A Unique African Adaptation Of The Little Prince To Celebrate His 75th Anniversary!

An African inspired adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s classic fable, The Little Prince will be performed by the Market Theatre Foundation’s brand-new theatre company, Kwasha! and will premiere at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown. This promising Pan African production will then tour South Africa, including Durban, Bloemfontein, Sasolburg and Johannesburg.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s world famous and timeless classic book is celebrating its 75^thanniversary this year – and is still as vivid as ever! The book is brought to life in an exciting production created with the additional support of Mazars,  reinforcing a fruitful collaboration between the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS) and the Market Theatre Foundation.

Originally written in French, The Little Prince is the world’s most translated book, outside of religious works. It is translated in 300 languages including English, Zulu, Afrikaans and Xhosa. It tells the story of a little boy who leaves the safety of his own tiny planet to travel the universe, learning the vagaries of adult behaviour through a series of extraordinary encounters. Known as a children’s tale, it is also considered as a metaphor of a grown-up meeting his inner child. It is a philosophical contemplation of loneliness, friendship, adulthood and authority.

The Little Prince performed by Kwasha! will be a magical re-telling of the book using an innovative and playful fusion of art forms – storytelling, music and circus – in multiple languages, creating a unique South African inspired production of this French masterpiece, for adults and children alike.

The Kwasha! theatre company is a collaborative project between the Market Theatre Laboratory and The Windybrow Arts Centre. The project aims to support the careers of recent graduates and to provide drama classes for youth at the Windybrow Arts Centre. Five of South Africa’s most exciting emergent theatre-makers have been identified as the inaugural members of the company, and now work together to create a programme of exciting new theatre pieces.

The Little Prince is one of the first substantial project of the Market Theatre Foundation’s theatre company, Kwasha! It is a continuation of the partnership which was consolidated in an MOU in 2016 between the Market Theatre Foundation and the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS).

CAST & CREW

Directed by: Clara Vaughan and Mwenya B. Kabwe

Cast:
Balindile Ka Ngcobo
Khanysile Ngwabe
Lesego April Chabedi
Mathews Rantsoma
Sinenhlanhla Mgeyi

Set and Costume Design: Wilhelm Disbergen
Lighting Design: Sibusiso David Ndumndum
Stage manager: Ali Monanye Madiga
Choreography: Daniel Buckland
Sound design: João Orecchia
Special thanks to Ryan Lloyd