GOAL ORIENTED THEATRE IN
THE WINTERVELD

1979.

and entertainment media.

held at the De Wildt Catholic Mission from 26 Novem-

in a performance at the Roman Catho ic

urc

at

or problems, such as South Africa, drama or theatre may
It may be used as a

Hilary Blecher
A Re ort of a Worksho
ber 1979 culminatinQ
KliPQat on Sunday 2 December
In non-literate societies the performance of rituals provided a means of
reinforcing traditional beliefs, social stability and transmitting success-
ful patterns of behaviour necessary for the survivaJ-or welfare of the
group.
It functioned as an awareness and information centre for those who
lived without the benefits of the Caxton or Gutenburg inventions.
This
was the function of theatre in most societies until the intervention of
technology and major socio-economic shifts which resulted in the develop-
ment of-theinformation
Today in Third World countries or those which exhibit certain third world
characteristics
be used in the dissemination of new cultural and political concepts, in the
introduction of new living patterns and attitudes.
technique for initiating non-literate, semi-literate or newly-emerging in-
dustrial societ~s to the benefits of Western technology, especially in the
fields of education, health, agriculture, social interaction and responsi-
bility.
provide the individual with insights into the actual conditions of his life
and the environment
In this way it is hoped to
open up initiative for independent thought and action and to motivate
change and development.
This theatre is speCifically goal-orientated and to be success~u1 it.must
operate within the cultural parameters of the people for whom 1t is 1ntend-
ed.
The aim is not to impose outside ideas or attitudes.on the group but
to stimulate individual perception and progress and to dIscover ways of
communicating
these insights to fellow-members within the vernacular of
their own language and cultural experience.
The most profound and meaningful theatrical event is that which reaches the
individual at the most accurate and authentic levels of his personal and
social sensibilities:
the truths he knows and recognises. Aesthetics are
irrelevant:
The workshop conducted in BophutaTswana arose out of the circ~mstancr~' de-
privations and needs of
This ;s an area of some 225 km3 which lies about
'
within the borders of BophutaTswana.
500 000 people or possibly as many est1mate, 1n the reg10 (hant
Approximately BO~ of the population live in the Stakaneng
which covers only 1Z~ of the toal area

spp.cificcommunity, t3h;tkOfth~hW~~t~~:~oria
of
~t has ~ populat;?nni~fe~~~s~oo.

It is able to raise levels of self and social awareness and to

soc;a1 involvement and interaction are paramount.

in which he finds himself.

m nor

town) area

s

Y

a

(Bensa, 1978).

23

the displacement of
the

to forfeit work opportunities

of BophutaTswana whIch has 1n1tl~t~d

offers far more limited opportunities for work.

zoned for agricultural

of a number of factors:

main road and an efficient bus

and other Reef towns.

These factors combined

to cause an enormous influx of

Tlieland was originally
small-holdings of 12ha and
Z5ha plots which were bought by black landowners from as far back as 1938.
The agricultural nature of the area was radically changed in the early
1960's by the culmination
the inauguration of
b0rder industries within a 20 km radius of Winterveld;
nearly two million farm labourers due to increased farm mechanisation;
a~olition of black labour tenancies and black squatters from white farms;
the demolition of and removal of inhabitants from black townships outside
Pretoria, such as Eastwood and lady Selbourne, with insufficient alternative
accommodation.
renting land on which
'squatters' who crowded onto the 12ha small-holdings,
to erect houses from the original landowners.
The South African influx control laws do not operate in the Winterveld and
thus it has been fairly easy for people to move there when they have been
Furthermore Winterveld is attractive because
endorsed out of other areas.
of its fairly close proximity to employment possibilities;
the alternative
of Bronkhorstspruit
All
tenants who arrived after 1970 however, are considered illegal and are sub-
ject to continual police harrassment.
The 'squatting problem' in Winterveld
was regarded by the South African
Government as temporary, and no attempt was made to develop a suburban
Infrastructure apart from a well-constructed
service which bears testimony to the large numbers of commuters who daily
travel to work in Pretoria, Johannesburg
There are
but no electricity, sewerage or wat~r
• few essential telephone connections
systems.
Water must be purchased at landowners' boreholes for 4c or 5c a
lItre.
often exist in close proximity to the boreholes and
this leads to serious contamination
accompany poverty and unhygenic
bronchitis,
gastro-enteritis,
private doctors, two clinics and a hospiUI
of the community of over SOD 000 people (Matsetela, 1979).
Unemployment,
seen as a direct result of the government's policy of restrict-
ed registration
for work permits, is the root cause of much of the dis-
satIsfaction.
Since the declaration
of the independence of BophutaTswana
In 1978, only registered Tswana nationals are entitled to legal employment,
hOusing and schooling.
This issue is further complicated by the presence
than Tswanas in the area and by the reluctan~e ~f
of many more non-Tswanas
the non-Tswanas
in the Repub~ic (!here,ls In-
in the homeland) or their own trIbal l~en!lty,
sufficient work available
such as Ndebele or Shangaa~and
suffer the indignities and restrlct10n of
carrying a BophutaTswana
passport.
~lthough the Winterveld was a heritage from the South A~rican G~v~r~ment,
It now falls under the juriSdiction
removal programmes of its own to alleviate the overcrowded slum condItIons.
'Illegal' inhabitants are 'removed' further into an underdeveloped wasteland
with even less viable living conditions than those under which they present-
ly live.
and insecurity (they can be forced
Thus problems of indentification
with removal at any momen.) are paramount.
There is, therefore,.gr~at sus-
piCion and fear about ope~ discussion and protest amongst the majorIty of
the inhabitants.
Th
dmaster at a school in
e lnlt1al lmpetus for the workshop came from a
ea
the area of Klipgat:

The diseases which
dysentry,
Ten
at Ga-Rankuwa serve the needs

t
he had requested a pump and a genera or

of the water supply.

living conditions are prevalent:
bilharzia and measles.

