Durban — From a stage set-up on a hill, a boy, the one and only character in an acclaimed theatre production, will deliver messages of hope on fixing some everyday issues plaguing societies around the world.
The King of Broken Things, a one-hander with Cara Roberts cast as the boy, will be on for one night only at Kearsney College, Botha’s Hill, on Thursday.
The Michael Taylor Broderick-produced play first emerged in 2018, but just as it began to grow in popularity, featuring at a Dubai festival in January 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic turned off the arts world’s lights.
Broderick said The King’s renaissance began in 2023 with showings at leading schools; Michaelhouse, Hilton College, St Anne’s and St Henry’s.
After the Kearsney gig, Broderick and crew will prepare for a two-month country-wide tour and “hopefully” international stages thereafter.
Broderick said the production was not exclusively for children, but it made good sense to perform at schools because of the “astronomical” cost of running a production in a theatre over a lengthy period.
“Therefore, we attend festivals and accept invites.”
He said the The King of Broken Things was nominated for a Fleur de Cap at the arts awards event which happens in Cape Town on Sunday (tomorrow).
It was the only South African production invited to the 2022 Golden Dolphin International Puppet Festival, in Bulgaria, and collected three awards.
A National Arts Festival Gold Ovation Award, an Assitej Cradle of Creativity gong and a “Best Achievement” award at the 2023 Toyota Woordfees festival, were other plaudits.
The play’s debut in 2018 marked Broderick’s emergence as a writer and director. He refused to be “pigeonholed” as a theatrical lighting designer, his profession during his many years on the arts scene: “I have been writing but never quite able to break away from the fact that I was a lighting designer. The game changed for me with The King. Finally, I might just be recognised as a theatre maker.”
He said the “writing flowed”, drawing inspiration for his creative work when he became cognisant of how his two young sons viewed the world.
“Their fascination with how the world looked and their innocence caused my imagination to run wild. That was the genesis of the show.”
Broderick believes entering fatherhood at an older age was an advantage.
“If I was a younger dad, I would have not taken note of what they said. From the mouth of babes …
“Things they said crop up in the show, presented from a child’s viewpoint,” he said.
Some of the the production’s prominent themes include bullying; prejudice; gratuitous waste; absent fathers, and the futility and consequences of war. Having a child protagonist has often moved audiences as they embraced the play’s messages.
Broderick said he grappled personally with some of the issues in the play.
“A friend who saw the show said it was me in a nutshell, how I live my life and the things that don’t sit well.”
Broderick said a Bulgarian commented during their Dubai trip that he had written the play as he saw things.
He used many props and “theatrical magic” for effect.
“When I write something I know exactly what I want to see and how I need to build things.”
Broderick accepts writing dialogue as an art-form, and it’s a work in progress for him, but for now, he’s comfortable writing in monologue.
“For me, theatre has to be character-driven, which made it simpler for people to understand and empathise with. I have met more than one person like the character depicted.”
Broderick’s friend, local arts personality Aaron McIlroy, advised casting a woman in the role because “they are far more sensitive to most issues”.
Another friend, Bryan Hiles, suggested his girlfriend Roberts and Broderick said he realised she was a shoo-in for the role from his first interaction with her.
“We are going on national tour this year, Cara’s star is going to shine.”
Roberts said being in a one-hander was probably “the scariest thing you can do in your career”.
The things she enjoyed most were Broderick’s genial nature and ability to direct, which kept her motivated, and the play unlocked some of her previously latent performing arts abilities.
Roberts has never grown “complacent” in the role: “I’m always nervous and shaking before each appearance.
“If I don’t get nervous, it’s a problem because I understand the responsibility I carry when I’m on stage.
“All Cara’s worries and concerns need to get out so that I can be a blank canvas and become that character,” said Roberts, who turned professional in 2010 with film and TV performances.
Independent on Saturday