IN THE CITY OF PARADISE is a modern reworking of the ancient story of the House of Atreus in which the descendants of Atreus and Thyestes are locked in an ongoing internecine blood feud. It was originally created in 1998, during the time of the TRC, in workshop with students at UCT under the direction of Mark Fleishman. The play is a reflection on justice and vengeance in our time and situation in the aftermath of apartheid. It brings into sharp focus the fact that many of the same issues still predominate in our society today, unresolved and festering wounds unleash violent and destructive forces that frustrate possibilities for social cohesion.
In this staging, young performers from the Magnet Theatre Fulltime Training and Job Creation program express the story in a style that is fast and physical, the new material and up to the minute dialogue interlaces classical and modern performance styles. The text is a collage of ideas and fragments from the work of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. In the style of Greek drama, it is wonderfully powerful and theatrical, working with physical and choral sequences, exploring song and the collective voice to raise the intensity of the theatrical experience.
This production showcases the extraordinary talents of 19 young performers who are in their 2nd and final year on the Magnet Theatre Fulltime Training and Job Creation program and a young professional, award winning, actress Indalo Stofile playing Clytaemnestra.
Directed by Mark Fleishman
Assisted by Jennie Reznek
Designed by Mark Fleishman, Themba Stewart and Craig Leo
With Indalo Stofile as Clytemnestra
Cast: Trainees on the 2014/2015 Magnet Theatre Full time Training and Job Creation Program.
