LOCAL performer Lihle Dhlomo is one to keep an eye on. Her smiling eyes and cool, confident manner bely an outsized talent, determination and ambition that would give Beyonce vertigo. The 23-year-old actress, singer, dancer and voice-over artist is currently in rehearsals for Botoo, a play directed by esteemed playwright and theatre-maker Ronnie Govender that forms part of this year’s South African Women’s Arts festival line up presented at the Playhouse Company. Berea Mail caught up with the young woman, formerly known as Fortunate, at Durban University of Technology’s Courtyard Theatre, a place she spent three years growing and nurturing her talent.
How long have you been doing this for a living?
I’ve been acting professionally for three years now. I recently did a film called Ithala with some amazing artists and actors from Johannesburg who came down to Pietermaritzburg to shoot for three weeks. I’m also a voice-over artist, a dancer and a training singer.
When did you realise you wanted to be a performing artist?
When I was in Grade 10 I did a solo movement piece for my drama teacher. It was such an intense experience and at the time I didn’t understand what was going on. During that process I started getting overwhelmed by what I was doing and I really started feeling it. From that moment on I just said to myself there’s no way I’m doing anything else because it literally spoke to me.
Who are the women who have been major influences in your life?
My aunt Bongiwe Mautloa is an artist in Jo’burg. She’s a portrait artist and part of the Market Theatre Foundation council and the Joburg Art Gallery committee. When I told her I was making the decision to become a professional artist she supported me and encouraged me to follow my passion. My mother is an amazing woman and she’s been very supportive throughout everything. She dramatizes everything that she does so I think I get the drama genes from her.
What are the opportunities for women performers in Durban?
In Durban you have to make it on your own and put yourself out there. You have to make sure that people know that you’re around because that’s how you get work sometimes. You also have to know who to speak to and you have to relate to them. People like to talk about themselves all the time so you always have to make sure that you know about people who are current, what shows are happening and so forth. The industry here is not as big, but if you know the right people they’re going be aware that you want to be in the industry and they’ll possibly want to work with you if they see you have potential.
How supportive are other women in the industry?
Some women are and some women aren’t supportive. It often depends on whether you have a friendly relationship. But I always live with the hope that women will always come together and be strong to make sure we grow together. I’ve made a couple of good friends who are women and who I’ll be working with soon so I’m looking forward to that.
What do you love most about your chosen career?
I love every single bit about what I do: the long rehearsals, the late nights, the early mornings. I’m in love with my career. I put it before everything. My ambition is to take over the world. I went to the National Arts Festival Grahamstown festival to make contacts. I saved up some money and decided to go there on my own and I made a whole lot of contacts who’ve requested that I come to Jo’burg. I was also a guest at the DIFF and I made a few contacts there as well. I want to do both theatre and film in terms of acting, so networking helps.
What makes you afraid as a performer?
What makes me afraid is my lack of fear in going too far. I’m not afraid of being vulnerable on stage. There are no boundaries when it comes to me as an actress. I’ve always liked to explore the unknown and to go where I need to go. It helps having a director who allows you to explore because if a director is going to stop you in your creative process it’s going to hamper your performance. You’re not going to be able to reach the peaks that you feel your character needs to reach. But I think not being afraid is actually a good thing because then there’s no holding back.
Tell us about the character you play in Botoo.
I play two characters. One is a nurse called Thandiswa Dlamini who is very close friends with the main character Dr Gonum. Her role in the play is to make sure Dr Gonum is aware of the repercussions of what she’s involved in. She’s one of the driving forces in the story and is very important in determining what happens in the story. She’s very meticulous and a bit OCD in a way. I also play a very aggressive police superintendent who’s an Afrikaner man.
How challenging is it to play a character of the opposite sex ?
It comes from a place of knowing. My father raised me with my brothers as one of the boys, so I have a better understanding from observing their behaviour and mannerisms. I also look up to my father so I draw on all of those things that are familiar.
See the lovely Ms Dhlomo in Botoo, on at the Playhouse Loft Theatre from 8 to 17 August.