Pit-latrines

kwashiokor,

' ' ..

h

f om the Church
r

held at the Medical School

in Johannesburg.

for nightclasses and to bring the borehole on
The original idea was to structure a
that could accrue if people combined their ener-

C~unci1 to provide electricity
hlS prope,'ty into efficient operation.
work~hop and performance around the conditions of that particular area and
t~ hlgh1ight the advantages
gles to promote progress within their own communities.
The workshop was directed by Barney Simon, a South African writer and theatre
director, who has conducted many similar projects in the Transkei, Zululand
and in Mafeking, BophutaTswana.
The Reverend Jimmy Palos, a Methodist Mini-
ster, initiated the programme after hearing Mr Simon discuss his work at a
s~mposium on malnutrition,
Mr
Slmon suggested that the workShop deal with the actual circumstances, depri-
vations and needs of the specific community of Winterve1d.
The participants
all ~hared a common knowledge and understanding of the community, and were
commltted to devising a course of action which would at least help the Com-
munity workers and their communities to a greater awareness of the nature
of their problems and to a strategy for dealing with them.
The work was to
be organic to the lives of the people who participated in the workshop and
who created the final programme:
structured the work.
A significant aspect of Simon's approach is his refusal to superimpose his
own solutions and attitudes on the work.
His main function is to act as a
catalyst and to make the participants of his workshops aware of the exis~
tence of other possibilities
which they are then encouraged to take up and
explore in terms of their own experience and situation, to stimulate them
to discover actions which could be potent in improving the qualities of their
lives.
Simon describes his method as sensitivity training directed 'toward opening
participants'minds
The ignorance of a
student or patient exists as the responsibility of the teacher until it ends.
The patient who seems stupid, for example, might only be tired because he
has walked 20 miles to the hospital.
If the nurse understands this, she
will be more patient and he more receptive to her message.
Essential to this work are some basic attitudes which not only dictate the
process but also influence the approach with which the graduates are urged
to apply their discoveries
The first is
that the work must occur within the cultural parameters of the people for
People must be approached and spo~en to ~n.a vocabu-
whom it is intended.
lary which is meaningful for them and applicable to thelr condltlons of
existence.
It is senseless advising a community to grow vegetables to com-
if there is insufficient water available in the.area•. 9ne
bat malnutrition
has to confront the real issues first, namely that of the water 1nsuff1clency.
was expressed in the work programme by encou~a9in9 and value-
This attitude
ing expression in the participant's own language and by urg1ng them to for-
mulate the content of the work out of their own experience.
They were also
encOuraged to use traditional rhythms (to which 1yrics.were created) and
dances to make the material familiar and easier to ass1mi1ate.
The second prerequisite for the work is trust•. The work~hop ~s a w~ole
Mr S1mon put 1t thlS way.
could be considered an exercise in trust.
As an
~n fact,
instigat10n 1n a

"Initially trust in me ;s essential and then it spreads.
understanding grows a leadership emerges and I can fad~.
most of the work and discussion happens at ~

the material and the content of their lives

to the realities of communication.

to action in the larger community.

25

t'

application

of the work

.~rnacular which I don't have."

•.~ rpcessity

for

trust

in the practical

17 to 51.
In their twenties or early thirties.

was composed of 6 males and the rest females and the ages ranged

he express-
•r.us:
"You can have the best pills in the world for curing TB, but unless the
patient trusts you, it is useless because he will flush it down the
toilet or throw it out the window and your treatment will be useless."
,.~.trust develops with the sensitivity and awareness exercises as the par-
tIcIpants gain insight and develop confidence to initiate their own ideas
t •• actions.
It arrives with an excitement of their individual potency•
5 scholars (2 girls and 3 youths)
•~c participants were composed as follows:
the high school which was situated on the grounds of the Mission where
"~
2 health educators, 2 nutrition educators, 2 nursing
I-~ workshop was held:
,",rers, 2 youth workers, 5 'Bible women', a priest who was deeply involved
~"e cOlllTlUnitywork, a psychologist with an MA degree who was involved with
'~~earch and teaching at the Medical University in the area, a nurse who
{~-~ from Soweto who was involved with medical research, social work and who
,~rved on the organising committees of a number of community orientated
f'j~nisations in Soweto.
"~ group
The Bible women were generally older than the others who
,.~
Thus although all the members
w,.~ involved in community work of one sort or another, there were strong
w"~
"\(r~pancies between attitudes, educational levels and intellectual grasp -
.''cl,ranged from the MA psychologist to the Bible women who lacked speciflt
- their main activity was home-visiting, sick-caring and evangelising.
\,111s
~'lt of the group felt a lack of satisfactory communication with their
The main reason given for
r'li~nts or the people amongst whom they worked.
~l.ting to attend the course was the desire.to learn guidelines in order to
they wanted to achieve additional skills which
\~:'rovethese communications:
~'~y could then re-invest in their own community work.
Some of the partici-
: J " t 5 had been sent by superiors and were uncertain what to expect;
others •
• l;ec ially the nurses, had heard of Mr Simon's previous work and were eager
the scholars had been selected by
to partiCipate in a similar programme;
~•.(.Ir schools.
W'ry participants arrived with note-books and pencils indicating their ex-
:. :1tion of formal lectures and were unprepared for the methods that Mr
" '-.:n used.
It took time for them to adapt and to understand that the pro-
was aimed at learning through self-discovery and self-realisation.
i'l~
r.~ cbvious advantage of the latter procedure is that it enco~rages t~e
~~.~Jopment of initiative and insight through the actual exper1ence wh1lst
"r~~l
• ~~ber
of the group expressed this difficulty as the result of the indoc-
trInation techniques of Black education where individuals wer~ schooled to
, 'rrt what was given them materially, spiritually and e~ucatlo~ally: .they
'a'~ly questioned for themselves and were reticent in USIng the1r own 1n-
't\~tlve.
This attitude was especially evident in the Bible women who be-
fO-jed to an older and more subservient generation, they were less ed~cated
,'- very Church orientated and dominated:
Their treatment of specif1c 51tuations
:I~idealistic in a community whose problems are so mu~h close: to survlval
I.~\
'.,~l and whose inhabitants were more in need of pract1cal adv1ce end help.

learning concentrates on the dissemination of facts•

of religious dogma or prayer.

all questions were ~olved 1n

26

through formal lectures.

