This year marks the golden anniversary of the Fleur du Cap Theatre Awards. They started five decades ago, with just six categories, says Melanie Burke, chairperson of the adjudicating panel.
All eyes on the annual Fleur du Cap Awards celebrating the cream of Cape Town theatre, for the fiftieth year, on March 15, writes Katlego Mkhwanazi. And Koleka Putuma is one of the Fleur du Cap Theatre Awards nominees.
The showcase honours local theatre excellence; winners are chosen from productions performed at about 15 venues in Cape Town. There are 18 categories and each award carries a cash prize of R15 000, with recipients walking away with silver medallions.
This year’s ceremony takes place at the Artscape Opera House in Cape Town on March 15. Chris Weare, a Fleur du Cap alumnus and actor, who received a lifetime achievement award in 2012, “will direct the awards ceremony and a unique event is planned to celebrate the successes of the past 50 years, including an entertainment line-up that will feature some of our top local artists”, according to a press statement.
See list of nominees here.
The universe and poet Koleka Putuma are in negotiations
The Mail & Guardian caught up with one of the nominees, 21-year-old poet and performer Koleka Putuma, who is nominated for the Rosalie van der Gucht prize for new directors, for the production Uhm. Putuma directed the University of Cape Town production that won an award for best student theatre writer for its script at the 2014 Standard Bank Ovation awards at the National Arts Festival. Uhm is a creation by UCT’s theatre making students, who are also known as The Papercut Collective.
The production tells the story of “the English language in South Africa and how it interacts with identity”.
“We framed the narrative in a South African context: South African colonialism left a string of problems in its wake. Our nation is still in a state of questioning limbo while we try to decipher the grey areas, which lie between language, culture and race.
And so we based our metaphor for this in language: ‘Uhm’, an expression used by humans as a pause for thought,” Putuma explains.
Performing to a new audience
The story is told through historical figures that battle over the soul of a young black woman. The historical figures include Queen Victoria (Kathleen Stephens), Cecil John Rhodes (Callum Tilbury) and Sol Plaatje (Jason Jacobs).
Not only is Putuma in line for an early birthday gift in the form of a prize – she was born on March 22 – but she’ll also perform a poem at the awards ceremony. Speaking about her upcoming performance, she told the M&G how “excited and nervous” she was.
“My audience, where poetry is concerned, has mostly consisted of spoken word lovers/ goers, and so performing to a predominantly theatre audience will be interesting and challenging. They have a critical way of receiving and engaging with work, those theatre people.”
But with her curriculum vitae including headlining at the SliPnets’ InZync poetry sessions, JamThatSession and at Off The Wall poetry event, she is sure to impress her peers with her talent.
For interview with Koleka Putuma and sound clip go to Mail & Guardian
