Media release: 10 September 2009
Hit Paydirt at the 969 Festival
Johannesburg, September 2009“Paydirt is part coming-of-age story, part ghost-story, with a sniff of a crime story,” says Tamara Guhrs, one of the creators of this original theatrical work, showing at the 969 festival at Wits from 15-18 September. “It’s a meditation on Johannesburg, on how its origins and history still inform the contemporary experience of Jozi.”
Paydirt traces the story of a young woman on a quest to find her father who disappeared in Joburg. She meets a taxi-owner turned 2010 tourism entrepreneur, a homeless man who cannot face his past, and some of the city's ghosts. Like the millions who enter Joburg's hungry streets she faces a hidden challenge – will the city swallow her up like it did her father?
The play, which just premiered at the National festival of the Art in Grahamstown, came about as a result of a conversation between two Joburg artists – writer-director Tamara Guhrs and choreographer-designer Jenni-lee Crewe. “We wanted to create a work that would explore the city through three modes: portrait, landscape, and still-life,” they explain.
Like Joburg itself, the play draws from multiple diverse influences. “We have overlaid traditional storytelling with dramatic dialogue, gesturescapes and dance. We wanted to recreate the buzz of Joburg, but also comment on something less tangible, beneath the materialism that the city is known for,” explains the scriptwriter. Gold fever, frontier lawnessness, gambling on rock and dust - stories of economic migrants who come to the city to seek their fortune are woven into the central story, creating a spellbinding theatrical experience.
“We worked closely with the cast – their experiences of the city. They interviewed real Joburg characters and brought their stories into the play.” As a result, the emotional landscape of the play is direct and authentic – tiny moments of familiarity will strike anyone who has had to navigate Joburg streets.
Thandeka, Paydirt’s heroine, steers an increasingly dangerous path, from the exhilaration of Joburg’s unspoken promises, to the engulfing feeling of being a stranger, lost in the city, to the lure of the alcohol-soaked Friday night jol. She rapidly finds herself seduced into a world from which even her streetwise friends cannot protect her.
The cast of three include two Wits University students – Jessica Lejowa and Ndu Msimanga, as well as Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, well-known for his high energy performances in Theatre for Africa productions and most recently, Cry the Beloved Country. Catch Paydirt at the 969 Festival – Wits Downstairs Theatre every night at 8:30 from the 15th – 19th September.
For more information, contact: Tamara Guhrs 0732270777 or tamara.guhrs@gmail.com Jenni-lee Crewe 0799988938 Follow Paydirt on its journey as the creators blog about the show's development on www.paydirtplay.blogspot.com
