Thinkfest was first up on A Feast of Tales’s agenda on day three of the NatArtsFest with a discussion on Gender Politics. The hour’s dialogue indicated that this rhetoric-laden topic still favours too much – well – dialogue and too little practical application. An over-aggressive approach also emerged as a problem. Number two on our schedule was the dialogue-heavy House of Truth in which actor, Sello Maake kaNcube, told the story of writer Can Themba and his struggles during apartheid to be recognised as a teacher. The drama had a good script but was depressing and failed to hold the audience’s attention for its overly long 90-minute duration. Hannah Arendt was another ‘struggle’ piece, though this time in the form of a movie. Like the Sophie Scholl film we saw on day two, Hannah Arendt presented a view of Nazi Germany somewhat different to what we were used to. In this story German-Jewish philosopher and author, Hannah Arendt, wrestled with the problem of evil, putting forward the – scandalous – ideas that German perpetrators of crimes in World War II may simply have failed to think and that Jewish victims may have been complicit in their own victimisation. Our day ended with the brilliantly executed The Echo of a Noise by Pieter Dirk-Uys, in which this renowned performer gave an autobiographical account of his life, revolving mostly around his combative relationship with his ‘Pa’. Rich, funny, tender and well-rounded, Uys’s performance was very deserving of its standing ovation.
- adolf eichman
- anthea garman
- can themba
- comedy
- drum magazine
- evita bezuidenhout
- gender politics
- generations
- gertrude fester
- grahamstown 2016
- grahamstown arts fest
- grahamstown settlers monument
- hannah arendt
- hassnae bouazza
- house of truth
- jew
- monument
- nat arts fest 2016
- Natartsfest2016
- national arts festival 2016
- nazi germany
- peter magubane
- pieter-dirk uys
- sello maake kancube
- south african theatre
- tracy saunders
- warren nebe
a feast of tales 