Welcome to Rocksburg

Welcome to Rocksburg

Described as the ‘Township Tarantino’, Grootboom is one of South Africa’s most exciting and talked about theatre makers.

Hot on the heels of 2009’s Foreplay and the critically acclaimed Township Stories, Grootboom's new play Welcome to Rocksburg provides a gritty, unsentimental view of life in the townships today.

 

A story about a cash-in-transit heist, the criminals who carry it out, the cops who investigate it, and the community they live in.

 

A facially disfigured young man falls in love with the wrong girl and ends up deep in the criminal underworld playing a cat and mouse game against the criminals and a corrupt police force. Following the tradition of successful Hollywood action movies, this is an original South African action play with a powerful love story at its heart.

 

‘On track to becoming a theatrical masterpiece’ Tonight Newspaper SA.

 

'There are only a handful of shows which have made me twist and turn in my seat. A powerful piece of theatre which made me laugh, choke and cry!' Audience member. Township Stories

 

'Most incredibly piece of theatre I have seen. Gut wrenchingly sad and terrifying at the same time. A truly gripping story. Inspirational in terms of the capabilities of theatre.' Audience Member, Township Stories

 

Welcome to Rocksburg is a fast, in-your-face piece of theatre that doesn't pull it's punches. Paul Grootboom is a theatre maker of international acclaim and his form of Township Theatre is unique. Love him or hate him, it is hard to deny the power of his work.

 

Paul Grootboom on Welcome to Rocksburg

 

'This play is based on a raw but interesting township comic book which, though it’s mainly unknown by many, has achieved a cult following in the black South African townships. The problem with this is that it is not true but one wishes it “were”. And this is why two years ago I set out to try and invent such a story – a story and a stage presentation that uses elements of entertainment that can be found in action-driven Hollywood blockbusters. The story is pure fantasy, driven by aesthetically violent scenes, such as one would find in big screen adaptations of graphic novels, but I am quick to add that this fantasy is based on a reality one can only find in black South African townships…'

 

Paul Grootboom on the style of Welcome to Rocksburg

 

'For those who have seen my other work, I would like to point out that it would be a mistake to reference this play against the previous ones that I have done, and it would also be a mistake to reference it against how we normally do theatre down here in South Africa. This play should be referenced only against South African “community and township theatre”.

 

Though I am aware that many intellectual theatre-goers normally do not think much of such amateurish theatre, I would like to point out that it has its merits. For many years I have been working as “Development Officer” at the South African State Theatre, where my job description was to be a “dramaturge” on the 52 community theatre practitioners that were given a chance every year to stage their productions in a proper theatre instead of community spaces. In that role, I have seen some really bad plays and some very interesting ones with raw, dynamic ideas and concepts. This play is a “homage” to those community plays.

 

I am sure that every body knows that most of those kinds of plays are done with close to no budget at all so most of them use whatever they can find for “set, props and décor”. Though “we” have some budget, I have made this part of the style of the play in its visual design (the “beer crates and the oil drums”) – so that whoever watches it, is instantly reminded of the township and community theatre plays they have seen. This style of theatre goes well, I think, with the concept of doing a “quasi-comic book adaptation” ... But although, our work has no artistic pretensions, it would be a mistake to think that we have not taken pains to make it look the way it does…'

 

*Contains scenes of violence. Age guidence 14+. Please be advised, smoke and strobe lighting are used in this performance. Please call the Box Office for more information.

 

Post Show - Friday 8 October

Q&A with Paul Grootboom and cast

FREE

 

FREE with a ticket to Welcome To Rocksburg:

 

Saturday 9 October, 11am - 1pm

Township Theatre Masterclass

Paul Grootboom and company lead a masterclass exploring the creation of township theatre. Ages 16+

 

 

Free Theatre...