More “Amazing” from Rhodes and the National Arts Festival

This year’s National Arts Festival will showcase many shows featuring Rhodes staff and alumnus, namely Professor Andrew Buckland and Richard Antrobus (alumnus and Rhodes Drama Department staff) and Tristan Jacobs (alumnus). This year Jacobs will be attempting to perform STILTED, HATS, SHAGGY and his own piece: DEDICADO within 15 days.

Jacobs graduated from Rhodes University with his Honours in Drama in 2009, specialising in Acting, Writing and Contemporary Performance. Throughout his stay at the Rhodes Drama Department he has taken part in many student productions, some of which were taken to the National Arts Festival.

‘Stilted’ was created, conceived and performed by Antrobus and also features Jacobs. Speaking about the production, Director Buckland commented that he was “fascinated by the un-self conscious nature of the work and the fact that its subject and form are the same in a very creative way”.

Through testing the physical limits of suspension and gravity, and exploring restrictions of body, language and expression, ‘Stilted’ takes a fun glimpse into the exposed performer-self caught in an imposed world, society, body, theatricality.

Buckland also added that part of what makes the work so exciting is that “questions of the nature of performance and the performer are tossed (and dropped) about the space with the lightness of a juggle-clown, and the heady academic questions of style and audience relationship are the subject of adept physical virtuosity disguised as inept tomfoolery”. Antrobus remarks: “It’s fun, it’s risky, it’s stilted – from the set to the language to the themes to the actors them

Since 1981 Buckland has been producing original theatre work employing a dynamic and exciting combination of visual comedy, sophisticated political satire, clowning, physical theatre, mime and an explosive performance style. These works have become synonymous with provocative, entertaining and stimulating theatre both in South Africa and internationally.

Antrobus is a part-time Drama lecturer at Rhodes University. He is also founder and manager of the Phezulu Project, a community development stilt -walking company, this initiative gives local community performers a chance to reach new heights. One can catch the Phezulu stilt-walkers roaming around the village green and performing in and around other popular festival venues.