This is Riaan. 30-something. Male. White. And sort of gay. Basically he’s an ass-kicking combo of new South African pariahdom, wrapped up in one slightly squishy package.

Riaan likes peppermint, bunsen burners and rugby. He dislikes Enya, vaginas and Woolworths. He also has a peculiar connection to the old national anthem and doesn’t know how he’s managed to end up in jail when he’s really just a nice, mild-mannered Afrikaans boytjie. Part rant, part declaration, part incoherent mumbling, this is Riaan’s attempt to figure out his life while we nod and listen.

Join us for a first look at this exciting new show.

Amy Jephta is a 25-year old Cape Town based playwright. She completed her undergraduate and MA degree at the University of Cape Town and has since had her work performed at the Women Playwrights International Conference (Sweden) as part of the Artscape spring season (Cape Town) and at the Intimate Theatre in Cape Town. She is an alumni of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab in New York, has taught voice and acting at the Woodward School for Contemporary Art in Vancouver, at City Varsity, and the University of Cape Town. In 2013, she was one of the Mail & Guardian’s 200 Top Young South Africans. Amy is currently undertaking a two year playwriting residency with the Royal Court Theatre (London), developing her play Free Falling Bird with the Bush Theatre (UK) on a grant from the UK Arts Council and has been commissioned to write her first feature film with Johannesburg-based production company, West Five Films.

Jason Potgieter is a writer, director and performer for the stage. Based in Cape Town, South Africa, he has performed and lectured all over the world, most recently with Handspring Puppet Company. Jason also likes to play with The Mechanicals, Puppetry South Africa, ZA News, Hearts and Eyes Theatre Collective and various other interesting folk. His most recent directorial endeavour was I Love You When You’re Breathing, featured on the National Arts Festival main programme in 2012. Jason was Artist in Residence at West Michigan University in October 2012. He has also created performative installations for Performativity (Frank Caller) and Infecting the City (Flown) He is fond of the avocado.

Kim Kerfoot is a freelance director and performer. He has presented original work as part of the Iqonga platform at the Out The Box Festival in 2008, 2010 and 2011, creating and performing in Left Inside, and creating and directing Lynchpin and Guillotine. As part of his ongoing creative partnership with Jason Potgieter, he directed Potgieter’s The Things You Left Behind at the Intimate Theatre in December 2010 and January 2012. In 2011 Kerfoot received the GIPCA Baxter Theatre Centre Theatre Arts Admin Collective Emerging Theatre Director’s Bursary, and with it he staged Athol Fugard’s Statements After An Arrest Under The Immorality Act. The Production transferred to the Fugard Theatre in early 2012, where it had a successful extended run. Statements was a part of the Assembly on the Edinburgh Fringe 2012. Most recently, Kerfoot won the 2013 Fleur du Cap award for Best New Director, as well as a Silver Ovation Award at the National Arts Festival for his direction of The Things You Left Behind, and an Ovation Award for his direction of Get Kraken!

Warning: Performer smokes in the show

Audience Responses

Clever writing but no more than a monologue - not yet a play. The main character never established himself in the present - who is he, why should we care about him, he seems to still be the confused randy kid that he presented at the outset. Nor were the other characters fleshed out, like mother, father, teacher, Katrina. So we were left with the somnewhat amusing ramblings of an immature man. I was concerned that the preying, paedophile teacher was so casually dealt with. The acting was also very flat and monotonous without any change of pace. Needs work!