Boesman and Lena
Encyclopedia
Boesman and Lena is a play
by South Africa
's Athol Fugard
.
The play was inspired by an incident in 1965 when Fugard was driving down a rural road in South Africa. He noticed an old lady walking along the road in the boiling-hot sun, miles from anywhere, and offered her a lift. She was overcome and cried with gratitude. She told him that her husband had just died and she was walking to another farm. If Fugard hadn’t stopped, she would have spent the night on the side of the road. (It was a common practice in apartheid South Africa for farmers to evict worker’s families when the worker died).
What struck Fugard was that the woman was in pain and suffering but was far from defeated. This inspired him to write the play.
The play is a small-cast play showing the effect of apartheid on a few individuals and concerns a coloured
man and woman walking from one shanty town to another.
It premiered at the Rhodes University
Little Theatre in Grahamstown
, South Africa
in 1969. Fugard himself played the part of Boesman, Lena was played by Yvonne Bryceland
and Glynn Day, a white actor, played the part of Outa in blackface
.
and starring Fugard and Bryceland and the other directed by John Berry and starring Danny Glover
and Angela Basset -- were released in 1974 and 2000, respectively.
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
by South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
's Athol Fugard
Athol Fugard
Athol Fugard is a South African playwright, novelist, actor, and director who writes in English, best known for his political plays opposing the South African system of apartheid and for the 2005 Academy-Award winning film of his novel Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood...
.
The play was inspired by an incident in 1965 when Fugard was driving down a rural road in South Africa. He noticed an old lady walking along the road in the boiling-hot sun, miles from anywhere, and offered her a lift. She was overcome and cried with gratitude. She told him that her husband had just died and she was walking to another farm. If Fugard hadn’t stopped, she would have spent the night on the side of the road. (It was a common practice in apartheid South Africa for farmers to evict worker’s families when the worker died).
What struck Fugard was that the woman was in pain and suffering but was far from defeated. This inspired him to write the play.
The play is a small-cast play showing the effect of apartheid on a few individuals and concerns a coloured
Coloured
In the South African, Namibian, Zambian, Botswana and Zimbabwean context, the term Coloured refers to an heterogenous ethnic group who possess ancestry from Europe, various Khoisan and Bantu tribes of Southern Africa, West Africa, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaya, India, Mozambique,...
man and woman walking from one shanty town to another.
It premiered at the Rhodes University
Rhodes University
Rhodes University is a public research university located in Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, established in 1904. It is the province’s oldest university, and is one of the four universities in the province...
Little Theatre in Grahamstown
Grahamstown
Grahamstown is a city in the Eastern Cape Province of the Republic of South Africa and is the seat of the Makana municipality. The population of greater Grahamstown, as of 2003, was 124,758. The population of the surrounding areas, including the actual city was 41,799 of which 77.4% were black,...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
in 1969. Fugard himself played the part of Boesman, Lena was played by Yvonne Bryceland
Yvonne Bryceland
Yvonne Bryceland was a South African stage actress.-Career:Bryceland worked as a newspaper librarian before her theatrical début in Stage Door in 1947...
and Glynn Day, a white actor, played the part of Outa in blackface
Blackface
Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used in minstrel shows, and later vaudeville, in which performers create a stereotyped caricature of a black person. The practice gained popularity during the 19th century and contributed to the proliferation of stereotypes such as the "happy-go-lucky darky...
.
Film versions
Two film adaptations of Fugard's play -- one directed by Ross DevenishRoss Devenish
Ross Devenish is a South African film director. His 1980 film Marigolds in August, which entered into the 30th Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the Berlin Bear Anniversary Prize.-External links:...
and starring Fugard and Bryceland and the other directed by John Berry and starring Danny Glover
Danny Glover
Danny Lebern Glover is an American actor, film director, and political activist. Glover is perhaps best known for his role as Detective Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon film franchise.-Early life:...
and Angela Basset -- were released in 1974 and 2000, respectively.