The effect of the workshOp can be seen in the remarks of one of the Bible
women, \/nOsaid that the work had made her realise that there were many
different ways of seeing a problem and, as necessary as prayer was, she
understood that practical and positive solutions were essential.
However,
in general it seemed as if the Bible women were more closed and did not
gain as much benefit or as clear an insight into the processes as did the
others.
This lack of homogeniety caused an imbalance in the work although the more
s~phisticated
members of the group showed respect and tolerance towards the
B1ble women during discussions.
This was probably due to the standard re-
ligious background of the group:
each member participated fully in prayers
which were lead by the Bible women to start and conclude the day.
A description of the day-to-day- activities follows in order to show the
exact process of the work and to give an insight into the progress.
~
Everyone introduced themselves by giving their name, marital status, occu-
pation, address and reasons for coming to the group.
Mr Simon gave a de-
scription of his background, and the work he had done in this field and
stressed the importance of trust and careful communication with the people
with whom ollecame into contact.
He defined the aims of the group as ex-
plcring direct methods of communication,
rather than merely describing or
talking about communication
Simon told the well-known story of a nurse who gave a lecture on infection
to an unsophisticated audience.
~ly behind her to illustrate her points.
At the end of the talk an old woman
1n the audience thanked her for her efforts and offered special,thanks to God
that flies of that size did not exist in her area.
In such a community it
was necessary to pass flies around in matchboxes to be seen.
The group res.
pond~d well to the story, showing how the sharing of personal info~ation,
storles and jokes is a method for breaking
down reserve and buildlng up
intimacies and trust.
From the outset it was important that the group learnt to understand and co-
operate with each other by defining common interests and aims.
trust exercises which occured later were intended to foster feellngs of.to-
getherness and stress the need for co-operation of mutual energies in d1s-
cussion and practical work.
The sensitivity exercises commenced with the 'Oran~e Workshop' •. The aim of
this is "to discover and look at the multiple real1ty of all th1ngs and to
understand that nothing is simply Ollethin~." (Barney Simon)
Each person is given an orange and asked to o~serve it ~arefull~ in a numbe~
of different ways'
a sphere In space, In changlng persbPec~
,
th
:
'.
e mar 1
lve as one moves lt about
One investIgates
etc in order to discover the history of that particular fruit;
with it using it as a toy, a bal J, a headrest:
one watches lt fa~l1~~s it.
through space, rolling across the floor.
One smells it a~d the~ t~~ chan ~
~s one eats through the skin one is urged to becom~ :onsc~o~slOScontainea
lng taste from the first bitter outer b1te to the JUICY 9 °fur: making any
ln each segment:
conclusive judgements about its nature.
The general reaction was one of surprise that they had been asked to 'play

one considers an orange very carefully be 0

She had placed a magnified diagram of a

as a flat disc

~ll the

k.n9s on its skin

rUlses

i

one.p ays

27

I

it was essential to examine

..

."...an orange.
This was fo11owed by the realisation that superflcial jUdge-
" t~ were often meaningless and misguided:
••rrything patiently to discover the truth or reality of that object.
Many
• t~e facts about an orange had not been considered or understood before -
•• as insufficient to describe an orange as 'round'. 'yellow' or 'sweet',
-e participants drew social metaphors from the exercise, such as that every-
'n~ is made up of a number of things which need to be united in order to
'cr" one effective whole.
:~ the end of the discussion Simon pointed out that nobody could have ex-
:erienced each aspect of the orange in exactly the same way.
Therefore the
_ard 'orange' in that room meant at least twenty
participants multiplied
ty fifty possibilities which equals 1 000 possibilities for an orange. He
.rged the group to consider the possibilities between one man and one patient
In this way.
Ln important result of the exercise was that it brought the group together
1n a relaxed, informal, playful situation aridthe individuals related tOoeach
other unselfconsciously as they sat on the floor together and easily followed
the instructions to complete the exercise.
T~e success of any sensitivity or awareness programme depends on a number of
arbitrary factors:
the exercises may be more or less successful depending
en the effectiveness of the group leader to inspire or stimulate the work,
tre quality of the interaction between the different members of the group,
However,
a~d the openness or readiness of the group to respond to the work.
t~e ~tual
participation and co-operation encouraged by the performing of
certain tasks and exercises together, usually builds up stronger and more
considerate group interaction which is necessary if the group is to co-operate
In the creation of a new project, programme or play.
Here, the process of
sen~ltlvity training was aimed at fortifying the opening vision of the par-
tICIpants through the creation of a play, which would call on them to assess
and communicate their new knowledge.
The second exercise worked on was the 'Mirror Exercise'.
tration, co-operation and communication exercise.
partners.
second one mirrors as exactly as possible.
depends on both members of the partnership co-operating closely.
partner tries to be too clever and outsmart her partner, then the exerClse
falls.
'Blind leading' is a trust exercise.
Once again the group forms partners.
B leads A out into the garden and is responsible,for A's
A Is blindfolded:
well-being and describes the physical environment to allow A to avold poss-
Ible dangers:
information received through all the s~nse perceptlon~ must
be Included.
The exercise encourages a sense of sharlngand
mutual ~nter-
dependence.
The person leading, by struggling to extend the perceptlons of
the blind person,discovers
sensitivity to her partner and the environment.
These exercises were fcllowed by a
discussion of the problems that the par-
tIcipants considered most serious in the areas in which they worked. :hese
were alcoholism and the attendant problem of the breakdown of fam:ly Ilfe;
the shortage of accommodation and overcrowding in bad,slum condltlons: a t
lack of employment;
~eople dId n~
resist anything that happened to them because they feared loslng.what they
Ilready had:
There was a serlOUS lack r
d "'Iterand strong resentment that poorer tenants were forced to buy wate

This is a concen-
The first member of the partnership initiates an action which the

The group forms into
The success of thlS exerClse
If one

that she also increases her own awareness and

hygiene;

crime and a lack of prlvacy.

they felt impotent and depressed.

