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Life and times of Micheal K

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Life and times of Micheal K

Just when you think you have seen it all, something you haven’t seen comes along and blows you away.

I was at the Market Theatre to watch “The Life and Times of Micheal K”, a novel by JM Coetzee adopted by Lara Foot. The story is told through puppetry and physical theatre. The story is of a man named Michael K, who along with his very sick mother make an arduous journey from Cape Town to her mother’s rural birthplace in Prince Albert amid a fictitious civil war during the apartheid era. To get there Michael K builds a shoddy rickshaw to carry her mother. Along the way they head into some trouble, they don’t have the right paperwork and permits and the little money they have gets confiscated by soldiers. His mother ends-up in the hospital and passes on. She is cremated. Alone, dejected, hungry and with nothing Micheal K carries on the journey to Prince Albert to scatter her dead mother’s ashes. Along the way, he is exploited for cheap labor and he goes through an intense starvation period. Soldiers also misidentify him as a rebel and keep him hostage but he survives and escapes finding his way back to his mother’s apartment in Cape Town. It is revealed that Micheal K has a deformity, a cleft lip and because of this deformity people tend to treat him like he is lesser, slow.

The story-telling with the puppets is amazing. The puppets mimiced the real life movements of humans. The puppet masters understand the human anatomy, how the leg moves and the bend of the knee when the foot touches the base. The movements of the puppets were realistic. Somehow the puppets even had facial expressions, a testament to their realism. Supplemented in was the voice-actors, they breathed in life to the puppets, the puppets were panting, moaning, laughing and just communicating like any other ordinary human being. The puppets moved the story. The manipulators worked in tandem to achieve the desired effect, double teaming in groups of threes or four per puppet to move the limbs, while others lend their voices and manipulated the torso and head. I loved how the goat puppet was manipulated, it moved like a real goat. My favorite scene was the swimming scene, it was so intense. The team chemistry is beautiful. They are deliberate, concise and work with care. Every movement has a purpose, every detail added to the story. With Kyle Shepherd on the score, the show is poignant and emotional. Story-telling techniques like deliberate silence were used to make the audience reflect and take in the significance of what just transpired. After a while, you even forgot about the manipulators, the puppets came alive and told the story.

That was an amazing show, story-telling perfection is my humble opinion. I loved everything about the show, the sets, the props, the lighting, puppets and the music. The 2 hours watching fly, because you are having so much fun. It’s a story-telling masterclass, it’s different, innovative and inspiring. Shout-out to the Handspring Puppet Company, those puppets are just awesome!

Basil JR Jones and Adrian P Kohler are the Puppet Directors

Puppet Masters are:
Sandra Prinsloo
Andrew Buckland
Faniswa Yisa
Craig Leo
Carlo Daniels
Roshina Ratnam
Billy Langa
Marty Kintu
Nolufefe Ntshuntshe
Markus Schabbing

Congratulations Lara Foot and the whole team for a great show and a deserved standing ovation.

Dear Evan Hansen

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Dear Evan Hansen

I was at the Teatro to watch “Dear Evan Hansen”, been looking forward to seeing it for weeks and it didn’t disappoint. The production is simply excellent, live theatre at its absolute best. A musical with a live band, they are not in sight but they are felt throughout the show. The show is seamless and flows effortlessly, the moving stage creates this seamless transition between scenes. The mood is blue and it permeates the auditorium, with blue LED lights flickering, set against a backdrop of screens that are most of the time blue. The screens are also a story-telling device that helped communicate the passage of time. They helped create sets for certain scenes by providing the backdrops and gave us visual cues when the content in the show went viral on the internet, reading all the comments and seeing all the likes on the screen made the experience even better. The set is glorious. I loved the fact that we could hear the conversations Evan had over the internet with his devices. The show is inclusive, we could hear everything, even what was happening in his head, his thoughts, ridden with anxiety. The live band are a nice touch, they are exquisite, the singing wonderful and the acting world class. From voice intonations, body language, hand gestures, micro-expressions and movements. Evan for example is overly anxious, his mind is always racing, he is nervy, uncomfortable, awkward, not sure of himself and just everywhere. This is reflected in his demeanor, tone of voice, expressions and gestures. His hands are always moving, head looking downwards, characteristic mumbling and fumbling, his favorite words to say “I am sorry”. He is riddled by insecurity, he is a mess.

