The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?, the acclaimed and provocative play by the triple Pulitzer Prize winner Edward Albee, comes to the Baxter Golden Arrow Studio, from 24 April to 18 May.
Fleur du Cap Best New Director award-winner Mdu Kweyama (Reza de Wet’s Missing, Woza Albert!), takes the reigns as director, featuring a stellar cast headlined by Lionel Newton and Jennifer Steyn, with Paul Savage and Sihle Mnqwazana.
The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? – award winning powerful four-hander
The powerful four-hander won the 2002 Tony Award for Best Play, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play and was also a finalist for the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
This modern classic challenges taboos and moral judgement. Known for works such as Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Albee’s marital drama shows a family in crisis as their lives spiral out of control and deteriorates, when the patriarch falls in love with a goat. Cleverly written with grammatical and language games amid existential chaos, Albee tackles the theme of tragedy, while dealing with issues of the family, social taboo and vengeance. Albee’s work typically criticised the American dream.
He wrote The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? in 2000 and the play premiered on Broadway, New York, in March 2002.
“Tackling a play by one of America’s greatest modern playwrights, Edward Albee – is quite a daunting task,” says director Kweyama.
“The play’s phenomenal success and the celebrated actors who have performed in it since it was first staged some 17 years ago, are testament to its brilliance. The deeper I dig and as we unpack the work in rehearsals, the more I have come to realise just how complex and clever the writing really is. I am grateful to be working with a formidable cast and team to help create a powerful piece of theatre.”
Patrick Curtis is responsible for set and lighting design, costumes by Marisa Steenkamp and music by Robert Jeffery. There is an age restriction of 16 years and parental guidance is advised.
WHAT: Edward Albee’s The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?
WHERE: Baxter Golden Arrow Studio, Baxter Theatre Centre, Main Road, Rondebosch, Cape Town 8001
WHEN: from 24 April to 18 May, at 7.30pm nightly, with Saturday matinees at 3pm. TICKETS: from R120 (for block bookings of 10 or more and for the Early Bird special which is only valid until 31 March), to R160 and R180. Booking through Webtickets or selected Pick n Pay stores.
INFO: Visit; Facebook.com/BaxterTheatre; twitter.com/BaxterTheatre
PHOTO: Jennifer Steyn, Sihle Mnqwazana, Lionel Newton, pic by Oscar O’Ryan
