THEATRE: Andrew Wilson
GRIET Skryf ‘n Sprokie, currently on at the Civic Theatre in Johannesburg, is a stage adaptation of Marita van der Vyver’s much awarded 1992 novel, which traces the mental journey of an Afrikaner woman of the Nineties as she grapples with life, her sexuality and her writing.
Tackling a cultural holy cow like the Afrikaner woman, who, just over a century ago, crossed the Drakensberg barefoot, the stage adaptation debunks and satirises a fair share of Afrikaner cultural myths, with Griet emerging not as representative of womanhood, but as a flawed human being in search of herself.
Some critics found the old-style, declamatory Afrikaans acting to be misplaced and dated in terms of the text’s liberal content, but using this familiar style, consciously or unconsciously, is possibly the most effective way of communicating the liberal content without alienating a partly conservative audience with both style and content. With its tongue often firmly in its cheek, the production’s style found resonance in the more “liberated” audience members, who recognised the humour in the juxtaposing of old and new.
Susan Coetzer, as Griet, makes a long overdue return to the stage with a bold, petulant interpretation of the character’s mental angst and sexual liberation. She is well-supported by a mysterious Isadora Verwey as the dark and slightly tortured psychiatrist, and by stage debutant Judy le Roux, who displayed sharp comic timing in a variety of roles. Christo Compion, who plays Griet’s lover George, also gives an outrageously funny performance as the divorce lawyer Hilton.
As with many adaptations from a narrative, the stage version of Griet cannot transcend its linear progression or its episodic form, and because of the repeated intrusions of the supporting cast, the production is rhythmically predictable. Despite this, the dramatic vignettes of Griet’s journey into her soul, cemented by Susan Coetzer’s compelling presence, makes this an entertaining, and certainly relevant production.