The story explores depression, social anxiety and suicide. The tone is blue, sophisticated color considering the subject matter and link to depression. Evan Hansen, a high school pupil who suffers from depression and anxiety, who also has a broken arm has a hard time making friends. His mother suggests he should let other students sign his cast, that way he will make friends. A student named Connor whom he is not close to signs his cast and ultimately commits suicide. Evan lies about the nature of their relationship, claiming that he and Connor were best friends. The lies pile up and Connors family get involved. Now that Connor is not here anymore, grief makes them regard Evan as their own. They even offer to give Connor’s college fund to Evan, something that enrages Evans hardworking single mother parent. Evan even manages to date Connor’s beautiful sister – surprising, considering his level of social anxiety. He wins her heart by lying, fabricating narratives in the guise of them coming from his brother. The socially awkward Evan benefits immensely from Connor’s suicide, his peers even start looking at him favorably but he can’t live with himself so he tells the truth. It is a moving story about family, belonging, relationships and mental health. Social media is the focal point as we see a number of posts go viral. Viral posts that perpetuate a lie, but through the “Connor Project website”, they also manage to immortalize Connors memory.

Stuart Brown is magnificent as Evan Hansen, he got the nuances spot-on, the mannerisms of someone who is socially awkward, the fidgeting, lack of eye contact, hand movements and voice intonations. His performance carried a lot of range, he made you laugh, he cried, he was vulnerable and he was awkward among other states. He is a phenomenal actor. Sharon Spiegel-Wagner plays Cynthia Murphy. Sharon is my all time favorite performer in the world!

Charlie Bouguenon is Larry Murphy
Keely Crocker is Zoe Murphy
Ntshikeng Matooane is Alana Beck
Justin Swartz is (family friend) Jared Kleinman
Micheal Stray is Connor Murphy
Lucy Tops is Heidi Hansen

The show is truly wonderful and the venue perfect. Everyone performs at a high level. It’s beautiful to watch theatre that connects with the youth, theatre for the times, for the human spirit, theatre that tackles feelings of unworthiness, loneliness and well-being. Theatre that resonates with anybody despite your social standing and influence in the world. The world is plagued by anxiety, pills and other drugs only numb the pain but it doesn’t go away, tomorrow it’s still there and the weight is heavier. We sit with the pain because the world claims depression is not a real condition, meanwhile it eats at us until we can’t carry on anymore. We need more stories like these to normalize depression and mental health, stories to make the common man feel like he is understood. Stories that will make us understand our world much better.

Congratulations How Now Brown Cow Productions for a great show and a deserved standing ovation.

As always SamSays on the credits.

You strike a woman, you strike a rock!

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You strike a woman, you strike a rock!

SamSays delivered the through ball and I controlled and finessed for the match ball, hatrick! I deliver over and over again. Thank you Sam, SamSays on the credits.

I was at Joburg Theatre to watch “You strike a woman, you strike a rock” (Wathint’ abafazi, wathint’ imbokotho). Live theatre at the highest level. The play is set in the Apartheid era, PW Botha is the president, the story world is plauged by inequality, social injustice and poverty. The story opens with a Helicopter scattering, hovering and surveilling the location. The residents hate the roaming Helicopter, they call it a bird, they see it for what it is, spying, surveillance by the government. They curse and swear at every time it features in the show. This describes the relationship the people of the story have with the  government and unjust system. It’s hate, resentment, they feel oppression and utter contempt for the system. We are introduced to the three main characters in a typical market in the Transkei. Children and chaos co-existing in the market, Mambhele and Mampompo sell chickens and Sdudla sells oranges and vetkoeks. They all operate their stalls illegally without permits or permission. The threat of the police or authority is ever present. It’s a woman’s world and men are hardly present. These women fight on a daily to secure their families future, money is tough to get and they work hard. Seeing that opportunities for money are few in the Transkei, they move to a township in Cape Town. In the world of the township, violence prevails as the unrest is prevalent. It is a story-world that is not fair for women, they are easily fired from work by their white employers for coming late, their transport issues not factored in, they are sexually abused for standing up for themselves at the farms and deadbeat unemployed husband’s drink away the family’s money at the shebeen. Despite everything, the women stand strong and they miraculously prevail in this unjust, unequal and in different world.

Money and survival are paramount in this world, we see Mambhele practically prostituting herself to sell chickens, letting her customers interact and touch her inappropriately, boob grabs and just about anything that gets the job done. Mampompo is notorious for robbing his customers change and hiking up prices. Sdudla is surprisingly level headed out of the three. It is physical theatre at its best, sounds of chickens and objects in the play are mimicked to perfection. The performers created a realistic environment, we were transported to their world. They imitated chickens, busses, babies, windows, knocks on doors and the protests on the streets. They have tremendous stage presence and chemistry. They know each other instinctively and intuitively on the stage, they just flow, they just play. They fully embodied their characters on the stage, it was convincing, humorous, wholesome and relatable.The characters are 3 dimensional, they have hopes, dreams and fears. The conversations and interactions felt natural. The play is in English but has an Eastern Cape dialect, you can hear the Xhosa accent and undertone. The characters are alive, they are real, they exist. The performance and acting is just incredible! The performers have incredible range, they were serious, humorous, tearful, excited and Ziaphora even regressed to a child. Incredible endurance and stamina too – a lot happened, they created magic, they were simply amazing.

