At the National Arts Festival 2014, Artscape presents two of South African playwright Mike van Graan’s works, Return of the Ancestors and Rainbow Scars. The two pieces are vibrant and diverse explorations of South Africa’s political complexity. Rainbow Scars is a 2013 Standard Bank Ovation winner which explores the national spirit of reconciliation through the complex relationship between a suburban white woman who adopts a black child. Return of the Ancestors is a throwback to political heroes who have passed on but are keen to know whether their sacrifices have been worth it. These ancestors decide to send a delegation of two, Steve Biko and Neil Agget, to South Africa in 2014 to experience the country as it is now, and to report back to them. Mike van Graan’s writings make incisive political observations through humour and satire, making audiences question our current political situation as a country.
– By Louise Fuller, Noxolo Mafu, Siyavuya Makubalo and Anelisa Salavu
