‘Illusion of Grandeur’- 3 Plays Directed by Justin Hango

Lynn Strydom and Justin Hango are yelling at each other on the sidewalk. They’re just outside a shopping centre in the middle of the afternoon and Justin lunges at her with his voice raised, his fists clenched and his temper flared for all to see.

No one stops. People see, some even watch but mostly they walk. Past the physical altercation, down the road and towards their own problems which may be nothing or everything like what they’ve just seen in the street.

Justin and Lynn keep at it. They secretly film the scene over and over and over again until one woman with a son no older than 12 valiantly tries to stop him.

Everyone else walks by as if this is normal. And perhaps, in a country where over 50 000 cases of gender-based violence (GBV) were reported to the police last year, it has gotten to seem so.

‘Illusion of Grandeur’, a collection of three plays directed by Justin Hango and produced by Ashante Manetti’s Duchess Distinctive aims to elevate awareness around GBV while raising funds for the Women’s Solidarity shelter for abused women.

Trained at the Stella Adler Academy of Acting in Los Angeles and joining his casts as an actor as well as director, Hango presents Anton Chekhov’s ‘The Bear’, Ann Wuehler’s ‘Interviews with Loneliness’ and Julianne Homokay’s ‘The Wedding Story’ in ‘Theatre Night’ – a two and a half hour event premiering at the National Theatre of Namibia next week.

All concerned with the theme of love, the plays are an exploration of its highs and lows, love’s emotional trauma and triumphs as well as a study of relationships and self discovery.

First on the bill is ‘Interviews with Loneliness’ a play starring theatre stalwart Senga Brockerhoff, ‘100 Buck’s’ Lynn Strydom and dancer Inesh Dos Ramos in a one-act offering that listens in on three very different women discussing their eternal wait for the perfect man while expounding on their struggles in previous relationships.

In ‘The Wedding Story’, the ideal man seems to have arrived in a play about the perfect wedding gone somewhat pear-shaped when held to the light of reality. The play stars ‘Anima’s’ Odile Muller, Senga Brockerhoff as well as director Justin Hango.

The third and final play is Chekhov’s ‘The Bear’ a one-act comedy by the Russian author which leads us into the life of the widow Popova who is left with her cheating husband’s debts and finds herself at the mercy of an insistent landlord. The play features fêted singer and theatre actress Lize Ehlers, Justin Hango and ‘Prime Colour’s’ Rodelio Bonito Lewis.

Black Vulcanite’s Okin aka Nikolai Tjongarero will also be making his theatre stage debut with some of his own work which brings the showcase to an admirable eight local talents all playing their part in an event with GBV at its heart.

“If I had to write a play about GBV in Namibia, it would be a woman screaming for help while three men sit on stage playing cards for an hour,” says Hango.

“These three plays will give Namibians a different view point of the same issues we face here. Baby dumping, GBV as well as homosexual and transgender bashing happens all over the world and these plays have helped other countries and viewers openly deal with the issues.”

Just as thrilling as the ensemble cast of the city’s stars is the promise of set design by John Pindalo which assures each stage will be set to transport the audience to faraway places close to home.

“In terms of an evening of theatre, the plays are for women by women with the exception of Chekov but all playwrights have the gift of giving us authentic characters with problems we can relate to,” says Hango. “The three plays deal with characters that are at a boiling point. There is nothing left but for the truth to come out. The real feelings we bury deep down inside us.”

Certainly an opportunity for new talent to shine and well known talent to return to the boards while mining the depths of bittersweet dramas and Russian comedy, ‘Theatre Night’ is a stage set for theatre lovers keen to experience raw characters, passionate dialogue and intense issues as interpreted by the ambitious young actor-director.

“The production will be something new to theatergoers in Namibia,” says Hango.

“We are exploring love, lust and also appreciating our daughters, mothers and sisters.”

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