Barileng Malebye plays Mambhele, Keitumetse ‘Kitty’ Moepang plays Mampompo and Ziaphora Dakile is Sdudla. Excellence all around, live theatre at its very best.

Congratulations Rorisang Motuba and the whole team and a deserved standing ovation.

The cry of Winnie Mandela

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The cry of Winnie Mandela

At the Market Theatre to watch “The cry of Winnie Mandela”. If you had the opportunity and honor of asking the mother of nation a couple of questions, what would they be? Stompie? TRC? Mandela FC? Her 400+ days in prison? Why her union with Nelson didn’t last and what could she have done better if anything?

The show starts off with a writer thinking out loud, watching a news bulletin about the murder of Stompie. It is alleged that the Mandela FC team kidnapped and murdered him. There’s uproar and chaos considering Mandela FC is Winnies team. “She changed, she’s not the same person. She used to be warm, empathetic and compassionate, but now I don’t recognize her” – these are some of the sentiments expressed from the screen from commentators. The writer is in a room, he is thoughtful, he wants to write Winnies story from her vantage point. Then four african women appear from his imagination. They are real women, full of personality and quirks. They are humorous, they give the show color, range and dimension. The four women share their stories with the crowd about how their husband’s left and they are still waiting. The stories are personal and emotive, they test their resilience, resolve and character. The crippling angst of loneliness, one woman explores Can Thembas “The Suit” set in Sophiatown about a woman who commits adultery. She too flirts with the idea of committing adultery. One of the women is easy prey for a young man who targets her because she is isolated and alone, they engage in casual intercourse but it stops when the rumors in the townships start circulating. One of the ladies man leaves her for a white woman after she was his backbone, supporting him and his dreams. The women call out the double standards, would he wait for her if she left? The ideas of patience, commitment and resilience are put through a microscope. The ladies want to know how Winnie was able to do it. They play a game which results in Winnie Mandela magically appearing. The ladies are awestruck and commence showering her with questions. Questions about her and Nelson, the TRC, her days in captivity and her secrets to resilience. She answers them with a lot of personality. The last image of the play is off a quote about her being happy with everything and how she would never change anything.

The show is simply wonderful. The performers are real, familiar and relatable. It was easy to connect with the characters because they made themselves vulnerable so early on. The interactions with each other on the stage felt natural. You knew the characters on the stage, they felt alive. Language was not a barrier, words from other languages was borrowed for expression and authenticity. It was not language for the sake of form but language for expression and the story world. When the performers performed, their faces lit up. They fiercely delivered their monologues and sang with a lot of passion and love. The lighting was cool, I saw one detail that blew me away. On the floor you could see the reflection of a window. The show is simply irresistible!

Les Nkosi plays Prof. Ndebele (writer) , Rami Chuene plays Mannete, Ayanda Sibisi plays Delisiwe, Pulane Rampoana plays Mamello, Siyasanga Papu plays Marara and Thembisa Mdoda-Nxumalo plays Winnie Mandela.

Congratulations Momo Mansunyane and the whole team for a great show and a deserved standing ovation.

UNDISPUTED

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UNDISPUTED

I am undisputed, champion of the world, greatness is constituted by God and the style prostituted by pussy ass niggas who attempt to fuck up the world with what I initiated but you lack charisma and you just hated. You can never climax at the top even if you masterbated while I come all night, all day, implanting seeds in your mind to make you grow and make this dough. I am undisputed, on top of mount everest, beating everybody to prove I am the best, pull the plug on your ass to give you permanent rest, why because I can, prohibited like a ban, flow crazy deserves to be in the can, Mr. Steal your girl and defeat your man. Damn! I’ve been winning ever since, where yall niggas, making light work on you like mince, secretive like a sphinx, I’ve been winning ever since, where yall niggas? Who wants to challenge me niggas? I am undisputed, sitting on a Throne that I looted, took it from a weakling king that I booted, banished him from his castle and he left muted. I am the one, I wear the crown and I am far from done, illuminate the town like the sun, head down to penetrate the cunt, sorry, I’m obscene, sometimes I paint pictures with my words to create a scene, if this were a horror movie, you would scream cause I devour punani like cream! I am undisputed, everything you see is mine, look at the signs, obey and we will be fine, wanna be a hero and we will take it aside, turn you into a sweater and make your insides your outside.

