PRESENTATION BY LP MAHLIKIHLA

POOR THEATRE;

WOZA ALBERT-A WORKSHOPPED PLAY

GROWTOSKI PRINCIPLES

POOR THEATRE

POOR THEATRE

AIMS :

To shock, to enlighten; excite; mystify; spirituality, etc. on stage

REACTION TO OR AGAINST:

Felt that Western Theatre had lost direction.

Felt it had to become more spiritual

Felt there was no need for technology in theatre

Theatre=Temple.

Actor=God

POOR THEATRE

PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE:

Grotowski

PROPS:

No props.

Made use of the body.

SOUND:

No sound effects.

Use voice

POOR THEATRELIGHTING:

No f/x. Depends on venue.

COSTUME:

Usually black. Thus actor would become anything & costume would not hinder him.

ACTING STYLE:

Energised.

Had to be a dancer, mimic, actor, singer, acrobat, etc.

The style was mouldable. The actor had to change his requirements.

The Super-God in control of his body.

WOZA ALBERT-A WORKSHOPED PLAY

Woza Albert-A workshopped play

TITLE-Woza Albert!

WHO IS ALBERT??

Albert Luthuli:

Freedom fighter

Awarded Nobel Peace Prize 19960(non-violent activism)

Leader of the ANC

Wrote a biography-”Let my people go”

Albert is seen as “Morena” the Saviour who will set his people free

from oppression

Woza Albert-A work shopped play-MORAL QUESTION

-POLITICAL QUESTION

“What if Jesus decided to South Africa with its political confusion”?

WOZA-RISE UP!!!!!!!!!!

Theme(noun)-an idea or topic expanded in a discourse, discussion, etc.

What ideas or topics can come up with in the video??

MAIN TOPICS+IDEAS

=

THEMES: oppression, resistance, survival, racism, and betrayal

Woza Albert-A work shopped play

WOZA ALBERT GIVES AN ANALYSIS OF THE SOCIETY :

Personal morals

Human rights

Injustice

Politics

Inhumanity

Education

African Christianity

Woza Albert-A work shopped play

1.Production

Not scripted

Observations & improvisations

Actors draw on observation to create characters

Improvised scenes are either selected or rejected(trial & error)

Woza Albert-A work shopped play

1. Structure

Episodic (scenes do not follow according to normal time)

One actor plays many roles

Woza Albert-A work shopped play

5. The social process

A response to something i.e. APARTHEID

Reflects democracy available to ALL and RECORDS parts of

HISTORY that are silenced by government.

Woza Albert-A work shopped play

6. Genre-What type of play is WOZA ALBERT???

PROTEST THEATRE

BLACK SOUTH AFRICA in the realities of APARTHEID

Against white supremacy and normal slavery

Against the oppressed and the oppressors

Social transformation

Woza Albert-A work shopped play

7. Key points

Political comment is combined with gestures, music, storytelling

and songs and dance.

Zulu war songs and dance

Means to criticize the whites and insults them and call for the

blacks to rise up and fight against white oppression.

Woza Albert-A work shopped playStaging:

No fixed theatre venues

Grotowski’s techniques are incorporated

Actors portray many roles

Clown noses to imitate the white bosses

Small cast; versatile

Direct contact with the audience

Noisy atmosphere with audience members who out & return

Open staging

Few lights; no luxuries; informal

WOZA ALBERT-A WORKSHOPED PLAY

ELEMENTS OF COMEDY:

Incongruous images; God coming to SA by SAA, Morena compared

to Piet Retief, China tea in Soweto & Morena visiting to SA to see

his great-aunt Matilda

Incongruous use of language- Scene 15-it is ‘cool’ in heaven

Contrasting images-jumbo jet faster than a donkey

Mistaken identity-Patrick Alexander Smith mistaken for Morena

Disguise-Mbongeni disguised as Lazarus

Woza Albert-A work shopped playCLIMAX:

Scene 26; they find Albert Luthuli’s grave; the activist & freedom fighter

They beg Morena to wake him up and send him on his way to free blacks in SA.

Others heroes:

Robert Sobukhwe

Steve Biko

Bram Fischer

Ruth First….