Protest is as loud, as long and, at times, as discordant as its subject matter might suggest. But, as its subject matter might also lead us to expect, it is impressive in its force and has an important message to deliver.
Protest is as loud, as long and, at times, as discordant as its subject matter might suggest. But, as its subject matter might also lead us to expect, it is impressive in its force and has an important message to deliver.
The play is the latest offering from Mpumelelo Paul Grootboom, the 2005 Standard Bank Young Artist for Theatre, and brought to the Festival in association with State Theatre. It tells the story of a fictional township facing severe service delivery problems.
Peaceful efforts by residents to solve their issues have been ignored. After tragedy strikes, a side-lined municipal official seeking to capitalise upon the people’s discontent for his own political purposes steps in. The character incites looting and burning, which allows Grootboom to explore post-apartheid South Africa’s legacy of violent protest.
As the plot unfolds, the show’s most obvious shortcoming is sound-related. There are moments at which entire solos by certain singers are drowned out by an overwhelmingly percussive live band (a thrilling touch regardless) and some jarring feedback. Audible whispering from microphones that ought to have been off, a few mumbled lines, and the distraction caused by a large cast changing costumes to the sides of the stage were also concerns. These were not unforgiveable, however.
In terms of script, the characters in the “masses” remain fairly flat, with predictable favourites like the petty criminal and Fanon-quoting socialist delivering lines that we have heard before. The story also ends up back where it started: a new corrupt politician is in power (“The air is stagnant with self-preservation”). Peaceful engagement through democratic channels is presented as the answer, despite this having proved fruitless before.
“They never listen until something is burning,” one character reminds the audience.
Despite the fairly bleak picture this paints, Grootboom includes the possibility of change in the form of main character Tshepo (a name meaning “Hope”) – a young and initially disinterested boy whose political consciousness emerges after the death of his community-activist mother.
“Tshepo develops a way of engaging with people where he’ll never back down from a fight, but also never resort to violence,” Grootboom says.
“That is my view of the sort of action that our townships need.”
And Grootboom has used some really interesting techniques in portraying this view. At one stage, the audience becomes part of a political rally as cast members disperse among them and shout in response to their comrades’ calls. His cynical use of music as a didactic tool also communicates a strength in numbers that carries the plot.
Some have raised concerns about this being a State Theatre production. Yet, Grootboom maintains that the play freely reflects what he hopes to convey, and for this we cannot fault him. At a Festival tasked with reflecting on 20 years of transformation, the fact that we leave his piece slightly uncertain maybe mirrors the ambivalent state of politics today.
Furthermore, with a director renowned for continually improving his productions, it is likely that this fledgling piece of theatre will, with time, address the slight disorder in its ranks and present a unified, determined act of resistance art.
This story was originally published on Cue Online – cue.ru.ac.za
