FLIPPING BOOK CHRONICLE 2024

SCHLESINGER THEATRE

THEATRE NOTES 2024 Director Schlesinger Theatre: Mr William le Cordeur Technical Director: Van Wyk Oosthuizen Technical Support: Fish Ndlovu PERFORMING ARTS AWARDS SPUD AWARD FOR DRAMATIC WRITING Kian Moses ( The ABCs ) D REDFERN TROPHY FOR THE MOST PROMISING JUNIOR PERFORMER (not awarded 2025) F S BISHOP MEMORIAL DRAMATIC PRIZE FOR BEST ACTOR Seth Segal ( Endgame ) W A VAN DER WALT DRAMATIC PRIZE FOR BEST NOVICE Damian Watson ( Endgame ) VAN VELDEN TROPHY FOR THE GREATEST CONTRIBUTION TO SCHOOL DRAMA Seth Segal ( Endgame, Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Birds ) Honours: Seth Segal Colours: Kian Moses, Nelisa Zungu , Letlhogonolo Moeng, Siyolisa Finiza, Lwazi Dlamini, Onalerona Lefakane Half-colours: Damian Watson, Lucian Baldry, Chishala Kalenga he Schlesinger Theatre stood in for the Chapel over the past year as renovations to increase capacity in the Chapel were under way. This meant a wonderfully busy space for the theatre, with many presentations, assemblies, chapel services and, of course, our usual programme of high class entertainment. We began the year, as has become tradition, with the C Block Drama Professional Residency. Although the actual workshops for the residency were conducted by acclaimed performer Mr Timothy Redpath, the performance was the award-winning Durban production The King of Broken Things . Performed by Ms Cara Roberts and directed by Mr Michael Broderick, the play has toured extensively around South Africa and abroad to the Middle East and the UK. It looks at a boy who builds things out of junk, and considers the loss of his father and his vulnerability at school and loneliness at home. It was a touching and beautifully crafted production to begin the year with. It had its performance at the Schlesinger Theatre on 26 January. The A Block senior play was Samual Beckett’s Endgame , and it was performed during the last week of the first quarter from 17 to 19 March. Performed by Seth Segal, Damian Watson, Lucian Baldry and Chishala Kalenga, this classic play must go down as one of the finest performances achieved by schoolboys at Michaelhouse. Seth Segal and Damian Watson took the leads and were able to convey the strong T

and complicated characters with huge maturity and intensity. Although the play was challenging for many of our schoolboy audience, it was a real privilege to be able to showcase a true Beckett masterpiece. The second quarter began with another award-winning show, Wela Kapela Productions’ stunning cabaret Vincent , which played on 23 and 24 April. Documenting the life of Vincent van Gogh through song, story and beautifully projected images of his art, Mr Daniel Anderson’s unique performance style captured the hearts of our Midlands audience. The boys were treated to a brilliant art history lesson too, reliving the life of one of the world’s most-suffering and now best-known artists. Vincent continues to sweep up awards nationally and has toured internationally, and we’ll be sure to pick up Daniel with his next show. 2024 saw the founding of the Michaelhouse Movement Programme, led by Mr Bonwa Mbontsi, a professional choreographer and dance teacher from Pietermaritzburg. Founding members Max Murray, Sean Erasmus, Chris McPherson, Thato Moumakwa, Akshay Panday and Joel Reinhardt appeared in the first performance from 9 to 11 May, wowing audiences at Funk 24 at the St Anne’s theatre. Later in the year they were joined by PJ Motsileng, Mikahael Geemooi, Lerako Mogalakwe and Evat Nghiyolwa for performances at culture week in June and at the Epworth Experidance festival in September. This very exciting new programme will be sure to enrich the 2025 Schlesinger Theatre calendar, and draw more professional dance companies to the theatre, too. Youth Day on 16 June marked the end of half-year exams, bringing an exciting period of cultural happenings to the theatre. Malian virtuoso Ballaké Sissoko and South African guitar maestro Derek Gripper graced Michaelhouse with a Sunday afternoon event that drew audiences from as far as Johannesburg. Together, Mr Sissoko’s 22 strings and Mr Gripper’s six delivered an experience that was unique and transcendental, an event that will be remembered for years to come. On Monday 17 June, Mr Gripper spoke to the boys of Michaelhouse about West African music and his life as a musician, also playing a number of pieces. Thus the cultural week, known now as the House Challenge Week, began on 17 June and concluded with interhouse music on the evening of 20 June. On the morning of 20 June, Mr Makhubalo Ikaneng produced his new production Bafaziland The Musical , continuing a tradition of supporting our local cultural entrepreneur and theatre master. Cuba, as he is also known, runs a Midlands writing project for high schools, and publishes a set of short stories each year. Bafaziland was his own work from a trilogy called Land with no Heroes , all three of which have shown at Michaelhouse. Bafaziland was about life in rural KZN and the promise of service delivery and jobs which never come. The school production was written and directed by A Block proxime accessit Kian Moses. The ABCs is a political satire using fictional characters to portray politicians in a family romantic comedy. The play was sharp, witty and appealed to the boys’ sense of humour. The actors from Michaelhouse teamed up with girls from Treverton. Nelisa Zungu served

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