Meet the people behind a new Tony Award-winning production at Montecasino

Director Bobby Heaney and his crew share their experiences of staging Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike for a South African audience.

Young actor Richard Gau – and his six-pack – takes on the role of Spike, Masha’s much younger lover.

Masha’s descent on her family home with Spike in tow sparks tension among the middle-aged siblings. What Gau calls his character’s “charisma”, and his muscular physique, proceed to play a central part in maintaining the play’s comedic tension.

Gau’s already-impressive theatrical repertoire includes acting, singing, directing and writing. His love of theatre started in high school, when he saw his first musical, Guys and Dolls.

“I fell for the magic of theatre and have loved it ever since,” said Gau. He was attracted to Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike by “the comedy and the craziness” of this “unexpected” play, and described the experience of performing in a Broadway hit as an honour.

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike comes highly recommended by its young male star. Gau said, “It’s fresh, it’s zany, these are characters everyone can relate to and laugh with. It has an international appeal to all ages and it is a roller coaster ride of fun played out by an awesome cast!”