dance artist who creates original collaborative works with dance, theatre, visual, sound, literary and media artists around the world for live performance, installation and film. Cindy is based in Kilkenny, Ireland where she has choreographed productions at the National Theatre of Ireland and most recently, with the award-winning Asylum Productions. Currently she is movement director with Equinox Theatre Company at KCAT Arts Centre and is a facilitator on the Inclusive Dance Cork course at Dance Cork Firkin Crane. Since 2007 Cindy has been a member of Aosdána, the affiliation of creative artists in Ireland.

DISCUSSION

To be hosted at Sibikwa, in partnership with ADDN, and live-streamed to Facebook, it promises engaging conversations inspired by the impactful 5-minute videos from Introdans and Unmute.

Link to Introdans video: https://vimeo.com/860961292/a614acc7e5

The AFRICAN DANCE DISABILITY NETWORK (ADDN) is part of a UKRI – AHRC funded research project entitled ‘Encountering disability through contemporary dance in Africa’. It aims to gather academics, artists and educators in a free and open space of community, sharing and support. Their approach is intersectional, considering how disability as an experience sits alongside our ethnic, gendered, racial, class and national identities.

THE DREAMY STAGING, CAST, COSTUMES AND LIGHTING ADD FAIRY DUST TO THIS SHAKESPEARE

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DIANE DE BEER reviews:

Pictures: Mark Wessels

Caleb Swanepoel (Puck) and Chi Mhende (Oberon/Hippolyta)

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

DIRECTOR: Geoffrey Hyland

CAST: Chi Mhende (Oberon/Hippolyta), Caleb Swanepoel (Puck), Roberto Kyle (Theseus/Tatiana), Mark Elderin (Bottom), Jock Kleynhans (Demetrius), Aidan Scott (Lysander), Lisa Tredoux (Helena), Kylie Fisher (Hermia), Sizwesandile Mnisi (Egeus/Snug/Faerie), Tankiso Mamabolo (Mechanical Faerie), Tailyn Ramsamy (Flute/Faerie), Zach Esau (Snout/Faerie) and Roland du Preez (Starveling/Faerie)

SET: Jesse Brooks

LIGHTING: Oliver Hauser

COSTUMES: Michaeline Wessels

VENUE: Pieter Toerien’s Montecasino Theatre

DATES: Until November 19

Tailyn Ramsamy (Flute)

It’s not often that a press release is so audacious as to claim that a Shakespeare will be one of the biggest hits of a season!

But with the ingenious Geoffrey Hyland at the helm, aided by his magnificent cast, I have no qualms if they grab those particular bragging rights.

Swept off my feet at the recent Woordfees with this production staged at the openair Libertas Amphitheatre, I was keen to go a second round with these players.

The setting (outside, specifically) might have added an extra sprinkle of magic, but with this Shakespeare, as is usually the case, the players and the play are what count, the director assured me.

And if I look back, even with the magnificent original outdoor setting which lent itself especially to this madcap and weirdly wonderful, romantic bouquet, it was the marvellously talented, youthful cast, fully representative of the clichéd rainbow nation and seen here with such genuine gusto, that stole my heart.

The director was confident that they would pull off the indoor setting and, as we entered the theatre, I immediately loved the stage, which had been transformed into a colourful green space. With a little imagination, you could almost spot the twinkling stars once the auditorium lights went off. And all round there was a sprinkle of fairy dust, I’m sure of it.

That is what brings this colourful play to life so brilliantly. It is the way it has been staged, dressed and lit, as well as an exuberance from the full cast from start to finish. There’s a glorious abundance of brightly coloured cloaks for example, which become part of the emotional impact in the way they are carried and manipulated with every movement. It’s a brightly-coloured, sweeping spectacle.

Robert Kyle (Tatiana) and Mark Elderin (Bottom)

It is in essence a romantic romp and as with any Shakespeare, you have to close off everything around you and take a leap into that world to allow the words to take charge and the actors to whisk you away.

