Sophiatown | antakalipa

Sophiatown

Wonderful story, great sets and the best Jazz music, I recognized the coal stove, worn out door and cohabitation associated with being from the township. A stadium of people can coexist and live together in a 4 room house and that’s the case in this story. Maybe not a stadium but family, extended relatives, girlfriend and close friend. Jewish girl moves in and is welcomed to the family. I love the family dynamic, makes the characters relatable as you can see yourself in their image, it forces you to care for the characters and stay engaged with the story, the conversations are hearty, free flowing and feel natural, dialogue funny, witty, serious, heartfelt and emotional. The show had everything, it was supremely entertaining. There’s a lot of range, textures and layers to the acting. For the most part the show is comedic but it does get threatening and dramatic. I cared for the characters, I saw my sister, mother, father and uncle. The gangster was humanized in a way I had not seen since “The Sopranos”, we got to see what the protagonist is usually like with his family, that made him a bit likeable despite the fact that he is a bad person with questionable morality. Like on “The Sopranos”, his family are enablers of the lifestyle. The mother welcomes a life of crime since his son gives him money. The gangster’s girlfriend, Princess is textbook Carmella Soprano with the lavish lifestyle and like Carmella, she is manipulated and bought with jewelry. She stays in the relationship despite the physical and emotional abuse. She is labeled “A princess of the slums” and as such, she has to take all the abuse, she has no other place to go, she has no other options, she’s living a good life, she’s in, she’s in! For most of the show, it feels like a sitcom, the live Jazz band controls the tempo and creates the feel, the 1954 Sophiatown jazz feel, love the costumes, the double breasted suits, cane’s and hats, it is gentlemanly and gives intellectual vibes. The actors on the stage were amazing, they were convincing, they were in sync, they had chemistry, they had a lot of enthusiasm and were animated and lively. They looked like they were having a lot of fun, they connected deeply with their characters. My favorite character is Lulu, the school girl, she’s funny and I appreciate her perspective. I enjoyed the gangsters performance, he had the crowd at the palm of his hand, he is violent, a bully, exhibits preditory behavior, manipulative and an overall bad person. Oh well, what do you expect from a gangster? Yes he is a family man but a gangster nonetheless. Great cheographed moves with wonderful melodic and harmonic singing, the band are amazing throughout, they are hidden for most part of show by the set (Shacks/Informal settlements) but they are revealed to the audience when Sophiatown is bulldozed to the ground. The depiction of the township is so accurate with the loud dogs and music, it made chuckle. In the end, everybody moves out or to be precise is forced out! Even Princess snaps out the trance she was in and figures she deserves better. Segregation and apartheid prevails and the white Jewish girl moves to Yeoville, ending the chance at romance with her black writer intellectual, the gangsters righthandman Charlie, is forced to live in pipes under a bridge because he is colored and can’t move to Meadowlands. One day gets knifed to death courtesy of a fight he was involved in. The rest of the family gets relocated to Meadowlands. Their movers are unsympathetic, insensitive Dutch men who are on a schedule and don’t negotiate with anyone, they just bring everything down! Having identified with the core characters for more than 2 hours, you feel their pain and helplessness at the situation. In the end they all lost. Amazing story with authentic characters played by actors who executed optimally.

The suit

Sello Maake ka-Ncube, self-explaintory, it sells itself, star power, an absolute legend. Which reminds me. Where is his star? I thought I was hallucinating reality, maybe it’s at the corner? Maybe it’s still in construction? I searched and I searched – nothing. The greats have their star but where is his? He is Archie Moroka, Daniel Nyathi, Sipho Makhaya, a gladiator in the world of T.V and theatre, performed and produced the best, what more must he do? Rueful, a missed opportunity. Give the man his flowers. He deserves them, he is ours.

I was on the square for the opening of “The Suit”. Full house, esteemed individuals and celebrities, the excitement was contagious, Covid style. Everyone was infected by the spirit of the show. A story about betrayal, set in Sophiatown. Tells the story of a wife who commits adultery when his husband is at work and is one day caught in the act. The man flees leaving his suit behind. As a form of punishment, the spiteful husband forces the wife to integrate the suit in their every day life, dinners, social gathering, church, everything. What used to be a duo is now a trio. Humiliated at the gazing and the constant talk behind her back, the wife ultimately takes her own life. The show was humorous, gritty and serious, I appreciated the work of artists. They did their best to tell the story as authentically as they could. However, I did have a couple of issues with the story-telling techniques. Great story but it could have been executed better. Too much telling and not showing. Although the writing was great, it was descriptive and emotive. You got the two perspectives of the partners. They shared their inner most thoughts and communicated their state of mind. We know that Matilda (the wife) felt lonely and the husband oppressed due to his long hours at work. It still felt like a recital, a book reading. Felt rushed and we were manipulated into feeling a certain way. We couldn’t come up with our own conclusions. The audience’s imagination was not allowed to roam around.The show needed to be longer with an interval. Character arcs and ending predictable. I never read the book but I knew the conclusion before time because the narration was leading me there, it told me what to think. The show had elements of physical theatre. It was a good show and the character of Mr. Maphikela provided the comic relief, the audience loved him. He saved the show for me. The set evoked the feeling of Sophiatown. The music added an element of drama and the lighting moved the story. Maybe I went to the theatre expecting another “Nothing but the truth”, maybe I am disappointed it was not that. Tshireletso Nkoane is beautiful, I understand the intruder in her marriage. Job Kubatsi and Lebohang Motaung humorous and didn’t put a foot wrong. They were relatable and when we did have a scene with dialogue and the characters interacting with each other, the show was gold. The show had a lot for 80 minutes, the narration of the story compressed and minimized the performance arts element in it. However, it was still a great show. The audience loved it and it garnered a standing ovation. Congratulations J. Bobs Tshabalala and the whole team and a deserved standing ovation.