Award-Winning DIE REUK VAN APPELS Extended At The Fugard

Due to an overwhelming response, the award-winning production of DIE REUK VAN APPELS has been extended at the Fugard Studio Theatre. It will now run until Saturday 11 November. In BroadwayWorld's recent review of the play, David Fick called DIE REUK VAN APPELS 'unforgettable, first-rate South African theatre,' continuing to say that 'Lara Bye masterfully directs Gideon Lombard... her choices collaborating with Lombard's to create a piece of theatre that subtly works its way into your consciousness and then, into your soul. Lombard's performance as Marnus is a triumph.'

DIE REUK VAN APPELS is the coming-of-age story of Marnus Erasmus, the 11-year-old son of a South African Defence Force general. The play eloquently captures the Afrikaner mentality in the 1970s and 1980s as well as the brutal consequences of apartheid and militarisation in South African society.

DIE REUK VAN APPELS is based on the acclaimed 1993 debut novel of South African author Mark Behr. Upon publication and subsequent translation into English as THE SMELL OF APPLES, this landmark Afrikaans novel saw Behr join the ranks of writers such as Etienne van Heerden and Koos Prinsloo. Before his untimely death on 27 November 2015, Behr was a professor of creative writing at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee.

Presented by Theatrerocket Productions and adapted for the stage by Johann Smith, the play stars Gideon Lombard (...MISKIEN, THE VIEW, SPECIAL THANKS TO GUESTS FROM AFAR) and is directed by Lara Bye (LONDON ROAD, OSCAR AND THE PINK LADY, VASLAV). A seasoned and popular stage actor, DIE REUK VAN APPELS marks Lombard's debut solo performance in a play. Also a talented musician, Lombard handles the sound design for the production. Lighting design is by Kosie Smit.

Performed in Afrikaans with English surtitles, the production premiered at the Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees (KKNK) this year, with Lombard winning the Best Actor Award at the 2017 Kanna Awards. At the recent Aardklop Festival, Lombard was also nominated for the Best Actor award and Bye for Best Director.

DIE REUK VAN APPELS runs on Tuesdays through Saturdays at 20:00 with a 16:00 matinee performance on Saturdays. Tickets for Tuesdays cost R130, Wednesdays R155, and Thursday to Saturdays R165. Bookings can be made online through Computicket, by phone on 0861 915 8000, or in person at any Shoprite Checkers outlet. Bookings can also be made at the Fugard Theatre box office on 021 461 4554. The production carries an age restriction of 16 for sex, nudity, strong language, violence and prejudice.