SORROWS & REJOICINGS. Fugard to 20 April
London/Coventry
SORROWS & REJOICINGS
by Athol Fugard
Tricycle Theatre, with The Baxter Theatre Centre, Capetown to 20 April
Mon - Sat 8pm Mat Sat 4pm
Runs 1hr 40 min. No interval.
Also at Warwick Arts Centre 23-27 April 7.30pm
TICKETS (Tricycle) 020 7328 1000
(Warwick Arts) 024 7652 4524
Review Danny Braverman 26 March
A superb production excavating the soul of post-Apartheid South Africa.Nelson Mandela's walk to freedom in 1990 was a defining and symbolic moment of history: a dazzling and hopeful declaration to the world that decency can triumph. In Sorrows and Rejoicings, writer and director Athol Fugard shows us that the eradication of Apartheid was not an instant panacea, but the beginning of a long and tortuous process to come to terms with a terrible human legacy.
Dawid Olivier is a radical Afrikaans poet, whose death brings together the three women in his life: Allison his white English-speaking wife, Marta his 'coloured' mistress and Dawid and Marta's illegitimate daughter Rebecca.
Dawid himself is present in flashback - driven by a mission to use his creativity for good, he finds himself in exile in London, fluctuating wildly between child-like optimism and despair. His wife and mistress both suppress their needs in his service - extraordinarily tolerant of his self-obsession. All this is contrasted by the all-consuming bitterness and hatred of Rebecca, who has lived a life of public denial of her parentage.
Fugard's gift is to transport this piece to an elegiac level. Dialogue is almost dispensed with in favour of a series of speeches as the three women struggle to achieve a catharsis by speaking of their painful relationships to the charismatic Dawid.
Stage movement is meticulously executed down to the last detail of eye choreography and Susan Hilferty's setting is pared to the minimum of emblematic furnishings. The table has been literally polished with Marta's tears, the simple wooden door frame represents the emotional threshold that Rebecca refuses to cross and the walls, painted in every conceivable shade of brown, are a constant reminder of the tragic absurdity of Apartheid's racial laws.
Fugard weaves together a number of important themes: exile, race and identity, loyalty and jealousy. At times his desire to foreground these themes gives rise to some over-written passages and it's difficult to suspend one's disbelief as another story is told by way of explanation rather than arising from character interaction.
Some immaculate acting significantly diminishes this occasional ponderousness. All four actors deliver exceptionally intense performances, achieving an impressive balance between emotional vulnerability and control.
A special mention should be given to Amrain Ismail-Essop, who gives a magnetic performance as Rebecca. Present on stage for over an hour without uttering a word, her ability to stay completely in the moment is one of the most compelling examples of naturalistic acting I have ever witnessed.
Dawid: Marius Weyers
Marta: Denise Newman
Allison: Jennifer Steyn
Rebecca: Amrain Ismail-Essop
Director: Athol Fugard
Associate Director/Designer: Susan Hilferty
Lighting: Mannie Manim
2002-03-28 10:35:21