2014 South African Theatre Retrospectives: The Plays - Part 2

2014 is almost over, which means that BroadwayWorld South Africa is in the midst of taking a look back at the past year in theatre. This third column of five in this retrospective series on South African theatre in 2014 raises the curtain on six more of the best plays that have been produced on stages around the country. The first two "six of the best" columns focused on the first six of eighteen plays that will be featured during this week, with the second zooming in on dance and physical theatre. Before we give the cue to run the feature on the last six plays, one column will be devoted to musical theatre in South Africa during 2014.

There was ample opportunity to catch South African theatre legends on stage this year - Athol Fugard, for example, performed in his new play THE SHADOW OF THE HUMMINGBIRD - and one actress who delivers consistently outstanding work whenever she appears on stage is Sandra Prinsloo.

Prinsloo continued to tour during 2014 with English and Afrikaans adaptations of Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt's French novel OSCAR ET LA DAME ROSE, making stops at the Oude Libertas Amphitheatre in Stellenbosch as well as at the Baxter Theatre's Golden Arrow Studio. OSCAR AND THE PINK LADY - or OSKAR EN DIE PIENK TANNIE - tells the story of a young cancer patient who writes a series of letters to God at the suggestion of Granny Rose, a volunteer who works in the children's ward at his hospital. With less than two weeks to live, Granny Rose tells Oscar to live every one of his last days of his life as if it were a decade and his observations on life are insightful and moving. Under the direction of Lara Bye, Prinsloo was a tour de force in the piece, playing all of the roles in this 75-minute solo play.

Earlier in the year, Prinsloo was a magnificent Martha in WIE'S BANG VIR VIRGINIA WOOLF? at the Klein Karoo Nationale National Arts Festival in Oudtshoorn. Prinsloo mined the role for all of its sensuality, tenderness, petulance, spite and cynicism, delivering the performance of a lifetime as the wife of university lecturer, George. Under the direction of Christiaan Olwagen, WIE'S BANG VIR VIRGINIA WOOLF? was a relentless, intermission-less dark jewel of a production. Translated by Saartjie Botha from Edward Albee's classic play, the production first played Aardklop in 2013 with André Jacobs as George. For this run of the production, George was played by Marius Weyers, reuniting the two actors who performed together to great acclaim in plays like SIENER IN DIE SUBURBS, DIE VASVAT VAN 'N VEEKS and HAMLET. Joining them on stage were Wessel Pretorius and Greta Pietersen as Nick and Honey, he performing the appearance of absolute control perfectly and she falling apart in boozy, vacuous haze.

Pretorius himself had conquered the Afrikaans theatre circuit with his solo drama ONT- in 2012 and 2013, winning awards at Woordfees, Aardklop and the kykNET Fiëstas. Translated into English as UNDONE by Hennie van Greunen, Pretorius performed the play at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown and the Artscape Arena as a part of the theatre centre's tenth anniversary Spring Drama Season. A spellbinding piece of theatre, UNDONE delves into the story of a young man and his family. Riddled with allusions to literature - notably Afrikaans poets - and religion, UNDONE is sensual and seductive, ultimately a deeply moving performance piece. Pretorius's performance of UNDONE was characterised by a supple physicality in both the voice and the body as he shifted from character to character. The imagery created onstage, whether Pretorius was soaking pigeon-toed in an old zinc tub with or absent-mindedly fingering a drop of pearls as his thoughts wandered, was also compelling - kudos to Alfred Rietmann for his immense contribution here as set and lighting designer for the production.

Another play that returned to the stage in 2014 was The Pink Couch's ...MISKIEN, which celebrated its fifth anniversary at the Baxter Theatre Centre this year. ...MISKIEN was the debut production of The Pink Couch and was written by Tara Notcutt, Albert Pretorius and Gideon Lombard, directed by Notcutt and performed by Pretorius and Lombard. Telling the story of Cormac and Layton, two best buddies who two sit down to have a few beers every day during Happy Hour at their local pub. What they don't say to each other matters even more what they do and the incredible emotional punch woven into the way things develop between the two friends has kept local and international audiences mesmerised. Brought to life by two virtuoso performances and sensitive direction, ...MISKIEN remains a courageous, meaningful and transcendent work of art half a decade after its first performances.

Lombard was joined by Ella Gabriel for the Rust Co-Operative's THE VIEW at the Market Theatre in Johannesburg in June. Philip Rademeyer's play examines what might happen in a world where - as an American pastor has suggested in a video that went viral on YouTube - gays and lesbians were contained in isolated enclosures and then killed in order to cleanse the world of homosexuality. The play has had such an impact on South African theatre-makers and audiences that this is the third year running that it has been featured in BroadwayWorld's retrospective look at the best theatre of the year. No wonder, for THE VIEW is one of those productions where everything added up: Lombard emotional, live wire performance as the Boy; Gabriel's outstanding manifestations of a dozen different characters; Rademeyer's idea-rich directorial aesthetic; Penelope Youngleson's minimalist but vivid design; and Rietmann's fluid and evocative lighting design. THE VIEW continues to be thrilling, must-see theatre, an experience that reminds audiences of the power of humanity and just how powerful the consequences can be when it is forgotten.

Robin Malan, the owner-manager of Junkets Publisher, specialising in new South African plays, cited another Rust Co-Operative production as one of his highlights of the year: ASHES. Malan described ASHES, which was written and directed by Rademeyer, as 'a piece of chamber-theatre, written in response to the brutal gay-bashing killing of a young man upcountry, beautifully played by both Stefan Erasmus and Shaun Gabriel Smith.' ASHES indeed dove into the dark waters of systemic homophobia in South Africa, as the idyllic bubble in which two lovers live out their lives is devastatingly burst by a violent and graphic hate crime. Erasmus and Smith's delivered sympathetic performances, negotiating well the politics of playing multiple roles representing a range of gender identities. As earlier Rust Co-Operative plays have done, ASHES follows a directive that attempts to instigate both personal and political engagement in its audience. Like THE VIEW, it investigates the nature of our humanity, offering a cathartic experience along the way.

Were the plays in today's "six of the best" column among your favourite theatre outings during 2014? Join the conversation by leaving your comments about the plays you enjoyed this year using the comments feature beneath this article. Keep an eye out for BroadywyWorld's two final retrospectives, focusing on musical theatre and six more plays, before the year draws to a close and we celebrate the start of 2015!

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