28

it was to encourage

This

The
He under-

movement and thus his hand becomes a weapon.

His hands,

from landowners who were better off and who could therefore afford to sink
and operate their own boreholes.
Mr Simon explained the approach and procedure of his work:
each member of the group to discover within himself the potential for in-
depent creative thought and action.
This knowledge and confidence was the
tool which would allow the individual to assess, consider and finally act on
problems that confronted him.
The process is represented by the following diagram:
t.

It
Therefore when the child next door gets a running stomach its mother
It can be
fact that dia-
An awareness
Practically, socially, poli-

A man with his hand held so close to his face that he cannot see nor con-
sider anything except matters relating to day-to-day survival.
represents ignorant and repressed populations or individuals who are so over-
whelmed by their poverty or circumstances that they see no alternatives
and thus are unable to act to alter their situation.
A man who has now extended his hand to a foot away from his face.
man is now able to look around and consider his situation.
stands it was his ignorance blocking his view.
His new knowledge allows
him an insight and he understands that misfortune is not fate but a prob-
lem about which he is able to do something.
The man's arm is now fully extended and he can see his hand:
his fingers
~re free for
lnstead of limiting and blocking out his vision are now freed for action.
This is the result of an educated awareness; he has developed the where-
withal for coping with his situation.
S~mon explained it to the group further:
dles.
expects death.
cured with two pills.
horrea can be cured, she becomes aware of other possibilities.
of possibilities becomes a weapon in her life.
tically.
DAY TWO
The day began with a warm-up in which the group improvised dances to ~he music
of a Black musical 'Phiri' which Mr Simon had created some years prevlously.
This was followed by a ten-minute meditation and then relaxation exercises.
Each day began with a similar programme and usually included a prayer or a
hymn conducted by one of the Bible women.
one to come together and to focus on the work.
There was further discussion of the problem areas.
From the outset it was
impossible to separate the medical and health problems from t~e total lack
of basic facilities such as water, electricity, sewerage and Inadequate em-
ployment and schooling. The political nature of these problems w~s apparent
and it was necessary to deal with the prevailing circumstances WIth a deep
questioning of the policies which were responsible for the~ and,which were,
at that stage
The Sltuatlon was ex-
plosive and c~mpounded by a general feeling of insecurity and lack of clear-
cut identity _ who were these people and where did they belong?
Mr Simon urged the group not to deal with hypotheses but to consider t~e r~al
facts of the situation.
Rents wer~ considered but discarded aSfn~~ ~~~~gweoo
severe, expecially in comparison WIth those in SowetO.

But the running stomach is diahorrea, not death.

When the mother understand this, the

doing very little to alleviate them.

It was a method of allowing every-

2.

3.

a baby has a running stomach.

It was

e

29

two

health conditions would

them?

,'r~

which was the existing laws and political system.

',l~s

to represent the landlords of Winterve1d and four the tenants.

This possibility had not been considered previously.

the improvisation at different stages:

the groups was evident - people tried to hide away as soon as the

.-" concerning ourselves with affects and not dealing with the source of the
Change was needed
.". t~ls was where the contents of the programme should be centred:
what
•• 't the causes, the manifestations
and what could be done to improve or
One of the sChoolboys put it thus: "It is useless mopping up
'."q\'
." -ater when your house floods, it is necessary to find the source of the
'". and switch that off."
two groups were selected - three members
1- '~provisation was suggested:
Each
:.r,p discussed their own situation and attitudes separately and then con-
'r~nted each other with their grievances to see how the hardships of the
Discussion widened perspectives and a line of
!t"ants could be alleviated.
.ction evolved in which the tenants hired a lawyer and took the landowners
!~ COurt.
Two groups
....'e sent in to interrupt
:Jlicemen and a group of Bible women.
The interaction that occurred was in-
jicative of the tensions that existed between the various groups represented
~i the actors.
As the discussion was in vernacular it was difficult to under-
\tand the details of the argument but the antagonisms and fears that existed
~tween
'police' entered.
lfter the improvisation the ideas and suggestions that had occurred were dis-
c-\~ed. It was decided to try to sensitise the landowners to the plight of
~'tir tenants and show them how mutual co-operation and positive effort
w.~ld improve living conditions and benefit all;
'"t"roveand the crime rate would diminish.
It was felt that the authoritie~
l~o~ld be approached to alleviate the most critical needs of a water supply
t~d a sewerage system.
!~,session ended with listening to the record of 'Phiri' to show how songs
.~d lyrics could express the attitudes and essential elements of a situation
tnd carry a message.
'Phiri' dealt with the attitudes and problems connected
.Ith money in the townships.
~~Y THREE
Th, usual warm-up, in which each individual was free to explore ~i~ ~wn move-
~nts,
emerged into a group song and dance. was followed by sensltl~lty ex-
,rcises which stressed careful and accurate observation:
the most lmportant
of which was LOOKING AT PAULINE.
One of the schoolgirls, Pauline, stood in
lht centre of the room and others sat in a semi-circle around her.
Each.
of the group had to describe what he/she saw - ?nly those facts WhlCh
"~er
were visible to their eyes.
Thus for some people Pau11ne ha~ a face but no
~ck,
a profile, or a 3/4 view.
For each person, it was notlced, she pre-
'tnted a different view, a different reality.
ThIs exercise became a key programme and it seemed to have the greatest impact
0" the group.
_
••Idence that one had to examine what one saw ver~ car~fu1ly ln order to eSld
tlblish all the realities that belonged to that sltuatlon and t~at one shou .
~?t be misled into think:ng that one's point of view was exc1Uslve and superlor.
This exe;cise
followed by an excursion into the Setakeng area, prov!ded ;he
~Irticipants ~ith a clear understanding of how to approach the exe~cl~et~
ObStrving the conditions in the area in order to understa~~ a~ mu~ ~rkedein
total reality as they could.

