Crawford International puts on an adaption to A Dream Play

Through the gates of Crawford International, up a steep ramp followed by two flights of stairs leading into an eerie, dimly lit drama theatre is where the school opened a threshold to Mount Olympus.

Crawford International staged A Dream Play – written by August Strindberg, and directed by the school’s Raymond Taylor from September 11 – 14.

Taylor’s adaptation of A Dream Play centred around a daughter of Zeus’s descent to the earth, where she learns first-hand how significantly challenging it is to be a human being. Throughout the play, reference is made to a door – symbolic of the exit available to all humans: death.

“I wanted to do a production that challenged the norm and something different,” said Taylor, explaining what drew him to the play. “I started looking for a ‘weird’ play and A Dream Play popped up; I loved how it questions humanity and dreaming.”

Deviating from Strindberg’s original Hindi-mythology-based playtext, Taylor wove a Greek theme to the surreal production – presenting a myriad of expressive, choreographed dance sequences, and gripping monologues delivered by the young cast with crisp eloquence.

“My favourite thing was working with exceptional students and seeing how they grew as actors and as people,” Taylor said. “I would like to thank the management team that allowed me to do this production. I want to thank all the students for participating and helping with this production.”

According to Taylor, preparation started on July 14 – and it took the cast and crew two months to get ready for the show, which drew sold-out audiences for three out of four shows.

Related article:

https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/333444/hip-hip-hooray-for-crawford-international-sandton/

https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/333431/relationship-between-humans-and-animals-explored-at-crawford/