After a year-long interdisciplinary process, UJ Arts & Culture (a division of FADA) presents the development run of Reza de Wet’s iconic African Gothic (translation of Diepe Grond).
The staging of the play is the culmination of a process that has seen more than 300 students and lecturers from different departments in the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture (FADA) becoming involved in various design and development aspects of the work. Student groups were challenged to design the set, costumes and develop a marketing campaign, together with collateral for the play. In addition to developing unique skills, a valuable outcome of the process was learning how to work collaboratively, which is becoming increasingly important in an environment where more than specialised knowledge is demanded from professionals.
Set against the backdrop of a farm in desolate ruin, the play tells the story of the complicated, passionate, and troubled relationship between two siblings. While they live in the past with no discernible future, struggling with their own demons, they face eviction in the present by an officious lawyer. Directed by Alby Michaels, with a stellar cast that includes Liezl de Kok, Zak Hendricks, Mpho Osei-Tutu and South African icon Thembi Mtsali-Jones, African Gothic is set to satisfy both the discerning theatre lover and novice alike.