More than 4 000 people watched play Woza Albert at Lesedi stage, Joburg Theatre, during its recent 11-day run. The multi-award-winning talented actor, Hamilton Dhlamini took the stage with Thulani Mtshweni and the duo gave a scintillating performance, which received standing ovations from the appreciative audience. The duo said purpose of Woza Albert was to imbue in minds of the young generation with a sense of history.
“The production helps the youth and everyone to understand what used to happen during apartheid era by highlighting on struggles faced by South Africans to make informed decision and take the country into greener pastures,” said Dhlamini.
“Woza Albert further explores the link between two generations by reminding those that have experienced oppression and inequality and enlighten the youth of how the South African country came to be.”
With emotional mime, singing and dance, the two characters embodied different roles from a vendor, barber, servant, manual labourer, soldiers giving the audience a perspective of a harsh reality of life during apartheid era.
The delighted audience –including WITS students, pupils from different schools, Joburg Child Welfare and Johannesburg Society for the Blind were impressed by the profound performance.
William Secwammung, Joburg-based coach, said he was excited to see smiles on the face of his children during the performance. “The element of humor throughout the show kept everyone giggle and that is what we want for every child in our organisation to experience.”
“It felt great to see the amount of energy the characters put in each role and delivering to their greatest potential in each scene.
And most importantly bringing learners to see the show is a way for drama leaners to get visual production of the text literature as part of educational purposes,” said Lizeth de Bruin, a dramatic arts teacher at Curro Vanderbijl.
“This has been an outstanding experience for the leaners and I believe that seeing Woza Albert will help them better understand history and the text vision of the production,” she added.
Written by Getrude Mamabolo
14/03/2023