Bitter Winter

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Bitter Winter

The tedium of going to castings, you risk it all and gain nothing for your efforts, you saw people who are just like you in the waiting room, some even prettier than you, willing to do the same job, what’s done is done. The casting director lady has seen it all, the frizzling enthusiasm of youth vanish. First couple of months, you had the spirit, but lately you just coming in to mark the register, until you win or lose hope. You thought you did your best and that you’d get the part, so you wait and wait for a call that never comes. Indifference, it’s like you don’t exist. Agitated and flooding with anxiety, you offered to shoot the scene again but were met with “No thanks, that’s not necessary, we have everything we need”. There’s nothing you can do, it’s not in your hands. They decided against you the moment you left the room, meanwhile you’re living in hope, painting dreams in your mind that never come to fruition. Broke. A nobody. That call back is everything, you get another chance, the chance to meet the director, this could be it.

I was at the Pieter Toerien Theatre for the opening of the Paul Slabolepszy’s, play “Bitter Winter”. Amazing play, brilliant in it’s execution. I was with SamSays, we were in B3 and B4 – at the very front. Thank you Collett Dawson for the weekend. Alan Committee was super great the day before with his show “Olympic Gold”. He is up on the podium with a Gold medal with that performance: incredible delivery, quick witted, energetic, on his feet, interactive, very humorous and just a straight-up banger! Comedians are the cleverest people, providing social commentary, reflecting reality in a humorous undertone and helping us mould our human existence in an environment where everything goes, I was laughing throughout, it takes a lot of hard work and mastery to be Alan Committee, he makes it look so easy, so effortless, the show is just pure comedy gold.

The play is set in a Casting directors office, call back, two guys are cast, old has been guy, with present guy. Present guy is angry and hostile at first, his character arc progresses and he opens up to the old has been guy, that’s when he starts being open with us, the audience, music on his headphones is off and put away. He walks in the scene avoident and closed off, secluded, trapped on his phone, listening to music on his phone – Kendrick Lamar “Money Trees”. Present guy is cast as the main guy, the old man is led into believing that he is cast for the role, only to reveal in the last minute that he is not cast. Someone from overseas filled the role. The play has a lot of heart. It is beaufully craft, perfect in a way that only art can be, excuted by performers who love what they do – the performers were extraordinary, performing with purpose, being in the moment, embodying the craft. The show has personality and quirks, it is relatable and humorous. As the play progressed we learned about the protagonists lives, their families, their past, we became invested. The set was office-like, backdrop, Jozi. Andre Odendaal plays Jean-Louis Lourens, the old has been guy. Oarabile Ditsele plays Prosper Mangane, the present guy. Chantal Stanfield plays Felicia Willemse, the casting director lady. The play is just brilliant. Congratulations Lesedi Job and the whole team and a deserved standing ovation.

Winner

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Winner

I am a winner, I am competitive, I never stop. I create systems and follow through until I am on top. The pick of the crop, my reign showers fields to ensure supply never stops, I deliver and demand triumphs a cops. Most wanted, five star performance every time, rig the game to take your last dime. I am a winner, better than a sinner, focus intensified better than a fat man at dinner, come close and I’ll kill ya, leave you bloodied like an encounter with a spinner. I am simply better, leave your girl wetter, have the public write you off, we don’t need no letter. I am a winner, I am always number one, the spotlight is on me, you’ll get it when I am done, who can stand alongside me, the answer is none, nobody can fuck with me like a nun. I am the best, the leader of any conquest, I’ll give you preferential treatment cause you just a guest but if you get on my face I’ll doom your ass cause you’ll be a pest. I am a winner, I have all the trophies, the budget is high so we don’t tolerate no low fees, bro please, stand aside so I can teach you how to appease, I am the consciousness of culture, haters in circles over my body like a vulture but I’ve got reserves stacked up like vouchers. I go overtime, I kill to solve the crime, get dirty to remove the grime and stand on the Throne to show its mine. I am a winner, I’ve got the calves to prove it, I’ve got stamina. A marathon runner with the speed of a sprinter. Penetrate resistance like a splinter, go deep like coitus in winter. I am a winner and all I do is win, win, win no matter what, I am always the victor.

