Overview

Much of the work in the field of African studies still relies on rigid distinctions of ‘tradition’ and ‘modernity’, ‘collaboration’ and ‘resistance’, ‘indigenous’ and ‘foreign’. This book moves well beyond these frameworks to probe the complex entanglements of different intellectual traditions in the South African context, by examining two case studies. The case studies constitute the core around which is woven this intriguing story of the development of black theatre in South Africa in the early years of the century. It also highlights the dialogue between African and African-American intellectuals, and the intellectual formation of the early African elite in relation to colonial authority and how each affected the other in complicated ways. The first case study centres on Mariannhill Mission in KwaZulu-Natal. Here the evangelical and pedagogical drama pioneered by the Rev Bernard Huss, is considered alongside the work of one of the mission’s most eminent alumni, the poet and scholar, B.W. Vilakazi. The second moves to Johannesburg and gives a detailed insight into the working of the Bantu Dramatic Society and the drama of H.I.E. Dhlomo in relation to the British Drama League and other white liberal cultural activities.

Full Product Details

Author:   Bhekizizwe Peterson
Publisher:   Wits University Press
Imprint:   Wits University Press
ISBN:  

9781868143283

ISBN 10:   1868143287
Pages:   338
Publication Date:   01 August 2021
Audience:   General/trade ,  College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  General ,  Undergraduate
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Available To Order  
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Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgements Note on Zulu Orthography Introduction: Staging the (Alien)nation: African Theatre and the Colonial Experience Chapter 1 ‘All Work and No Play Makes Civilisation Unattractive to the Masses’: Theatre and Mission Education at Mariannhill Chapter 2 ‘I Will Open My Mouth in Parables’: Accounting for the Crevices in Redemption Chapter 3 Parallel Time, Parallel Signs, Discordant Interpretations Chapter 4 B.W. Vilakazi and the Poetics of the Mental War Zone Chapter 5 The Bantu Men’s Social Centre: Meeting the Devil on His Own Ground Chapter 6 The Bantu Dramatic Society According to a Gossip Columnist Chapter 7 Contesting ‘The Bantu Imagination’: The British Drama League and the New Africans Chapter 8 H.I.E. Dhlomo: Measuring the Distance between Armageddon and Revolution Chapter 9 The Black Bulls: Assembling the Broken Gourds Chapter 10 Hegemony and Identity: What a Difference ‘Play’ Makes Notes Bibliography Index

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Author Information

Bhekizizwe Peterson was Professor of African Literature at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. He has been active since the 1970’s in Black cultural practices in South Africa and is the writer and/or producer of internationally acclaimed films. He has published extensively on African Literature, Performance and Cultural Studies as well as Black Intellectual Traditions in South Africa.

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