Naeb/Naelstring, Theatre
Venue: St Andrews Hall
Review
By Nicole Palmer
Naeb/Naelstring is a story shaped around the history of the first people and oldest tribe of South Africa; the Khoisan. The play explores the injustices they faced and the principle that knowing your identity shapes how you see yourself and gives you a sense of belonging.
Naeb tells the story of a people whose culture has been diluted and revives forgotten narratives the world needs to hear. History branded them with the term ‘coloured,’ a colonial term.
Playwright and director Geralt Cloete highlights the value of authenticity – only those rooted in the culture can tell the story truthfully.The play had moments that felt like an ancestral echo. It was performed in Afrikaans and conveyed a powerful message through the sounds of Khoi music and a sense of timetravel with the help of vivid visuals.
We saw how the Khoi nourished their land and lived a nomadic life, and how, despite being deceived by colonisers into relinquishing their domain, it was clear that the tribe still had each other.
Cloete said, “The biggest challenge was the research process. Finding all the answers to the questions that we had, but also finding people who know about the history, because primarily, when you look at the history being written, it is always written from a white perspective. Our elders in the community helped us bring the work together. It is really about memory. When we start researching, it’s almost like we need people to remember for us to understand what happened and how our identity was shifted with colonisation”
A central message to this performance is, ‘be the change you want to see’. It appeals to the audience to not only watch but also, to remember.