My Fair Lady

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My Fair Lady

Opening day of My Fair Lady at the Teatro, my first time, the theatre is exquisite, what a beauty! I asked Sam if “bestest” was a word after the show, she replied “no but it’s usable”. Greenlight, the show is amazing, somehow “best” is not enough, I need another “est” to transcend this post. It’s simply a perfect show, no flaws, no imperfections, just your definition of excellence. From the acting, to the lighting, choreography, script, sets, orchestra and the Maestro, singing, props, costumes, feel, mood, everything. It is story-telling at the highest level. A witty musical that had the audience laughing all the way through. The story follows Henry Higgins who believes accent and English can get you to the very top of society. Just maybe “bestest” is not a good idea for this post. She meets a meager girl, with a strange accent, Eliza Doolittle and makes a wager with his friend Colonel Pikering, a fellow phenetics expert. He wins, he’s right, with Henry Higgins help, Eliza ends up dancing with a foreign prince at the ball. Things started coming right after “The rain in Spain”.

Craig Urbani who plays Henry Higgins deserves special praise for his performance. He is unbelievably great! He commands the show, the acting is out of this world. He has incredible range, he can make you laugh, he can make you sad, he sings, he dances, he acts, he is incredible. His viewpoint on women makes me laugh, he doesn’t understand them, he wants to know, why can’t they be like men, why can’t they just be like him. He covers how women ruin lives on “I am an ordinary man”, a humurous piece that had the audience laughing out loud.

Graham Hopkins is a legend, he plays Colonel Pickering, like Craig, he does everything, he is humorous, he is engaging, he is superb! Leah Mari who plays Eliza Doolittle is amazing, unbelievable, the singing is outstanding, the acting top-class and she’s just gorgeous! It would be a great injustice if I left out Mark Richardson who played Eliza’s father Doolittle, he is on the same level of the other cast members, he too is great on every front.

Music by Frederick Loewe
Musical direction by Kevin Kraak
Designed by Greg King
Choreography by Duane Alexander
Sound Design by Mark Malherbe
Lighting designer by Dennis Hutchinson
Original Costume Designer Neil Stuart Harris
Costume Co-ordinator Martha Visage
Additional costumes Andrew Botha

Congratulations Steven Stead and the whole team for the bestest show ever and a deserved standing ovation.

Musical Chairs

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Musical Chairs

I’ve been struggling with my own significance for the whole day. 11:11 when I checked my phone, angel numbers, everything is in perfect alignment. I know the ego is a fabrication of the mind. A dirty trick that makes me believe I matter. How many people would miss me if everything turned to black? Who will remember me? What legacy did I leave behind? Nothing, I don’t exist. 4:44 time to prepare for the theatre, Musical Chairs is on. I get to Sandton, almost On the square, the Gautrain station in sight, then out of nowhere, with a lot of speed, from a corner, a car approaches me, I duck but it connects and hits my left leg, shook but I regain my balance, it’s not bad and I don’t fall but it hurts. I look in the distance thinking it’s a hit and run but the driver reverses. White guy, white Hyandai, in a hurry, he wasn’t paying attention. I am relieved, at least he has some humanity. It’s awkward for him, he doesn’t know what to say. I reassure him and thank him for coming back to check up on me. I tell him it’s cool, it’s okay, I can still walk but you hurt me. I was so close to the theatre, I am basically there, I let it go, I escaped, what’s done is done. I shook his hand and limped my way to the theatre to go watch Musical Chairs.

11:11 the show was stunning. From the lighting, music, dancing and minimalistic set. It was spellbinding, attention glued, difficult to take your eyes off the stage. I don’t think I even took a sip of my water. Everything lost relevance, the stage was the center of the Universe. Nothing mattered but the performers on the stage, they were simply amazing. It is story-telling like I have never seen before. No dialogue, no words, just dance and movement. It was expressive, energetic and moving. You understood the story, the story about inclusion, exclusion, relevance, validation – please like me, see me, I matter. For most of the show, the dancers fight for seats because there aren’t enough. A seat means you are a part of the group, a clique, relevance, validation, you matter. When you don’t have a seat, you are excluded, out in the cold, no one cares about you. Sophisticated metaphor about the world of social media. Social media is the pulse of the show. You want that seat, the performers on the stage fight to get that seat. Different dance styles and music genres are incorporated in the show. The performers are 3 dimensional, performing with a lot of energy and passion. They feel it. They are in the moment. They are sweating on stage. They are giving everything they have. Totally in sync, perfect cheography and wonderful chemistry – they love what they do. Now I understand the 4:44, it was a nudge from the Universe, all is linked, synchronicity, I read Jung, everything is in perfect alignment, it was a great day.

Thank you Daphne Kuhn and Theatre on the square for yet another fantastic experience. The theatre is my heaven.

Congratulations Aurelie Stratton, Hungani Ndlovu, Sipho Didiza and the whole team for an amazing show and a deserved standing ovation.