Seiso Qhola
Photographer Maryatta Wegerif
Jungle Theatre Company will perform Butterfly Dreams aka Metamorphosis with three performances taking place on the first three Saturdays of March.
Dancing on stilts with powerful drumming and spectacular costumes Butterfly Dreams is a surreal and larger than life celebration of a girl experiencing the transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly. Hiding in a tree house she dreams the sounds of her garden turning into music; of two giant butterflies dancing. The male catches the female’s eggs and hangs them on a leaf where they hatch and grow into giant caterpillars. Can she challenge the predator and protect the miracle of life for her own big transformation?
A street theatre piece, Butterfly Dreams speaks to the beginnings of Jungle Theatre Company, which grew out of performances at street festivals and events back in 1995, when Artistic Director, Vincent Meyburgh, began his career developing the unique performance style and artistic principles of Jungle Theatre Company.
As a non-verbal and hugely visual piece the theme of Butterfly Dreamslinks to the actor’s personal stories of big transformation. Funded by the National Arts Council and the Department of Cultural Affairs & Sports, this outdoor piece is fun for the whole family and accessible to all ages and cultures.
“More than freshly home-grown street performance, Butterfly Dreams is larger than life theatre both literally (evocative drumming, tall stilted actors, huge billowing ‘wings’ of material) & symbolically (for its breath-taking visual & metaphorical impact). I just love the multi-layered symbols as the play unfolds. We could all do with a lot more change in our lives& to be so warmly reminded that while metamorphoses are not necessarily easy, what is birthed on the other side is a richer me& that we don’t make our transformations alone.” – Rob McLeod
Butterfly Dreams is 40 minutes in duration and has a cast of seven actors. Although Butterfly Dreams is fun for the whole family it is most suitable for ages 9 and up.The performers will gather donations after the show in a fun and uplifting manner promoting public support for quality theatre and responsible busking.Performances are scheduled on:5, 12, 19 March at 10h30 in the Company Gardens (‘The Paddocks’ opposite the Museum across Government Avenue; near the Art Gallery off Paddock Lane). Performances will coincide with the The Good Company Farmer’s Markettaking place in the Company Gardens each Saturday from 9h30 to 15h00.
Jungle Theatre Company – original theatre connecting young people’s hearts to care for nature community and culture. They use theatre and physical drama workshops as a medium for conveying key environmental and social issues to a diverse family audience. Based in Cape Town, Jungle Theatre Company works closely with other organisations to promote community participation in cultural and environmental events and programmes. They develop and facilitate workshops to provide learners, educators, volunteers and groups the skills needed to create their own theatre that deals with issues relevant to their own lives. The majority of Jungle Theatre Company’s work is with school age learners in historically disadvantaged communities. They also train actors from community theatre backgrounds in the style of Jungle Theatre Company as part of a skills development and job creation programme.
For more event info please visit www.jungletheatre.co.za