Broadway quality meets local excellence in “August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson”, which is currently being staged at Joburg theatre.
Directed by James Ngcobo, this powerful production evokes the renowned American playwright’s evocative dialogue in a tale which delves into themes of heritage, identity and the legacies we inherit.
This is as it puts the weight of preserving your family’s legacy while chasing the promise of a brighter future in the spotlight as it confronts the timeless question: do we honour our past or embrace the opportunities that lie ahead?
The play revolves around a piano, which is carved with the history of a family’s ancestors. But a poignant family conflict over the heirloom erupts and chaos ensures.
This is as Bernice, determined to preserve the piano as a symbol of their painful history under slavery, clashes with Boy Willie, whose vision for the future involves selling it to buy land and secure financial freedom.
“This emotional tug-of-war encapsulates a broader, universal struggle between holding on to the past and embracing the future,” the producers said.
Meanwhile, James Ngcobo, the artistic director of Joburg City Theatres, added: “‘The Piano Lesson’ is not only a celebration of Wilson’s extraordinary storytelling but also a poignant reflection on issues that remain relevant in South Africa today.”
“Wilson’s exploration of heritage, conflict and identity speaks directly to our own experiences of historical injustices and their enduring impact on our society.”
The local cast also features star-studded talents, including Kaiyah Newbern who will play Maretha, a character representing the next generation caught between the past and the future.
She will be joined by Boitumelo Lesejane as Grace, Pakamisa Zwedala as Doaker Charles, Katlego Chale as Boy Willie, Lerato Mvelase as Berniece, Thokozani Nzima as Reverend/Avery, Vaneshran Arumugam as Wining Boy and Warren Masemola as Lymon.
Where: Joburg Theatre.
When: Running until March 16.
Cost: Tickets range from R150 to R450 and are available through Webtickets.
“The Picture of Dorian Gray”
This captivating production, directed by the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) Jade Bowers, is set to immerse theatregoers in a world where reality collides with morality.
The show is presented by the university’s Arts & Culture, a division of the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture (FADA).
The production emerged from FADA’s innovative Interdisciplinary Theatre Programme and was conceived by Dean Professor Federico Freschi in 2017.
It involves second-year FADA students uniting to craft the play’s visual landscape as well as to design the sets, make the props and the costumes.
“The Picture of Dorian Gray” follows a young man blessed with eternal youth, whose increasingly reckless pursuit of pleasure reveals the corrosive nature of unchecked desire.
The producers added that Neil Bartlett’s adaptation excavates the original text’s provocative core, lively dialogue and bold exploration of sexual and moral freedoms, reimagining Dorian Gray’s descent into moral dissolution through a contemporary lens.
“This adaptation of ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ explores the boundaries of both the original text and our own perceptions of beauty, desire and morality,” Bowers, UJ’s resident director added.
“By collaborating with FADA’s talented students, we’ve created a visually striking and thought-provoking experience that brings Wilde’s dark parable into a contemporary context.”
Meanwhile, those from UJ Arts Academy who will star in the show include Jaques De Silva, Andreas Damm, Sanelisiwe Yekani and Liezl De Kock.
The production is also making inclusivity-friendly and will feature the integration of South African Sign Language (SASL) interpretation, ensuring accessibility and fostering agency for audiences that might otherwise be excluded from the experience.
Trained South African Sign Language interpreters from Yellow Owl, will also feature.
Where: The Keorapetse William Kgositsile Theatre at the UJ Arts Centre.
When: Running until March 16.
Cost: Tickets range from R80 to R120 and are available through Plankton.
"Dear Kaffy: - Diary of a Single Woman"
This play centres around 35-five-year-old Kike, a beautiful, brilliant and resourceful woman, who also happens to be hopeless in love.
"Much to her conservative family’s chagrin, Kike seems stuck in a pattern where she in time, money and affection into a man’s life, and he leaves deciding he’s had enough of this recurrent embarrassment; her father takes up the task of finding her a suitable husband, just like he did for her two older sisters," the producers said.
But Kike, who firmly believes that marriage must be based on love, fights to escape her father’s plot to marry her off to a man she is not attracted to. Chaos ensues when eventually, she decides to give her father’s choice, a chance.
Where: The SA State Theatre in Pretoria.
When: Runs until Sunday, March 9.
Cost: Tickets range from R150 to R200 and are available through Webtickets.