De Wet: Plays One

by Reza de Wet, Steven Stead

The three plays Missing, Crossing and Miracle are folkloric and ostensibly native pieces of Afrikaner storytelling. All plays deal with the liberation of a character from an oppressive, matriarchal order and as such are eloquent and haunting expressions of the current generation of Afrikaner seeking to free itself from the Calvinist manacles of traditional Afrikanerdom.

'Missing' was translated by Stephen Stead from the Afrikaans original MIS.
'Crossing' was translated by Reza de Wet from the Afrikaans original DRIF.
'Miracle' was transkated by Reza de Wet and Stephen Stead from the Afrikaans original MIRAKEL.

175 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2000

Reviews

[Coenraad · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Reza de Wet's work. It's a gentle form of magical realism - closer to real than magic, but with a few supernatural twists that support her symbolism. I have taught the Afrikaans original of MIRACLE for a number of years now and know it quite well. It was therefore extremely interesting how De Wet introduced changes in the English version, which is clearly not simply a translation. Somewhere a literary scholar should write about the contrasting versions. These plays give an unusual insight into South African society in the 1930's.

Ek is gaande oor Reza de Wet se werk en dit is baie interessant om haar werk in Engels te lees. Ek ken MIRAKEL baie goed: ek gebruik dit nou al 'n paar jaar lank as voorgeskrewe boek. Die veranderinge wat De Wet self in die Engelse weergawe aangebring het, is fassinerend en ontroerend. Die Engelse teks word byna 'n nuwe drama. Hierdie trilogie bied 'n ongewone blik op die Suid-Afrikaanse samelewing van die 1930s, onder meer weens De Wet se milde vorm van magiese realisme.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fable-like and slight, I wish these plays struck me a bit harder despite the subject matter. MISSING has several fairy-tale elements but it is fairly predictable. CROSSING has a wonderful premise and a very touching ending, but it meanders just a bit too much. MIRACLE is an interesting play in a lot of different ways and is the one I would be most interested in producing. The characters desperately cling to a way of life that is behind them or maybe never existed. The fact that most of these are theater actors who trick themselves into believing that theater matters even without an audience is thoughtful and sad; they perform because they have to in order to survive.

[Frankie]

No rating, Drama set work.