THE SUIT, a play of love story and humiliation at The Market Theatre, May 2017
THE SUIT, a play of love story and humiliation at The Market Theatre, May 2017
“I have always wanted to get into a rehearsal room with a bunch of actors and find a way to tell this beautiful and yet tragic tale of Philemon and Matilda,” says James Ngcobo the director of The Suit. The play is effervescent of passionate actors, with Zola Nombona (the youngest of the cast members) as Matilda and Siyabonga Twala as Philemon, both as lead casts. Lindani Nkosi narrates the play alongside Andile Nebulane with Molefi Monaise as old Maphikela, who broke the news of Matilda’s affair to Philemon at the bus station one morning. Lesedi Motladi is a dancer in this piece and appears on stage with movement, flair and prowess choreographed by Luyanda Sidiya.
The Suit is originally a short story by Canodoise Daniel Themba, affectionately known as Can Themba. The story was written in the 1950s and it has won several prizes including the 1953 Drum award. Like The Suit, Themba’s stories celebrate the human life and black excellence despite the nature of harsh and depressing conditions of African life in Johannesburg townships during his times. Themba’s fascination of using language to tell the love life stories of his people while challenging the misconception that black people are not capable of love and care is highly commendable. He was one of the most celebrated black modern intelligentsia who established himself as the finest writer and doyenne of words. He founded The House Of Truth, a platform where people frequented for intelligent conversations.
The set design by Richard Forbes, costume designed by Sue SeySteele and lighting by Thapelo Mokgosi with sound design by Ntuthuko Mbuyazi have some classical feel about them. The music of Wiston Mankunku-Ngozi plays in the background as a preshow music with the arena setting - a characteristic seating where seats are commonly all at an equal height on actual floor, makes the play from onset not only one of a kind but also very intimate and engaging. Table with three chairs are planted on the floor, one chair embellished with the black suit with the bed lazily on the sight. The whole setup sets the unquenched curiosity for what will unfold.
Lindani Nkosi, the narrator walks to stage, white shirt with cross belt pants and switches on the light, ‘Three months ago,” he says with gestural emphasis. Andile walks in, confessing in IsiXhosa, that he has been looking for Matilda. “You haven’t changed, you are still beautiful” remarked Andile. The view swiftly shifts and beams at Matilda who is seemingly sweeping. “I am a married woman now” says Matilda. It becomes clear that theirs is an unfinished story of childhood sweethearts.
We see Philemon waking up one morning as usual, with his shoes and socks under his arm, leaning over and peering at the sleeping serenity of his wife, Maltida. It is evident that she is to him what Can Themba described as “a daily matutinal miracle” for he brings his wife tea in bed before leaving for work that morning. He insists that, he is not leaving until he washed the dishes clean after the tea served in bed, which Maltida denied. No doubt Can was such a charmer and we see this in his use and style of wording; “…for the pure beauty of his wife, for the strength surging through his willing body; for the even unperturbed rhythms of his passage through days and months and years – it must be – to heaven,” says Lindani Nkosi, the narrator describing that beautiful morning.
The things he does in the room shows tender and love for his beautiful wife. Philemon is not the one who believed in putting wife in her place even if she was a good wife. At least he showed kindness so far. He then leaves the house for bus stop where he always looked forward to dining with jovial old Maphikela while waiting for a bus but the queue was long to which they didn’t leave for town simultaneously. Maphikela signalled he will wait for him at the bus terminus in town.
“Son,” said old Maphikela, sadly to Philemon, “if I could’ve avoided this, believe you me I would, but my wife is nagging the spice out of my life for not talking to you about it.” Philemon took compassion upon the old man as he braved about this secret which he regret having being nagged by his wife. After a long pause, the old Maphikela continued: “We-ee-ll, it’s not really any of our business…er…but my wife felt…you see. Damn it all. I wish these women would not snoop around so much.” This hesitation made brewed unchecked bomb ready to explode in Philemon.
Finally the old man rushed it “Anyway, it seems there’s a young man who’s going to visit your wife every morning…ah…for these last blooming three months. And that wife of mine swears by her heathen gods you don’t know a thing about it.” At this point we can see Philemon, a character beautifully portrayed by Siyabonga Twala, fuming with every machine part in his mind vibrating. He took a bus home immediately thereby ditching a day for job. When he gets home, he witnessed the affair; a man jumped the window in vest and a shot pan, leaving behind a blue suit.
“I see we have a visitor, Matilda,” says Philemon. “We must show him more hospitality,” he added pointing at the suit on a chair. It was agreed that the visitor will be treated with great consideration, assumes the role of a third person in the house, eat together with them. Matilda was assigned responsibility to look after the suit and things got even worse when Philemon decided that they should take the suit for an outing on one Sunday afternoon. The suit was taken to the dry-cleaners during the week and come Sunday they took it for a walk. Matilda had to carry the suit on its hanger over her back while two of them strolled down the streets. However their walk seemed normal, deep down Matilda’s heart was searing with greatest of humiliation.
This incident brings audience closer to the gist or crux of the tale which is more of humiliation than violence. Instead of beating or physically abusing Matilda, Philemon opted to use humiliation as way or revenge. The Suit becomes an object that drives the tale. Also the play is rich with idioms and dictums. The story is told with a tackle of respect and humility. Ironically there is this phrase being thrown about in the play “A married man misses the misses and bachelor kisses the misses,” from this we learn of an erratic genius that is Can Themba.
The Suit isn’t an anecdotal trawl through the Can Themba’sworld; it’s an opportunity for a morally coded individual to question himself and society. There is wisdom aplenty, because despite human oppression he faced throughout his life, Can Themba never channelled his anger into destructive force. His human dignity rests on every work he produced in The House Of Truth. James Ngcobo who is also the artistic director at the Market Theatre should be commended for bringing young generation of theatre practitioners to the mainstream since he took up the artistic directorship. In the history of this play, previously adopted by Barney Simon and Mothobi Mutloatse, it has never had a young woman as a lead as a lead role of Matilda. Ngcobodisrupted the ordinariness by casting Zola Nombona, 24 for this role.
The Suit opened on the 5th – 28th May 2017 and there is a possibility for extension due to a popular.
Khehla Chepape Makgato is a Johannesburg-based independent artist and arts writer, regularly contributing articles to ART AFRICA and The Journalist. He works at Assemblage Studios and is the founder of Samanthole Creative Projects & Workshop, a community-based art organisation focusing on arts and literacy youth programmes. Chepape is the ImpACT Award WINNER for Visual Arts 2016 from the Arts and Culture Trust of South Africa and The Mapungubwe Visual Artist of The Year 2016.
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