It’s not a play where you want to single out performances because with such a big cast, there are always roles that steal the limelight. But, it is the patchwork of performances, which knits it all together so magnificently. And that is where the true magic lies – the choice of cast. Everyone seemed perfect for their part.

Hyland has quite a few tricks up his sleeve, knows when to throw in a quick slip of a local tongue, trusts audiences to buy into the local accents rather than the Queen’s (sorry, has it changed to King’s?) English, introduces original music which is sung with wonderful whimsy and pushes the production’s energy impulses with great enthusiasm.

It’s difficult not to buy into the dream world of luscious language and love adventures which transports you to a place of laughter and merriment in a way which is a perfect nod to the coming festive season.

Perhaps I was late in discovering Geoffrey Hyland’s theatre smarts, but then it’s not often that plays of this magnitude with so many players are swapped between the Cape and Gauteng.

What a brave move Mr Toerien. And one that hopefully Gauteng audiences will embrace wholeheartedly .

The play absolutely deserves all our attention and accolades. May this be the start of much more touring theatre of this kind.

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM IS AS DELIGHTFULLY DREAMY AS THEY GET

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Experiencing director Geoffrey Hyland’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at this year’s Woordfees  a few weeks back, was a revelation. Thrilled to hear that the production was coming to Pieter Toerien’s Montecasino Theatre, I immediately touched base with the director to find out more about this astonishing not-to-be-missed Shakespeare. DIANE DE BEER reports:

Scenes from A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Photographers Llewellyn de Wet and Mark Wessels.

Tankiso Mamabolo as one of the Faerie’s.

It’s difficult to resist nagging everyone to get tickets for this amazing Shakespeare. I almost missed seeing it at the Woordfees, because I thought I might have lost my head booking for a Shakespeare during a very hectic festival schedule.

Fortunately I was persuaded to go and it was one of the best decisions I made at the festival. Chatting to the director about this particular production, I have even more reason to plead with theatre enthusiasts to go.

“This was the first Shakespeare at Maynardville post Covid,” explains Geoffrey and he elaborates. “Having been through some dark times, the organisers and myself thought: WOW! it’s time to celebrate love, life and exuberance with fantasy and dreams in a wonderful colourful and passionate production.

“Are there deeper things, of course there are deeper things, there always are in Shakespeare, but I think one goes along on this wonderful joyride of misadventure and laughs and that celebration of love and the funny things that humans do to pursue love,” he encourages prospective audiences.

It’s time to take some time-out from the world, to remind ourselves about how wonderful life in all its permutation is, notes Geoffrey. That’s why he selected this particular Shakespeare to kick off Maynardville post-covid, to re-energise this space. The wonderful forest setting in the play was a reflection, which meant it was doubly joyous.

He is often asked about his favourite Shakespeare and of course, it is the one he’s working on at that moment. “That’s the one you dive into and you’re investigating and you’re finding new things all the time,” he says.

When he start with any play, his approach is getting to know the play, reading and more reading, imagining, and listening to music that resonates just to get a feeling of what this thing means to him.

“I can’t do it if it doesn’t mean something to me, if it doesn’t light my fuse. I know I’m not going to be able to light the fuse of the actors, or that of the audience, so I have to find my way into a particular production.”

What got him going was watching kids playing with bubbles, and suddenly he thought, this is the play, “these wonderful bubbles flying, joyously, madly, they make no sense whatsoever and yet they lift the spirit.”

He had found his first connection, the lightness of fun, and the absolute beauty of those brief moments of life that are so captivating.

Only then came the company – the actors. The producers gave him a free hand in choosing who he wanted.

“It’s never about individuals. It’s about people you know are going to meld and enjoy each other. I needed people who would be team players rather than individual stars. They’re all stars believe me, but they needed to give and come to the play with an open heart and to come along with me as a director,” he emphasises.

Because they had a very short time to work, he also needed a cast who would be willing to give extra time. They needed to understand instinctively that they had to give everything to the role, he stressed.

What he enjoys about actors, is their ability (with him) to find their character. “I don’t come with a preconceived notion. You are the character and we must find that character in you,” is what he shares with his actors.

