NEW DIRECTIONS 2012

A triple bill of short plays by emerging directors of the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s drama department on the Pietermaritzburg campus will take place at the Hexagon Studio Theatre from May 9 to 11.

In the evening, the programme will feature all three shows at 18h00 while individual productions will have lunch-hour performances at 12h30:

May 9: Welcome to Rocksburg by Mpumelelo Paul Grootboom and directed by JC Zondi. After the success of his Relativity: Township Stories; Grootboom comes back with another thrilling story about crime, violence and abuse in the townships. Welcome to Rocksburg is a tale of a little township ‘Matlapeng’ where ‘nothing is known but crime...’ The epic story follows a young man in his quest to change his life but, as luck has it, he falls back to the ‘devil's idle ways’. In this story of finding love in hard places, and doing anything to keep it close, we meet up with an assortment of characters: detectives who will do anything to get a confession, criminals who are tired of the same treatment and, of course, the heart of every township, a shebeen.

May 10: Tshepang - The Third Testament by Lara Foot Newton, directed by Kline Smith. Inspired by the gruesome rape in 2001 of a nine-month old baby, Tshepang illustrates the horrors that can take place in a community ensnared by poverty, isolation and lack of prospects. Although only two characters appear on stage. Simon, for whom the play is a long monologue, uses simple narration to unravel the incidences that lead to the rape of baby Tshepang. Through Simon, we get an insight to the people of the village and their life, wounds and all, often with warmth and humour. Ruth speaks only one word but her silence and expression are a constant counterpoint to Simon's narrative. 'Nothing much happens here' says Simon. Doesn't it?

May 11: Spotlight. This is a short musical play directed by Thobeka Bhengu, inspired by the 2010 film Burlesque. The play is set in a Burlesque Lounge or a strip club where there are a dozen gorgeous girls, lots of skin, heavy make-up, and fast, sexy and risqué choreography. Ali is a small-town girl with a big voice who escapes hardship and an uncertain future to follow her dreams to LA. After stumbling upon The Burlesque Lounge, a theatrical, extravagant strip club that is home to an inspired musical revue, Ali's persistence eventually lands her in the Spotlight.

Tickets at the door only - R30 for evening performances (R10 per show for lunch hours)