PAPERBOY

Musho Festival production written and performed by Grant Jacobs and directed by Liam Magner. (Review by Thomie Holtzhausen)

Paperboy is a lively and witty play cleverly directed by Liam Magner. Written and performed by Grant Jacobs, it tells the story of Bobby Jones, a paperboy, and his experiences in a neighbourhood that introduces well-defined colourful characters. The play serves as vehicle for Jacobs to showcase his skills as a young and up-coming actor in Durban.

Jacobs’ physicality, different accents and variety of rhythms were good and with the right guidance I expect big things from him in the future. The use of a simple bar stool as a bicycle, a wheelchair and others were clever, yet I would have loved to see him riding that bike a bit faster when the text required it!

Transformations from one character to the next were initially smooth but there were moments when the transformations were inept. This could be due to oversights by the director or technical glitches and I am sure that it will be worked on as the piece is being further developed, which I believe should be done.

In the next workshop phase of the production I would also suggest cutting the false repetitive endings allowing for a more dynamic and thought-provoking closing.

Despite Jacobs’ remarkable energetic performance, it is yet again the irritating noise in the Catalina Theatre that hinders a true appreciation of the work. Not being able to hear an actor on stage is very frustrating and reduces the work to a huis-clos. Jacobs could work on his projection, diction and guard against swallowing words at the end of sentences. Few actors today are trained to project sufficiently or am I simply deaf? – Thomie Holtzhausen