“My part as the director is to evoke the performance from what is in front of me and I need people who will continue to give to me and allow me to shape what is already in there as part of them.”

 “I’ve never worked with a group of people together who are so much part of each other and giving and taking in equal measure between each other. The important thing for me as a director is to make the actors feel beautiful, then they will give of their best and I think the way we’ve come to do the production, they do.”

He describes the way they want to be on stage, bringing an exuberance and an energy, and because they’re tapping into themselves, into their life force, they are enjoying playing in front of an audience who then plays with them.

But all of that happens in a wonderful discipline of recreating a performance, never overdoing it, but sparking off each other all the time.

They’ve been very lucky, the audiences have responded beautifully and have enjoyed every single performance. And I can attest to that.

With Shakespeare especially, Geoffry thinks this is where teachers play a huge role in young people’s lives. “I was drawn to Shakespeare by a teacher. I think I was in grade five and went to see a production at Maynardville. I was captured for life and I went on reading and being interested. It inspired and unlocked something in me and probably was one of the impulses that made me the creative person that I feel I am today.

“Having had that experience as a young person, it has been one of my goals to inspire the same kind of experiences in other people. It’s a desire I have to make them feel the same things that Shakespeare had made me feel. I don’t think it is only about feeling, but rather unlocking yourself, potential things within yourself and once actors get it, there’s no going back.”

Because the two previous seasons were both performed outdoors, how would Geoffrey counter that missing element at Montecasino, but he seems to have all the answers and as a recent devotee, I’m going to take his word.

“There’s always give and take. With outdoor theatre, because you don’t have so much control on the technicalities, you need to focus completely on the actor in front of you and anything else that comes with that is a bonus.

“It’s a decoration and added depth of flavour, so that magical forest setting of Maynardville is impossible to duplicate.

“However, this production was created for and by Maynardville. We can’t physically duplicate it, but it has inspired the actors and in a sense they have got Maynardville, that beautiful energy, inside their performance. So having strongly focussed on the actors in creating this production, I still believe that they are what is the essential heart of the show.”

There will be small changes, he agrees, but the actors will be there to tell this wonderfully mad story and that is what you focus on when changing a venue. “It’s that live person in front of you that creates the magic.”

That’s exactly what he has achieved with this amazing A Midsummer Night’s Dream. One of the things I thought while watching it for the first time, was that this was the perfect introduction to Shakespeare if you’ve never seen any of his great works.

Book those tickets.

FLY TO PANTOLAND WITH JANICE HONEYMAN

~ debeernecessities

When you think pantomime in Gauteng, there’s only one name that comes to mind and that is Janice Honeyman. She’s not counting but, when you ask, she admits that come this time of year, she’s excited.  She shares her excitement of this year’s extravaganza, PETER PAN, with DIANE DE BEER.

Sandi Dlangalala as Peter Pan

Writer/director Janice Honeyman loves pantomime because it is also her time to play – even when putting it all together is serious work. “If the cast don’t genuinely believe in their characters, it won’t work,” she says. And that is what she works hard to get through to all the panto novices in her cast.

It all started for her when she was asked to do a panto by Lynette Marais, who headed the drama department of the Performing Arts Council in the province at the time. “I found a book open panto titled Oh Yes It Is”, a phrase used in every panto to involve the audience and get them fully on board.

That happened more or less 36 years ago, but we’re not really counting and in-between she might have missed three shows. But not only does she direct the pantos, even more importantly, she writes them. And this is where her imagination often runs riot – in the best sense of the word. Her child who is always lurking emerges and it is blast-off time.

So much ther queen of the pantomime, Janice Honeyman has her own pictureIn in the children’s room in Peter Pan.

the writing, her dad is ever present. “He loved telling jokes around the dining room table,” she explains. “They weren’t always that funny,” she admits. But still, this year, she has again included two. And she smiles…

It’s nostalgia, it’s a traditional story, like this year’s Peter Pan with the awful Captain Hook and his sidekick Smee who cause trouble for the hero Peter Pan, the Darling children, lost boys and of course, Tinkerbell. One of the delights of any panto is always the dame and in this instance, Dame Clementina Coconut who introduces much of the Honeyman wit, fun and playfulness, double-entendres and, of course, her dad’s jokes.

