A glimpse into the secret life of girls
JOBURG - What happens in Africa will determine what happens to the rest of the world.
A play, workshopped in Joburg in 2011 by award-winning playwright Eve Ensler, has opened at the University of Johannesburg’s Art Centre Theatre.
Emotional Creature: The Secret Life of Girls Around the World was inspired by girls around the globe, and is a celebration of the “authentic voice” inside every girl.
“I chose South Africa and this continent originally because Africa is the birthplace of humankind, and the play births a new way for girls to bring their stories to the public and see themselves as the strong and ’emotional creatures’ they were born to be,” said playwright, author and activist Ensler.
“There is the greatest potential for the future in Africa, and what happens in Africa will determine what happens to the rest of the world. African girls can and will lead that future.”
Among the characters created by Ensler are an American who struggles with peer pressure in a suburban high school, an anorexic who blogs as she eats less and less, a Masai girl from Kenya unwilling to endure female genital mutilation, a Congolese forced into sex slavery, a Chinese factory worker who makes Barbie dolls, an Iranian student tricked into cosmetic surgery, a pregnant teen trying to decide whether or not to keep her baby, and a young South African teen defiantly calling for an end to rape.
“Through rants, poetry, questions and facts, we come to understand the universality of girls around the world: their resiliency, their wildness, their pain, their fears, their secrets and their triumphs,” she said.
The play, directed by Obie award-winner Jo Bonney, features original music composed by Naledi award-winner and Fleur du Cap nominee Charl-johan Lingenfelder, and choreography by David Gouldie with selected excerpts by Luam.
The cast of South African actresses includes Karabo Tshikube, Lara Lipschitz, Barileng Malibye, Vuyelwa Maluleke, Ratanang Mogotsi and Zakeeya Patel.
Emotional Creature: The Secret Life of Girls Around the World will run until 30 July at the University of Johannesburg Arts Centre Theatre, corner of Kingsway and University Road, Auckland Park.
Details: Computicket 0861 915 8000; www.computicket.com
