Review: TRANS/VAAL at The Drama Factory is a masterpiece with an important message
This vital one-man play leaves a deep impression on the audience.
TRANS/VAAL is a richly textured piece of physical theatre. Through dance, movement, and spoken word, Ignatius van Heerden tells the story of a young Afrikaans boy from childhood to adulthood as he comes to terms with his gender and sexual identity.
I found this piece deeply moving, and was not surprised to learn that it has received a number of awards. Every aspect of TRANS/VAAL is expertly crafted. Although the show is performed in Afrikaans, its message transcends language. It is testament to the power of the piece that my husband, who is from Scotland and understands almost no Afrikaans, was also profoundly affected by the performance.
Throughout this one-hour journey, the audience is transported to another time and place: the dusty farmlands of 1980s Transvaal. Metaphors echo through the different mediums used, from dance, movement, and music to recorded ambient sound and onstage prop use.
Van Heerden is a master of his own body as he bears the weight of an old metal bed frame, scrubs his skin with corn, drags an old suitcase from one end of the stage to another. Metal clangs and corn kernels skitter. These sounds gradually become louder and louder, demanding to be heard, reflecting the central character's inner and outer turmoil. Finally, hard-won self-acceptance is reached, and there is a blissful silence as Van Heerden holds up a bejewelled crown of corn.
TRANS/VAAL is a vital piece of theatre in a world that seems less sympathetic to the lives of LGBTQ+ individuals in recent years. Communicating the lived experience of the community through art is one of the most powerful ways of increasing understanding and, hopefully, bringing about real change.
TRANS/VAAL is directed by Marié-Heleen Coetzee, written by Wim Vorster, and choreographed and performed by Ignatius van Heerden.
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