Playwright and satirist Mike Van Graan takes his theatre thriller My Fellow South Africans to Theatre on the Square
The play starring young acting talent Kim Blanche Adonis runs from 22 August – 2 September, 2023.
(Second lead use pic of Adonis as main pic and a pic of Mike Van Graan inside)
By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor
For some he is a problem child in theatre who causes disruption to the norm of most post-apartheid theatrical narratives that tend to shy away from speaking truth to power. What Mike Van Graan writes about is therefore there on stage for everyone to witness, and If the truth be told, anyone who has seen his shows, especially the satirical type, his forte, find it hard to fault him and his pen or keyboard when it comes to telling stories that represent much of what has been steadily going wrong on the country’s political front.
Even gaining some disturbing moment as the country hurtles towards a destination most feared would happen as a new breed of leadership took over from those of the past and their hunger for capital accumulation increasingly became bigger than their desire to serve the people and make life for the once downtrodden and impoverished better. His shows have always been sharp to the point, and even fearless about tackling the ugly pockets of politics of the so called new South Africa.
Theatre lovers have over the years seen his plays. Some admired them, while others dismissed them as ideologically informed plays, playing into the narrative of postn apartheid opposition politics. Among those who held this view are to be found even fellow thespians, even the really good ones whose pens once brutally dissected what was going wrong during with the political system of the past when the apartheid Kings and Queens were once in charge.
That is before a popular democratic vote threw them into the dust bin of history, where many are even starting to forget that those men and women of politics were once powerful, untouchable and regrettably brutal in their ways of marginalising, demonising and even killing their opponents in the name of protecting the state. This argument pertains to actually talented theatre minds, writers and directors especially those who want to keep it safe and not stick their necks out in the face of corruption and the slowly fading sense of social justice for the majority in a free and democratic South Africa.
This is as former liberators have tested the fruits of freedom and its trappings, in the process tragically slowly forgetting the very reason why people took up arms while others took to the streets in the process enduring the itchy and blinding effect of teargas emitted by canisters thrown at them by the police. Some driven to exile, calling foreign lands home that they never planned to build for themselves and their families.
But in democratic South Africa, led by the once marginalised, the crude nature of political power is once again showing its crudeness and the fact that power corrupt and absolutely power corrupts absolutely, just to reference that talented English novelist George Orwell.
Van Graan has long picked this among the crop of post-apartheid South Africa and his pen has been busy clinically dissecting what ANC intellectual and policy guru Joel Netshitenje calls Sin of Incumbency. Take for example van Graan’s theatrical satire Green Man Flashing that he penned in the 2000.
I first saw that play at Grahamstown at the National Arts Festival and at the Market, and each time I watched it, it felt like I was witnessing a pair of sharp scissors slicing a cancerous part of post-apartheid governance structure. That play in fact propelled and positioned van Graan as one of the fiercest and bravest playwrights to tackle post-apartheid corruption in government.
That stands did not of course win him many friends in government and certainly among the ranks of its sympathisers. But that won the playwright respect among theatre goers. That is why his plats today are most often heavily attended and critically acclaimed. What Van Graan does on stage using theatre, is in fact what South African comedians having been doing on stage in post-apartheid South Africa with their politically punchy lines, using humour to caricature the corrupt and incompetent among the crop of post-apartheid politicians in government.
Followers of van Graan will be happy to know that the playwright is back with another satire, heading to Theatre on the Square in Sandton later this month.
Van Graan’s My Fellow South Africans opens at the Theatre on the Square for a two week run, from August 22– 2nd September, 2023, with Kim Blanche Adonis,directed by Rob Van Vuuren and Daniel Mpilo Richards.
Theatre on the Square is thrilled to present the highly anticipated show, My Fellow South Africans, written by the acclaimed playwright, Mike van Graan. Following its successful premiere season at Artscape, which garnered overwhelming praise from audiences and critics alike, this multi-sketch satirical one-person revue will grace the Theatre on the Square stage from 22 August to 2 September.
My Fellow South Africans continues in the tradition of Mike van Graan’s award-winning works, including Pay Back the Curry, State Fracture, and Land Acts. The play features a captivating performance by the exceptionally talented Kim Blanche Adonis, who has received multiple accolades for her remarkable range and skills.
In this riveting show, audiences will experience a collection of older, updated, and new sketches, carefully curated to satirize and enlighten South Africa’s socio-political landscape. Under the direction of Rob Van Vuuren and Daniel Mpilo Richards, the production offers a thought-provoking and humorous journey through the complexities of South African society,” says a statement from the theatre.
Reviews from the premiere season attest to the play’s brilliance and its ability to entertain, educate, and leave a lasting impact. Eddy Cassar, founder and producer of the Jive Cape Town Funny Festival, declared the show an “absolute delight,” and Mansoor Jaffer from the Cape Cultural Collective hailed it as “political satire at its best.” Nancy Richards, former SAfm literature presenter, encouraged everyone to attend this profound, laughter-inducing production that leaves no one untouched.
Don’t miss what promises to be an extraordinary theatrical event that promises laughter, introspection, and a profound appreciation for the complexities of our society. Tickets are available for booking through Computicket or directly at the Theatre on the Square box office by calling 011 883 8606.
Event Details:
Show name: My Fellow South Africans
Venue: Theatre on the Square, Sandton
Dates: 22 August – 2 September
Showtimes: 7:30 pm (Tuesday to Friday); 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm (Saturday)
Duration: Approximately 1 hour 20 minutes