During later discussions it was often referred.to as clear

Although most of the group

lve an

30

the Winterveld, many of them had not visited the Stakaneng area and were
startled by the severity of the poverty.
Everyone was obliged to report
back on what they had observed.
For example:

W: visite~ an N~ebele s7hool, which consisted of some poorly erected
tln ~hantles, w1th no w1ndows, weatherproofing, proper ventilation
or 11ght Source, floors or ceilings.
There were no blackboards. chalk.
books, p:ns, desks. chairs or tables.
Nine semi-qualified teachers
tau~ht flfteen hundred schoolchildren in oppressively hot and con-
strlcted spaces.
The parents of the children who attended the school
were non-Tswana and they desired that their children be educated in
their home language:
schools they had to be privately operated.
The conditions at this
school are typical of all such enterprises.
A significant disadvan-
tage was that the achievement certificates awarded by these schools
were not valid for secondary school enrolment:
thus wasted time and money on an education which had no consequence.
It was felt that it was important to draw the attention of the in-
habitants to these facts.

as there is no government support for such

the parents and children

The general impression was one of depressing poverty.

The following report, Ivy's story, is representative of the
I have selected it be-

On arrival at the outskirts of the slums we divided into groups of two or
three so as to be less conspicuous and arouse less suspicion as we moved
through the area talking to the inhabitants and observing their living con-
ditions and life-styles.
The large numbers of men, women and children seen at home or in the streets
bore witness to the lack of employment and school attendance.
~ach member of the group brought back detailed evidence of the lives of the
~nhabitants.
,nformation collected and the observations made.
cause it appeared in the final programme and it is significant to see how it
was used and developed,
Ivy had spoken to one of the landowners who she described as having "fat
She
children and a fat dog and eight-foot high fence around her property".
and had refuse~ to allow Ivy and her friends to come into
was unsympathetic
At first she had been
her house as she feared they "wou~d dirty her floor".
suspicious and reticent but had finally revealed that her tenants paid her
~4,5Dmonthly.
She complained bitterly of tenants who abando~ed,their houses
1n the middle of the night because they were unable to pay t~lS 1nstallment.
The group understood the desperation of this action in r~lat1on to t~e month-
ly busfare of R3 that the schoolchildren in the group paId. The fam11ies of
these children coped on a single wage of a Pretoria chemist's de1iver~n's
salary - an income which could hardly be considered extravagan~.
The dIffer-
ences in living conditions and attitudes between the landowner s demands and
the tenants' suffering was clearly revealed in Ivy's story.
In some houses Ivy noted that the tenants must be employed because of the
number of newly-purchase objects in the house.
In other houses the poor
quality of the possessions indicated that no one was,emp10yed.
Some tenants
brewed beer or ran shebeens in order to supplement ,ncome: The tena~t~ were
dependent on the landowners to obtain permits from the ~rlbal author't~es to
enable them to work.
Wash~n~d
f
drying outside the houses indicated the quality of ~he OCcupler s stan at
~
living. although in some cases this could be deceptlve as certain ~n
00
in washing from wealthier families and one could not always be certaln to

This dependency caused further grlevan7es;

31

the washing belonged.

formed the material out of which the performance

~om
The group's observations
..as structured.
Remarks after the visit testified to the application of the insight of not
generalising about a situation and the importance of examining a situation
carefully for oneself.
The participants felt that they had received a clear
Image of what they had previously discussed and they felt committed to a
precise reaIity.
The visit also focussed on the content of what the performance was to express,
namely the nature and scope of the problems at Winterveld, with specific
reference to the Stakaneng area.
From this point Mr Simon said he could
understand what form the work was to take very clearly.
group should work on the story of .aman who had originally come from Winter-
veld and who returns after being away for a number of years to discover many
changes.
His response to these changes and his attitude and advice on what
could be achieved to alleviate the stresses and inadequacies which he finds
would form the central discussion of the performance.
The third day of the workshop had contained an important transition.
Simon described it as follows:
"It had to do with a lot of things:
it related to the exercise of
'Looking at Pauline'.
Through the sensitivity exercises the group
opened themselves to a new way of looking so that they knew how to go
about looking at Winterveld.
They had also developed the confidence
that whatever they came up with was valuable and relevant, that nothing
was unimportant and that everything had a story to tell.
It was
They learnt to value their own observations and assessments.
also important for them to understand that.communication is not in-
formation but the PROPER COMMUNICATION OF INFORMATION.
They had un-
derstood a new way of seeing and COlTlllUnicatingknowledge."

He suggested that the

Mr

What do you see happening?

What are the problems related to it?
Could it be happening to you?
What can be done about it?

From here on the work could proceed very rapidly.
He formulated the following basic rules for approaching the stories with a
view to including the information they contained into scenarios:
1.
Z. Why is it happening?
3.
4.
5.
he further emphasised that the message had to make sense to the person with
whom one wished to cOlTlllUnicate•
•You have to reach the audience with words which make sens~ to.th~m i
you can't talk nutri tion to people who have no food." It 1S d1ff1CU t
to talk faith when people have their stomachs empty.
ke also warned against facile and 'clever' answers or methods of approach.
DAY FOUR
After the usual prayers by the Bible women, the group began to work on an

32

She explains her position to him and suggests he approach

The place has changed very much."

Specific changes were then

He suggested the rhythms of travelling and journeying.

