No rest for Naledi nominee

Multifaceted Afrikaans actor, writer and director Neels Clasen is a busy individual.

He’s been nominated for a Naledi Theatre Award for directing the musical Altyd in My Drome, as well as being nominated for his role as Daddy Warbucks in the hit musical, Annie.

The annual Naledi Theatre Awards ceremony will take place at the Lyric Theatre, Gold Reef City, on Monday, June 5.

Altyd in My Drome is an old-fashioned Afrikaans musical, naive and even twee by today’s standards, but performed with loads of enthusiasm.

And it is often extremely funny. It was not dominated by technology and relied on simple staging with a few interchangeable props for effect.

The musical was based on a film made in 1952 by Pierre de Wet and the period, with its exaggerated acting, was a complete send-up, with the six-strong cast using the stage effectively.

Musician and composer David Boverhoff is also nominated for a Naledi in the category for best musical score, arrangement and adaptation.

Clasen said: “It was obviously a challenge to rewrite the script and adapt it for stage (and a very small stage at that), but all of these elements contributed to the show eventually becoming what it was: an Afrikaans, vaudeville, contemporary take on a muchloved classic.

“This show gave me every opportunity to unleash my most outrageous ideas and my talented cast contributed with their own brand of madness and incredible talent.”

Asked about his role as Daddy Warbucks playing to three different Annies, he said: “Firstly, all three of these young actresses are incredibly talented.

“Each brought something totally unique to the role. Each had her own energy and interpretation and this certainly kept me on my toes.

“It also meant a slight adjustment to my character and this kept every performance very interesting.

“These girls astounded me: carrying the responsibility of portraying the title role in such a massive production and doing it with such skill and maturity.”

One of the Annies, Lilla Fleischmann, is also nominated for an award in the best performance in a musical category.

Clasen revealed that his nickname for her was “Walkie Talkie” because she never stopped talking. Clasen said he looked for “sincerity” and “truth” in the Daddy Warbucks character.

“I really tried to find Warbucks’ heart. “It was his circumstances that made him the man he became. “He fended for himself from a very young age and this made him hard, uncompromising and even brutal.

“Making money defined him. “Then, this little girl unearthed his buried humanity and introduced joy and love into his life.

“I think this is such a well-written role with many interesting quirks and lovely humour.

“There’s a beautiful dramatic curve that I enjoyed exploring and the result was a character I empathised with and loved playing.”

Asked what it was like to switch from acting to directing and from English to Afrikaans, he replied: “I’ve always directed and acted. I can’t do without any of the two. “I’ve also always acted in both Afrikaans and English.

“I’ve done everything from musicals to plays, to screen and television in both languages and I’m proud of making a mark and being known in all these arenas.

“If you can speak both languages, I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t work in both.”

Another nominated musical in which Clasen performed was I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. As fate would have it, the production was in competition against Altyd in My Drome in the best production of a musical and best director of a musical categories.

The actor described the experience as one of the “happiest and most enjoyable times I’ve had on stage”.

“I was so chuffed that both were nominated,” he said.

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