An inspiring and thought-provoking play on conquering the stigma surrounding interracial relationships will debut at the Andre Huguenet Theatre, one of the top-rated performance venues at the Performing Arts Centre of the Free State (Pacofs).
Skin Deep, Nico Taljaard’s debut theatre production, will be performed over three days from 16 to 18 March.
Taljaard strives to also break language barriers. He taps into and appeals to a multilingual audience, using English, Afrikaans and Sesotho vernacular that explores themes of identity and interracial relationships.
Non-fluent speakers can rest assured they do not need to master the toughest tongue twisting words to follow along. Taljaard is specifically focusing on the resistance to interracial relationships that stem from political beliefs and personal biases in our households.
“While the story centres around a romantic relationship between a white male and black female, the message of the story is universally applicable to all kinds of interracial interactions – be it friends, colleagues, or acquaintances. Even though there are subtle references and manifestations of racial prejudices and conflicts in the script, we highlight how most of our conflicts in South Africa stem from miscommunication, conflict avoidance, denial, suppression, and ignorance. In essence, showing people that even though it is easy to make our conflicts about race, it usually is not the root of our conflicts.
“Considering the current social and political climate in South Africa, the themes we are addressing are timely and thought-provoking, and they are presented in a light, yet substantial way,” said Taljaard.
Local acts Jane Mpholo and Charl Henning feature as the anchors. The production runs for 90 minutes without an interval. It has an age restriction of 13 years due to strong language, prejudice, and suggestion of sex.
Tickets cost R100 per person, but R80 per person for students, pensioners and groups of five and more. Tickets are available online at Webtickets, Pick n Pay stores, or the Pacofs booking office.