Mr Simon suggested that this should not be a
introductory travelling song.
blues :Jt something that the audience would easily recognise and thus be able
to join in.
A theme
was found and the group began to look for information to script the song.
The following material was decided on:
"I have been working far away for
many years and now they've sent me back to Winterveld, the place where 1
was a child.
referred to.
The group divided up into four smaller groups to work on different versions
of the song.
The work on the song allowed them to sense a method for creat-
ing,the remainder of the work.
The students were especially interested in
muS1C and made an important contribution to all the songs and musical items.
Simon advised the groups not to be too concerned to be too perfect at the
beginning but to start with something rough and then work on it and cut it
He stressed that all material for the show should have both funny
down.
and sad elements - "it should be something that the audience can drink up."
The first draft included five separate scenarios and a group was assigned to
work on each.
Scenario 1: The landlady, tenant and dog.
This scene was intended to deal
with the tensions and problems of the land tenure and rental system.
The
traveller returns home and requests a place to stay from the tenant who is
unable to help him.
the landowner.
During their meeting the landlady expresses her attitudes.
The contrasts between the landlady and the tenant are emphasised by their
children:
the tenant's daughter is considerate and kind to the traveller
while the landowner's child is rude and disinterested.
Other contrasts to
work on were that the tenants were hungry while the landlady's dog was fat
and well-fed.
This scene was to be structured'on a specific experience with
a landowner during the visit to Setakeng.
The basic action involved a mother
Scenario 2:
The importance of nutrition.
her husband was awaY,and there
whose child was suffering from kwashiokor;
was no foed in the house.
A nutrition expert visits her and adVises her on
In this scene the traveller, who was acted by
what foods to give her baby.
a young priest who had been involved with establishing vegetables at the
Catholic Church in Klipgat, was to give a practical demonstration on how to
grow vegetables in an old box or bath using all discarded waste products,
except tins and bottles, to enrich the soil.
Scenario 3:
The action was
it was ~O,include a stro~g reque~t to
left to the initiative of the group:
the authorities for the establishment of sufflClent and acceSSible medlcal
facilities in the area.
Scenario 4:
suggested were to include a Shebeen Queen, a tsotsf and the action was to d
revolve around a robbery in which someone was to be assaulted and thus ~ee
a clinic.
A narrative link-Up could thus be established between scenarIO
3 and 4.
Scenario 5.
attendant difficulties of obtaining valid penrits f~r ~o~:~~~~ ~~~~~~~~ a~hjS
jobs.
was probably due to the fact that we have experlenced the despe at

To include all the problems of being non-Tswana and ~he

In the final performance only the prob e~s 0 e u

To. show the desperate need for a clinic.

,

To discuss unemployment, drunkeness and crime. The characters

They were ,as follows:

d
ion of the

r

33

for example, the

These were usually socially motivated;

the tsotsi
as a cause for his delinquency.

tdu(~tion system at the Ndebele school and thus could relate to the actual
sItuation more easily.
Each person was to tell their own story including their reasons for acting
I~ they did.
Shebeen Queen sold liquor in order to enable her to pay for her children's
dealt with his inability to find
.ducation at a private school;
The social hardships which caused
~ployment
Individuals to act the ways they did were to be shown and the situation
which had caused these conditions was to be investigated. The thrust of the
play was to show that there WERE ways of using initiative to combat or alle-
viate certain of these factors.
~hile considering their scenario the students came up with the following dia-
gram which they had structured and which formed the basis of the second draft.
This was seen as an important contribution to the success of the workshop in
that they had used their own initiative and had made a positive decision .to
Influence what was to happen.
This was the attitude that the work was intend-
ded to foster both in the awareness-raising exercises of the worshop and in
the performance.
It showed a real understanding of what the work was about
and insight into the procedure and methods required for
Second draft:
I. Social Set-Up - Landlord etc

THE STUDENT'S DIAGRAM

potent results.

Government

34

the Government reaction
conditions
school.leavers - why children leave school.

conditions under which the tenant has to live
history (how the situation developed)
police raids.

I.
2.
3.
Education
t.
2.
3.
Unemployment
cause.
t.
alcoholism and shebeens
2.
delinquency and crime (this was linked to school-leavers in the
3.
second scenario)
4.
need for recreational facilities.
Nutrition
1.
2.
- child
Need for medical facilities
,.
Unhealthy conditions
I.

wounded man - nurse - death - nurse's speech.

sanitation, water, etc.

cause.
malnutrition

migrant labour

2.

3.

4.

S.

6.

set-up

enacted.

be more
showed

different
characters
roles

and improvise.

of the play.
struct-
this made it

points were made to build a narrative
were to appear

were

and dog, a policeman.
to discuss
there was the mother,

were to remain the traveller,
and traveller
were to appear.

tenant and
In the edu-
The Shebeen
the unemploy-
child, nutrit-
and a wounded man, nurse and traveller were
were not strictly ad-
for improvisation.
Discussion
too much emphasis
of what the children
gambling.

followed:
was placed on the adult's

it was felt that
in the

These characters

felt, especially

on.
and the actual
interesting
one and was able, with interconnections
scenes,

This was reached
improvisations
and humorous
to provide a strong narrative

through the combination
which had fleshed out
The role of the
already
thread

and her daughter
men and the traveller

the landlady
scene the students,
~hree unemployed
In the scene

traveller;
to but served as a basis

the characters
teacher
of nutrition

was decided
many
was a unifying
between
the performance.
THE TRAVELLER'S

was to be used as a new basis for the structure
lhis diagram
linking
Connections
in each scene;
urE': T',E'following
easIer
to allocate
In the social
dau~hter;
catlon
Queen,
ment crlS1S.
Ion expert and the
to deal with the need for a clinic.
hered
Each scene was then roughly
there should
humour;
point of view to the detriment
scene which
the students
DAY FIVE
The final scenario
of the earlier
drafts
the situations
with
traveller
existing
throughout
1st SCENE:
greets
those who come
He sings about having
the mines and has now been
describes
from pleasant
her daughter
2nd SCENE:
for accommodation.
like pigs _ people are continually
ing conditions
water
they have no security,
the living
She describes
that the traveller
suggests
daughter,
who is polite
gant and rude,
is about
arrive
ive and begin to question
with no rights
to remain
suggest~
take the woman
The police
3rd SCENE:
THE LANDOWNER'S
She refuses
curity
brings
ter ungraciously
by a woman
Her dog, played
attention
ceiving
The landlady
the traveller
responsible
complains

is not easily available
conditions
asks th~ landowner
in contrast
to show the traveller

the tenant.
in the area.
of persecuting
to prison.

favourable
tells
for erecting

him home.
far and describes

arrives lnd
He wears a hat and has a bag.
He
the face of Winterveld
had changed
He dances with the tenant woman and
the others move off.