Don’t forget about the audience participation and, naturally, a few surprises.

Dame Clementina Coconut (David Arnold Johnson) with Smee (Michael Richard), two of the colourful characters in this year’s panto.

Her last foray into Neverland was 14 years ago and since then many things have changed on stage. For the past few years, because of Covid, she has swapped the sets for LED screens, but she has missed the tangibility and theatricality of the sets and this year, she decided to combine the two, using the best of both worlds. Expect a spectacle of sorts!

“I found it tough to adapt to no furniture,” she says about the LED screens, but all that changes with the combo.

More than anything, pantomime is an invitation to Janice to do all the stuff she feels great affection for. “I jol straight through this.”

And moving from the look of the latest panto to the cast with its combination cast – youth and experience – that’s what she most enjoys, working with the actors. She loves the energy of the young cast, while the experienced actors can show the way to the youngsters. “They represent the well-trained professionals who set the example,” she says.

 And Janice herself learns from her casts who keep her on her toes. That’s where especially the youth plays a particular role. They know what is happening on the ground, what is buzzing and what has fallen off the trend scale for example. It’s part of her script to play with her audience’s world so that her jokes can land smoothly.

On stage, Sandi Dlangalala, who will be playing the brave hero Peter Pan, says: “I am beyond excited to be in the Panto this year. It is my first Janice Honeyman pantomime. I am ready and so excited for rehearsals to start and to be given the lead role is such a huge honour.”

For veteran Ben Voss, it’s different: “Playing Captain Hook in this year’s magical romp, Peter Pan will be my fourth year dishing out mayhem, malice and mischief. It’s the silliness, the scale and the slickness that I love so much. I am already making great progress growing my four- inch moustache, mending my pantaloons and carving my cutlass. Hopefully, like me, you will be HOOKED too!”

Some scene stealers in this year’s panto.

Michael Richard, who has also performed in panto many times, will be playing Smee, Captain Hook’s right hand. “This is my fifth or sixth pantomime for Janice over many years and I am still so excited about embarking on this new adventure. I may not be able to prance around as much I used to in my younger days, but the thrill is still there.”

Kiruna Lind-Devar will be playing Wendy. “Some of my most precious friends and memories come from Pantoland, so I cannot wait to step back into that space and dance, sing and fly. All with a little faith, trust and pixie dust!”

Their Dame Clementina Coconut will be played by David Arnold Johnson: “Being a Dame is always a treat. Working with Janice even more so.”

This time around, Virtuous Kandemiri will be sprinkling fairy dust as Tinkerbell: “I’m so excited, I’m soaked in fairy dust. I can’t wait to play Tinkerbell, a character that I’ve always loved as a child, and one that I know many people love equally, if not more. I’m really looking forward to my first Honeyman Pantomime.”

The rest of the cast year include Matthew Berry, Inge Breytenbach, Gugu Dhlamini, Diego Hamity, Tarryn Heard, Dirk Joubert, Sarah Leigh, Charity Madhlazi, Siya Makakane, Gareth Meijsen, Noni Mkhonto, Bo Molefe, Lesedi Mpshe, Tania Mteto, Sibusiso Mxosana, Tshepo Ncokoane, Brian Ngobese, Manyano Ngoma, Zamaswazi Nkosi, Micah Stojakovic, and Kensiwe Tshabalala.

And always by her side is her appreciated associate director Timothy le Roux

In conclusion, the one thing she truly believes is that everyone needs end-of-year entertainment. With panto, it’s recognisable, has heart and gives her an opportunity to make them laugh.

Everyone also relates to Once upon a time… and Everyone lived happily ever after.

And that makes Janice Honeyman happy!

Tickets are on sale through www.joburgtheatre.com or by calling 0861 670 670.

Prices start at R190. Student and pensioner prices available.

Peter Pan on the Mandela Stage at Joburg Theatre opened this weekend and runs until December 24.