The premiere was attended by the likes of Nthati Moshesh, Harriet Manamela, Mmabatho Mogomotsi, Sello Molefe and Lindani Nkosi, among others.
The show is adapted from a short story by highly respected South Africa scribe Can Temba. Unlike the original The Suit, this reimagined feminist version comes with beautiful music played by an orchestra, and digital technology to transport the audience back to the old days through photographs and images.
Vusi Kunene, Alistair Dube and Job Kubatsi during the stage play The Suit Concer-tized at Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein.
Vusi Kunene, Alistair Dube and Job Kubatsi during the stage play The Suit Concer-tized at Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein.
Image: Veli Nhlapo
The Suit Concer-tized is a painful love story of a young couple in Sophiatown whose marriage is rocked by infidelity. The wife, Matilda, a violinist, composer and leader of an orchestra, abandons her first love, music, to marry Philemon. At the time of quitting music, Matilda had been seeing someone in her band but it was not a serious relationship.
The long and short of it is that Matilda reconnects with her old flame, choir member Thozamile (played by Brian Temba).
Philemon then catches Matilda and Thozamile in bed and as Thozamile runs away, he leaves behind his suit – hence the name of the production.
For her sins, Matilda is subjected to painful punishment by her husband. Philemon forces her to treat the suit left behind as a human being – calling it a “fellow”. As they walk around the streets of Sophiatown, people see Matilda carrying the suit.
Apart from being the story of a troubled young couple, the show revisits a painful Apartheid period when people were forcefully removed from Sophiatown and moved to Meadowlands in November 1959. Sophiatown, the home of many great writers and jazz musicians, is portrayed in the story as a lively place where good and bad alike happen. Unlike the original production of The Suit, Mothobi Motloatsi’s fantasy version starts with the white wedding of Matilda and Philemon.
With the seasoned Job Kubatsi involved, the pint-sized actor brings much humour, which is balanced by Alistair Dube. The theme of Sophiatown’s troubles is perfectly illustrated through music and costume design.
If you are up for some great acting, The Suit Concer-tized continues at Joburg Theatre until September 24. Tickets range from R260 to R500.