"sent back to the place where he was born."
is:
countryside
into a slum.
into the next scene while
TRAVELLER,

AND HER PREGNANT
The traveller asks
asks why he wants to live under such depress-
by the ~olice,
paId for.
She
As the
who is arro-

rental system, water tariffs etc.
daugh~er
with landowner's
They ar~ very aggress-
and ask him for his pass which he shows them.
They arrest her for be~n9 a squatter
argues wlth them.and
The traveller

and must.be
for accommodation.
the landlady

boasts about her high se-
HOUSE.
the traveller
her daugh-
the home for them to Slt and.talk._
in the group, growls at the traveller whIle re

entry into her house.and

theys~re
their own houses and have to pay for wat~r'h
f~'t
w 0
1

how she deals with the tenants:
who cannot afford the R4,50 rental an

the woman they should be protectlng her.

how he has lost his job on

how different

everything

ARRIVAL

AND DANCE.

The traveller

DAUGHTER.

harrassed

The landlady

chairs

outside

from the daughter.

that instead

fence.

about

the tenants

the

later

to welcome
travelled

TENANT
The tenant

details.

.
s house, the polIce

35

environment

The health

educator

from kwashiokor

for their children.

receive

of the night.

into the rental.

by children.
Two women

as much
She requests
a better

The health educator

advises

should consider
which they can share.

sings her advice while

she dances.

could be obtained
herself

she berates

whether

they consider

land as the landowner
that everyone

complain
As they are non-Tswanas

about the difficulty

THE HOME OF THE MIGRANT
points
the right nourishment.

The wife is feeding
and shows her baby very proudly to the health educator who
she is in fact suffering

The traveller
urges her to be more reasonable
her to incorporate
he advises
he suggest
group co-operation
for all and a more hygienic
The landlady
for being so stingy with her water.
the lives of their

the water
that better
and safer
weeps with regret and sings
The
would you treat your
each other

with the tenants:
Through
could be established.
then asks the audience

off in the middle
in her dealings
charges
living conditions
environment
a song in which
daughter
tenants - "if you possess
tenants any better?"
and work together
for
WORKER AND HIS WIFE.
4th SCENE:
her baby coca-cola
out that even though her baby looks
arrives.
because she is
plump and healthy
Nutrition
and the right
is discussed
not receiving
the migrant
foods for the child are suggested.
even while he is away.
worker to be supportive
The traveller
to his family
enters and shows the family how to create a garden enriched
from waste pro-
these items from the bag he has been
ducts in an old basin or box, taking
carrying.
In this way, he says, one can grow all vegetables.
The health
educator
This took the form of a game
which could be played
A HOUSE.
5th SCENE:
SChooling
their children
from sending
prefer that the children
woman enters
and they decide
it begins with a hymn and is followed by a discussion
ing is held:
to form a private, communa1
prayer.
a concluding
6th SCENE:
THE PRIVATE
the successful
dates with certificates.
work was not up to standard
school fees.
The successful
7th SCENE:
to gain admission
:lcates have been issued by a private
IS appalled
at the waste and advises
gether
Bth SCENE:
gambling.
return disappointed.
and the lack of recreational
a song demanding
of their nation.
9th SCENE:
pupils and decided
ren's schooling.
become brassy
the tra~eller,
dlScuss10n
achieved
the educational

The shebeen queen is a mother of one of the.
she ~as
Incl~dlng
After lively drlnk1ng and laughl~fdabe
expresses what h~ ~eels C~m rove
and approach

of providing
they are prevented
school and th~y
A thIrd
The meet-
and then
school.
candi-

who have failed school are shown
their probl~ms
sIng

enters and they discuss
available
system as they will be the future leaders

to gain admission
to them.

to high school
The students

have failed either because
their
they have been unable to pay theIr
sing a song of jubilation.

AT MAMELODI.

The successful
school and are refused becaus~

and aggressive
come to the shebeen.
in which
if key people get together

develops

to the government
to call a meeting

education

subsidised
in their own language.
of the community.

in order to survive.
the traveller

A STREET SCENE.
The children

The children

who have failed

school and ~re not va~ld.
the parents
In the audIence

to start a shebeen
She interviews

in order to raise money for her chIld-

people for jobs at the shebeen:.

The traveller
outlets
a better education

scholars
try
their certi-
The teacher
to get to~

to try to find a solution

for their problem.

Some children
or because
children

THE SECONDARY

SCHOOL

to secondary

The parents

SCHOOL.

decide
The teacher

presents

H~ny.people.

the authorlt1es

to

p

IN THE SHEBEEN.

situation.

36

Avoid self-pity, go for the conciseness of a telegram.

