Here's a play that dares you to think and allows your thoughts to re-evaluate your life and the world we live in. The heightened drama and intense emotional journey result in a theatre experience that has significance and poignant purpose. \
Revealing the darker side of human nature, which ultimately exposes the true humanity of the frail characters, it features Rowan Studti as Tommy, a young male hustler who crosses the line into the personal life of one of his male clients, and David (Wojtek Lipinski) who takes him to a cabin in the middle of the woods for an intimate affair. Their weekend of "dangerous liaisons" is interrupted when David's possessive lover Steve (Andre Lombard), hijacks his fantasy and forces Tommy to face the reality of his life and the lives he impacts on.
If there is one reason to see this remarkable new South African play, written and directed with fervour by Daniel Dercksen, it's for the solid performances by the gorgeous cast, who bring the poetic and lyrical script to life with passion and vigour. Rowan Studti delivers an astounding performance as the straight hustler who is trapped between the fantasy of being an object of affection and the reality of being a married man. It's not an easy role to play, layered with an array of complex and raw human emotions, and the vulnerability of being a lamb led to slaughter, but Studti delivers with ease and comfort, embracing the soulful character with a gentle demeanour that guarantees to break the heart of anyone with a pulse, perfectly showing that "whores have hearts". His Tommy is sexy and extremely vulnerable; you cannot help but fall in love with his character, which makes your journey with him an emotional one, taking you into the soul of lost young man whose outcry for love rings loud and clear.
As David, Wojtek Lipinski is equally brilliant as a flamboyant artist whose world is "painted in money" and whose loveless relationship to a man who does not fully understand his needs forces him into the arms of a hustler who can never give him the love he deserves. Lipinski captures the fragile disposition of his lonely character with heartfelt honesty, bravely throwing himself into the character with careful precision. It's the undeniable chemistry between Studti and Lipinski that sizzles, allowing the intimacy between their characters to be real and never forced; they delicately draw the audience into the intimacy of their characters, revealing a touching romance between a lonely gay man and a lost straight man.
Although The Beauty of Incomplete Things is a play that deals with heated and relevant social and personal issues, it is ultimately a tragic love story that will be remembered long after you leave the theatre. A great romance needs conflict and what better way to combat the inner conflicts of the characters than with blazing confrontation from a lover from hell, aptly captured by Andre Lombard, who masterfully delivers a tour de force.
Lombard knows how to turn on the heat and, when he does, the tranquilly is shattered. His larger than life character, which swoops down on the lovebirds like a dragon from hell, also reveals an incredible softness, particularly in scenes with Studti, in which he is forced to reveal his true self. The actors' delicate understanding of their characters is handled caringly by Dercksen, who allows the subtext of his multi-layered script, and the introspective journey of the characters, to juxtapose the stark reality of their dilemmas.
Dercksen's visual interpretation of the play offers visual splendour, not setting the play in a conventional reality, but in an almost surreal and abstract universe, placing the intimate setting of a cabin in a vast universe, surrounded by eternal darkness. The incredible intimate nature of the play becomes more focused and this heightened intensity allows the audience to take a personal journey into every delicate moment. We need new South African plays like The Beauty of Incomplete Things to remind us of how easy it is to lose ourselves in love, and how our instinctive obsessive nature can destroy the hope of loving and the happiness of being. It is refreshing to find a local play that deals with issues that are not always easy to speak about, but need to be told. That is the complete beauty of drama at its most effective, and the lifeblood of theatre. Make sure to see this challenging and rewarding play at the Fringe of The Joburg Theatre before it ends its short season on 1 August.
Booking is at www.joburgtheatre.com or 086 167 0670.
