Louis Viljoen's THE PERVERT LAURA to Premiere at The Little Theatre

Award-winning playwright Louis Viljoen's new play, a dark psycho drama entitled THE PERVERT LAURA, opens at The Little Theatre in December. A writer, director and producer in theatre, film and television for twelve years, Viljoen has co-produced (with Greg Karvellas) the plays ROCKS, THE ABUSERS, THE BILE BOYS, THE VERBALISTS, THE FRONTIERSMEN and THE KINGMAKERS. Viljoen's play CHAMP was produced by Artscape and won him the Fleur du Cap Theatre Award for Best New South African Script and was subsequently invited to participate in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Viljoen's latest play, THE PERVERT LAURA, follows 30-year-old Laura through a week in her life. In conversations with her therapist, an attempt at an affair and through arguments with her family, Laura reveals herself to be a woman on the road to self-annihilation. As secrets are unearthed, accusations are made and relationships are shattered, the true source of Laura's decision to veer from the path society chose for her becomes clear. THE PERVERT LAURA is an uncomfortable journey into the dark heart of a woman's past and what awaits her in the darkness will be more monstrous than she could have imagined.

THE PERVERT LAURA is part kitchen-sink drama and part horror and will leave audiences shaken. It stars acclaimed Fleur du Cap Theatre Award winning actress Emily Child as Laura. Child graduated from the University of Cape Town in 2007 with a degree in Theatre and Performance, having worked since then both independently and as a member of acclaimed theatre troupe, The Mechanicals. Her recent work includes William Shakespeare's KING LEAR (THIS TIME IT HURTS), directed by Guy De Lancey; Marc Camoletti's DON'T DRESS FOR DINNER, directed by Steven Stead; The Mechanicals and Zombie Joe Underground's URBAN DEATH, directed by Jana Wimer; and A CERTAIN LADY, a one-woman show based on the short stories of Dorothy Parker, directed by Greg Karvellas. THE PERVERT LAURA reunites Child with Viljoen, with the pair having worked together on CHAMP in 2013.

The powerhouse cast of THE PERVERY LAURA is rounded out by Terry Norton, Nicholas Pauling, Guy De Lancey and newcomer Sarah Potter.

Norton is a legendary South African actress whose theatrical credits include the classics like MACBETH, OTHELLO, EQUUS, ANTIGONE and A DOLL'S HOUSE as well as local plays such as BORN IN THE RSA and RAINBOW SCARS. She most recently appeared in Harold Pinter's ASHES TO ASHES as part of the inaugural Cape Town Fringe Festival.

A founding member of The Mechanicals Theatre and a proud member of Johannesburg-based The Framework, Pauling has performed for the Royal Shakespeare Company (HAMLET, THE TEMPEST) and toured the USA with the American production of THE 39 STEPS. Pauling is a Brett Goldin Award recipient and also won a Fleur Du Cap Award for Best Actor for his work in AMADEUS. He recently returned from Montreal where he was touring with WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS. Pauling has worked with Louis Viljoen on THE ABUSERS, THE FRONTIERSMEN and CHAMP.

De Lancey is a director, cinematographer, photographer and designer of both lighting and set, and an occasional actor. As a member of The Mechanicals, he has directed and designed KING LEAR (THIS TIME IT HURTS), A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, Sarah Kane's BLASTED and Jaan Tatte's HIGHWAY CROSSING. He has also designed productions of Athol Fugard's STATEMENTS AFTER AN ARREST UNDER THE IMMORALITY ACT and URBAN DEATH. De Lancey directed Louis Viljoen's Cape Town debut, THE BILE BOYS.

Potter graduated from UCT in 2013, having majored in acting. She is a writer, poet and voice artist, whose student and professional highlights include Christopher Weare's productions of An ABSOLUTE TURKEY and THE COLONEL BIRD, FOUR SMALL GODS by Joanna Evans and THE LOVER by Harold Pinter. Potter was most recenly seen in EBOLA, written by Hilda Cronje and directed by Nicholas Ellenbogen.

THE PERVERT LAURA runs at The Little Theatre on Hiddingh Campus (37 Orange Street) from 4-20 December 2014 at 8pm nightly. Tickets cost R100 per person via Webtickets or at the door (cash only). Advance booking is recommended. THE PERVERT LAURA contains explicit language, nudity and scenes of a sexual nature, and carries an age restriction of 18.

To post a comment, you must register and login.