‘Qaphela Ceasar’, a new political thriller in dance, hits Gauteng stages
GAUTENG – Julius Caesar makes his way to the State Theatre.
Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator who was assassinated, is making his way to the State Theatre in Pretoria.
The new political thriller in dance called Qaphela Ceasar is on stage from 21 to 31 October.
The production explores betrayal, prophesy, the power of political structures and the position of the individuals within it.
According to Bridget van Oerle of Buz Publicity, Shakespeare’s classic text about honour, patriotism and friendship has been reworked as a political thriller in the new classical and contemporary dance by renowned choreographer Jay Pather.
She said it also examines corruption and political power from a modern African perspective.
Qaphela Caesar, Pather’s dance theatre adaptation of Shakespeare’s work, is presented by Siwela Sonke Dance Theatre and promises
to be a riveting take on the themes of political betrayal, power and prophesy.
Van Oerle said the performing arts are a powerful means to reinvigorate and re-imagine the way in which contemporary, political and traditional South Africa can collide with the power struggles and politics of 44BC Rome.
Pather said, “Qaphela Caesar – translated as Beware Caesar, is cautionary: to Caesar about what could happen to him, and to us about what
his hold on power could cause,” says Pather.
Pather said his interest lies in the tension between the Caesar and Brutus characters, representing the good fight of the past and the political expediency of the present as well as the lust for power. “The mysterious roots of this power, the place of conscience and how all of this is dealt with in contemporary performance,” he explained.
This new version remade for the stage tells the story through dance, characters, text and large scale projections.
The production features a 12-strong cast with Nkanyiso Kunene playing Caesar, Sandile Mkhize as Brutus, Lorin Sookool as Calpurnia and
Kristi-Leigh Gresse as Octavius.
With set and lights designed by the fabulous Wilhelm Disbergen, the production will be performed to the highly charged Death and the Maiden by Schubert and other works by contemporary composers to – as Pather said – evoke a fast paced kinetic re-imagining of Shakespeare’s work while providing commentary on the politics of our time, of memory, history and future.
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