Two standing ovations! Yes, and the first one was before the show even ended. In fact, I suspect the audience wanted to give a couple more throughout the show. That was how the audience received Dancing the Death Drill, a stage adaptation of Fred Khumalo’s award winning novel. I knew I could not miss it because my favourite musical talents, Msaki, composed the music for this majestical piece of work.
Directed by the legendary James Ngcobo, we were transported to 1958, World War One, through a blend of music, dance and drama. It was a history lesson as the story SS Mendi, the ship that sank and killing over 600 black South African soldiers and crew members in February 1917 was not known to me. It reminded me that there is so much of our history we are still to learn, forgotten and shelved.
This stage production weaved in the complexities of the time, the plight of the black man and the identity issues of children birthed from a black mother and white father. There was a lot of humour, some dark. There was romance and there was tragedy. The music, the dance, the dialogue – seamlessly telling the story magnificently. I was trying to figure out, what stood out the most in the three disciplines, and honestly, I feel they all complimented each other.
Clint Brink, who plays the main character of Pitso Motaung, was such a beautiful surprise. His transition from the interrogation room to how he would tell his story at different times of the journey, just by using his body, was amazing. And I had forgotten that Clint can sing, what a beautiful reminder. He owned that character and did it so much justice. One slowly understood the burden of being a survivor of that tragic collision of the ship meant. I became clear with each scene, why he was portrayed as someone who wanted to bury the past, like a part of him also sank to the depths of the sea on that fateful day.
This was an unforgettable theatrical experience. A reminder that there are still so many stories to be told and so many different ways to deliver those stories.
Head out to the Joburg Theatre for a phenomenal moment in theatre with a majestic cast, from 09 – 28 September 2025.
Tokiso Molefe 