Outstanding talent and excellence in theatre are the watchwords for the Naledis. As the theatre landscape diversifies and matures to reflect today’s South African society and the mainstreaming of truly indigenous works from musicals to plays, children’s theatre and independent productions, the roles of the Naledi judges have become increasingly more difficult and challenging each year.
Whilst budgets tighten and audiences are getting harder to attract, it is the role of theatre makers in this country to provide their audiences with productions that fulfil their creative spirits and thrill their audiences. It is against this backdrop, that the Naledi Judges saw nearly 100 productions during 2018.
The judging of these productions saw very few surprises this year with the majority of nominations needing little or no debate. As usual the actual votes for productions are done in secret and the results are audited.
Sweeping the boards with 7 Naledi Awards is the musical “The Color Purple”. “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”, follows with 3 awards. The brand new South African play “Shoes and Coups” gets the nod with 2 awards, as does the children’s theatre piece “Goggas”.
Founder and CEO of the Naledi Theatre Awards, Dawn Lindberg, on behalf of the Judges and Board of the Naledis, congratulates all the winners, nominees and theatre practitioners for an exceptional year of entertainment and dedication to the craft.
“However, we are constantly devastated by the lack of financial support given to theatre in general and the Naledis in particular by the Department of Arts and Culture, National Arts Council and television Channels such as KykNet, Mzansi Magic and the SABC,” she said.
“Almost everyone involved in producing, creating and staging the Naledis this year worked for no remuneration. We are profoundly grateful to the Joburg Theatre, Splitbeam Technical and Visual Frontiers as well as the presenters and entertainers who all felt honoured to be part of the celebration of excellence within their own ranks.
Winning Categories:
Best supporting actress
Heidi Mollentze as Rona in The Revlon Girl
Best supporting actor
Sipho Zakwe in Shoes & Coups
Best production for children and young audiences (Aged 0 – 13)
Goggas!, produced by National Children’s Theatre, written
by Gillian Katz adapted by Francois Theron, and directed by Jade Bowers.
Best production for children and young audiences (Aged 14 – 17)
Polkadots, produced by Redhill School in partnership with
& CO, directed by Shelley Adriaanzen
Best performance in a production for young audiences
Jaques De Silva as Antic the Ant in Goggas!
Best breakthrough performance
Ryan de Villiers as Miss Trunchbull in Roald Dahl’s Matilda
Best costume design
Fred Abrahamse and Marcel Meyer – Macbeth
Best lighting design
Gareth Hewitt Williams – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the
Night-Time
Best AV/animation design
Gareth Hewitt Williams – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Best set design
Stan Knight – Fool for Love
Best sound design
Ntuthuko Mbuyazi – Florence
Best score/arrangement/adaptation
Kabelo “Bonafide” Togoe and Aubrey Sekhabi – Freedom
Best musical director
Rowan Bakker – The Color Purple
Best ensemble
Hani: The Legacy – produced by The Market Theatre Laboratory, created by graduates of The Market Theatre Laboratory and directed by Leila Henriques
Best original choreography
Oscar Buthelezi – The Color Purple
Best director of a musical /revue
Janice Honeyman – The Color Purple
Best director of a play
Charmaine Weir-Smith – The Train Driver
Best supporting/featured performance in a musical/revue: female
Lelo Ramasimong as Shug Avery – The Color Purple
Best supporting/featured performance in a musical/revue: male
Yamikani Mahaka-Phiri as Harpo in The Color Purple
Best lead performance in a musical (female)
Didintle Khunou as Celie in The Color Purple
Best lead performance in a musical (male)
Paul du Toit as Hedwig in Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Best lead performance in a play (female)
Zikhona Sodlaka as Queenie in Nongogo
Best lead performance in a play (male)
Kai Luke Brummer as Christopher Boone in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Best performance in a solo production: female/male
Daniel Mpilo Richards – Land Acts
Best new SA script
Shoes & Coups – produced by The Market Theatre Written and directed by Palesa Mazamisa
Best production of a play
Tshepang: The Third Testament – produced by Joburg Theatre, written and directed by Lara Foot
Best production of a musical
The Color Purple – produced by Joburg Theatre and Bernard Jay, and directed by Janice Honeyman
For further information please visit www.naleditheatreawards.com
Image Jacob MAWELA (An unidentified winner at the Naledi Awards held at the Joburg Theatre on Wednesday evening).