Be sure

THE FINALE in which the second song of the traveller, summarising

A girl and her drunk companion leave the shebeen and are confronted by two
thugs.
She runs away in fear while the thugs bait, rob and finally kill her
companion.
His cries attract the attention of passersby who discover him
The traveller
dead.
The traveller and the schoolboys chase the thugs away.
asks for a doctor, a nurse, the police, a clinic, a telephone, in turn.
To
each request the schoolboy answers, "There is none, there is none."
To the
request for police he cynically answers that one cannot rely on the police for
help.
The schoolboy then sings the song 'Rafano', in which he states that "We are
here, don't forget us, remember that we are here.
Our greatest lack is that
wer are not recognised as being here."
With great anger he lists all the
facilities that are needed in Winterveld, and tells the people to gather
forces.
The people lift up the dead body and depart singing 'Rafano'.
10th SCENE:
all the needs of the community, is sung.
After the improvisations, Mr Simon gave the following advice to the actors,
as they were inclined to ramble on and dispel the dramatic intensity of the
scenes:
that you have a message, something to say in terms of what the people will
Emphasise one fact at a time and go for the others later so as
understand.
not to clutter the statement.
The actors should be heard, seen and should
deliver their statements directly to the audience.
The songs should be very
lively and animated.
Mr Simon had become very excited at the contribution of the schoolboys and
this influenced the perforrr~nce in that he allocated to them major responsi-
bility for deciding and creating the contents of the scenes.
Thus the final
performance dealt to a great extent with youth perspectives of the problems.
It was interesting to note that the actors performed all their discussions with
each person seated on a chair:
they were therefore very static and contrasted
with the more energetic dance and song sequences.
DAY SIX
Saturday was intended to settle the action sequence of each scene and to
polish the performance.
fied.
remain consistent, each scene had an intention which had to be executed.
~
The day of the performance.
Everyone arrived early to revise the links between the scenes and the.inte~t-
The group then travelled in convoy to the church 1n K11P-
ion of each scene.
gat where the performance was to be held.
When we ar~ived at the ch~r~h there
were very few members of the audience.
Those respons1ble for advert1S1ng the
event had been inefficient:
torn down within a few hours of appearing.
Suggestions to move 1nto Setakeng
Two members of the
were discouraged because of inevitable police harrassment.
group travelled around the area in a truck with a loudspeaker to broadc~st
that a concert was to be held in the church.
to
rys~ho~ae~~~~~ce
an empty adjacent plot and began dancing and ~inging and veh
able crowd assembled and followed the actors lnto the churc •

.
The transitions between each scene were to be c1ar1-
Performance was never 'fixed' but the contents of each scene were to

the few posters that had been put u~ had been

SEVEN

The other performers move

P

37

in the week.

and desire to communicate.

of the performance on the audience but

and either sat or stood around watching. There

the acting area.

Many people arrived

- laughin~ talking and agreeing amongst themselves:

the programme attended the final perfor-
for them
and they were amazed at what had been

began three hours later than scheduled.
The audience in the church sat on benches which had been moved away from the
altar to form a circle which defined
during the performance
was a strong informality amongst the audience and they responded to the scenes
uninhibitedly
they chang-
ed positions or moved about freely.
the work came together in a moving and powerful way through a
In performance
strong sense of commitment
It was difficult to
assess the ultimate effectiveness
from the attention they gave and their involvment and response it seemed to
have a successful
A member of the audience told me afterwards that she had refrained from laugh-
ing when the others did because she understood that these were very serious
things and that they should not be taken so lightly.
The scenes that induced
most hilarity were those in the shebeen and those in which the police appear-
ed, the scenes most open to broad caricature.
In general there was a great
sense of a community event, of sharing and recognition.
The people involved with initiating
mance and expressed delight at the results that they had witnessed:
the work was exciting and successful
accomplished
After the performance
there was a short meeting with the group in which ea~h
individual was asked to express what they had learnt or discovered by parti-
cipating in the programme.
creativity which they had discovered;
to have a total and accurate vision before commencing work;
that one required patience and the vocabulary of those one wished to commun-
icate with, and that one had to look carefully and see what was contained in
a situation and what was possible, before any conclusions were arrived at.
CONCLUSION
cannot strictly be regarded as THEATRE. it
~lthough the work in BophutaTswana
to the rehearsal of a play for performanc~.
Involved a very similar procedure
A group comes together to form a small community in order to work on a specI-
fic project, certain ideas are introduced regarding the intentions of the
~ork and these are discussed and sometimes explored through the process ?f
Improvisation, and the cross-fertilisation
all th~se dlsco~erles
are used to shape the final product.
often done in order to prepare the actor for work.
in that it followed this defined pattern and de-
This project was ritualistic
veloped out of community needs and concerns and attempted.to serve these
of a special event In.that each person
needs.
partook in the process testified to a change in perceptlons.and ~ttltudes
~o
It was also a rltuallsed way
In understanding
of strangers coming together and learning to appreciate and.under~ta~d ?ther
It 1~ a
points Of view with which tney had very little contact prevlous~y.
way of increasing understanding
for different attltud:S a~t
concerns which are essential for a large group or nation to foster t?~
s
This was especially true for me ~s a w~lte:i n ';~de~~
ultimate well-being.
perience allowed me a communication

The answers referred to the personal sense of
the understanding of the necessity
the knowledge

of ideas;

Awareness and sensitivIty exerCISeS are

It took on the characteristic

the realities of their lives.

impact.

and sympathy

3B

with Black people In a sltuat 0

a level which would normally be denied to me - it provided an opportunity
to discover and share insights and friendships which have enriched my
experience of living and understanding conditions and events in this
country.
References
Benso, 1978:
Matsetela, T. 1979:

Statistical Survey on Black Development.

Benbo, Pretoria.

The Informal Sector in the Political Economy of
Winterveld.
of the Witwatersrand.

Honours Dissertation, University

Footnote
It is interesting to note that the sensitivity exercises used in the
project are used in the training of actors to develop observational,
perceptive, concentration, awareness and co-operative skills.

Senior Researcher

Positions Vacant:
Area of research will depend on the Qualifications and experience
of ~he person appointed.
AfrIcan theatre history, theatre in society and theatre in educatIon.
Qualificatio~:
~ontact:

A higher degr~e in drama or communications.
Dr. Temple Haupfleisch, Private Bag X41, Pretoria.
Tel. (012) 21-8624

Broadly, the field covered includes Sou~h

39