Marianne Merten
‘Beware, this bitch bites!” says the logo on the T-shirt of a sex worker attending a play about prostitutes – but it could just as well have been a warning to the two actresses to expect tart advice from the audience.
The prostitutes who arrived at the Nico theatre to watch Sweat on Somerset – a reference to the red light stretch along Seapoint’s main road – left their working clothes at home. Flowing dresses and platform sandals were the order of the day, not tight minis and stilettos.
Industrial size packets of condoms stacked in a cardboard box at the door were in demand as the prostitutes from a well-known rural sex trade spot along the N7 towards Malmesbury drifted into the darkened venue.
Rachel (not her real name) ordered everyone to sit closer, got on stage and cracked a joke or two before the lights went up on the gold curtain and plush bordello-red couch.
“There are 5 000 sex workers in greater Cape Town. Each sex worker has at least one client a day,” is one of the opening statements, followed by a quick calculation that prostitutes turn a total of 1 825 000 tricks each year. “That means either each man goes to a sex worker 1,2 times a year or there is one tired man around town.”
Giggles from the audience set the tone for a performance that is a penetrating exploration of the sex industry in the Mother City, where at one stage tourism officials proposed approval ratings for escort agencies.
Curiosity about the women who ply their trade from street corners, out of bus stop shelters and half-hidden by trees led to the play, which has been sponsored by local escort agencies. Based on interviews with sex workers, the two actresses broach a side of the Mother City many want to ignore.
Preparation for the show included a visit to a strip joint. “It was a bit scary. You always have to confront your own sense of morality. But we are speaking for people without voices,” said actress Roshina Ratnam.
The audience laughed loudly, recognising their clients in the portrayals of Mr Macho, Mr First Time and Mr Drunk. And giggles greeted comments on one of man’s prime concerns – size: “Most have soppy little ones, but every now and again … A merry, merry Christmas to you, too.”
But the play also tackles the harsh economic realities of prostitutes, their dilemma in balancing romantic relationship and work and the double life many lead to hide from their families how they earn a livelihood.
“I liked it,” said one prostitute. “Yeah, it’s real life,” her friend added.
There was time for a group photo. Then it was back to the bus in a boisterous mood, but not for a day under the sun on one of Cape Town’s beaches.
“We haven’t done business today yet,” smiled one woman.
Sweat on Somerset is on at the Nico Theatre Complex until November 18. Booking at Computicket www.computicket.com