World news | theguardian.com: When he was cutting his teeth as an actor, the only place James Ngcobo knew equality was on stage. "Towards opening night you sit with the director, getting notes, and then you look at your watch and you just know, 'My last bus has gone, I can't get back home,'" he recalls. "I had moments where you finish rehearsals at night and you go with the white actors and have a glass of wine or two and go and sleep in the park because I didn't drive then, there were no buses going back to the township and sometimes it was dangerous to go back to the township."
2 comments:
This is a great story about someone being able to beat the odds. I think it's fascinating to hear about people's histories and backgrounds. Ngcobo was able to follow his passions in a difficult situation, which is not something a lot of people are able to say. I also like that at the end of the article Ngcobo says that he believes in telling his sons about his past and what it was like to grow up in the era. As a population, we cannot move forward without first knowing where we have been. I sincerely hope that Ngcobo is able to take these values and instill them into the work that the Market Theater does. I'd be interested to see what other types of works the theater produces in seasons to come.
It's nice to see that sometimes theater and art really can better lives and influence their context. It sounds like Ngcobo is the perfect man for the job, and will build upon the theater's history in a very sensible way. What he says about wanting to teach the younger generation about Apartheid is great, and I completely agree. It's important to remember the past, and grow and improve based on what has been changed and learnt. This article is a beautiful example of human resilience and the power that art can hold in a society.
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