Droomwerk: This is not comfortable theatre

This play is not for everyone. 

It forces you to look at where you come from.

Showcased at the Rhodes Box, Droomwerk, is a visceral experience that uses highly poetic and heightened Afrikaans language.

It is written and produced by Pieter Odendaal in collaboration with US Woordfees.

Awarded the ATKV Woordveertjie for best new Afrikaans play in 2021, despite never having been performed, the production is based on Odendaal’s exploration of his heritage as a white Afrikaans-speaking male with slave ancestry.

The work explores inherited intergenerational trauma of ancestry and how this wound becomes rooted in the psyche.

To heal, and find oneself, people have to face their spiritual diseases, regardless of their race and age. The play shows us how two generations dealt with problems

Director Kanya Viljoen said: “To heal, and find oneself, people have to face their spiritual diseases, regardless of their race and age.

“We are looking at an older generation that inherintly denies the wrongdoings of the past, that is unwilling to face or name it and a younger generation that desperately wants to unravel it. That is where the tension lies."

Based on true events, the plot revolves around the experience of the playwright dealing with mental health and family trauma.

He discovered that his grandfather was an apartheid senator, and his own family had slave heritage.

“Parts of the grandfather’s speech are used in the play.

“His family had a slave woman, Diana, who was also an ancestral grandmother.

Within the Western world mental health issues often require a psychiatrist's help. The play unpacks the idea that in our diverse South African culture, healing may lie in spiritual reconnection instead.

“It was important to me that we try to be honest about what he [Odendaal] experienced.

“It may come across that our history is apart, but it is not,” she said.

Droomwerk follows a young boy named Petrus who is in hospital due to severe depression, anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder.

“He keeps being haunted by dreams of a slave ship, and revisited by a woman on a beach.

“He bumps into a sangoma, or gogo, who tells him that this is not about illness but an ancestral issue.

The play looks into the idea of what white Afrikaner heritage in SA is. How are we dealing with intergenerational trauma and heritage and that does include slavery

“The play looks into the idea of what white Afrikaner heritage in SA is.

“How are we dealing with intergenerational trauma and heritage and that does include slavery and ancestral lines that we are not sure what to do with.”

Viljoen said though the play was in Afrikaans, it depicted different cultures and traditions respectfully.

“When Pieter gave this play to us, he said: ‘I trust you, do what you need to do’. 

“There are moments I knew we needed to allow the language to become more domestic and conversational, and at other times to let the poetry be poetry.

“I wanted to show how diverse our country is, and how accepting we are regardless of our race.

“We’ve hit a sweet spot where certain characters, like the oupa, speak ordentlike Afrikaans, and in the moments of healing and cleansing, the poetry begins to wash through. 

“At certain moments I want the story to be clear, so the Afrikaans is really simple.

“We’ve had people in the audience who didn’t understand a single word who said everything was in the images.

“Theatre is about multiple languages and bodies speak very loudly.”

This was Viljoen’s first show at the National Arts Festival.

“We are from Cape Town and we are blessed to be part of the highly acclaimed festival as it has always been a dream for us,” she said.

“NAF has been such a blessing. For this play to open here in this wonderful community, and cultural audience — I’m really curious to see what will happen at Afrikaans festivals.

“Two of our shows were sold out, which I’m deeply surprised by as it’s a very Afrikaans show.

“It’s been incredible to witness people who are deeply moved by the work. It’s a difficult play, it’s abrasive and violent.

“This is not comfortable theatre. People are upset. Someone walked out and said: ‘I feel unbalanced and unhinged’.”

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