Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Sunday Times (Johannesburg) - June 26, 2005
Zingi Mkefa
Performed in two languages * the English version and an Afrikaans adaptation * My Night With Reg explored the secrets that surface when a group of gay men meet over time. It was an unexpected hit.
Following that success, the Ateball Theatre Company decided to rustle up another troupe of hunky small-screen actors to collaborate once again in another play about men, love and friendship.
The Tony Award-winning Love! Valour! Compassion! by Terence McNally is the answer.
An exceptional play, Love! Valour! Compassion! explores the relationships between eight gay men, who gather out in the country for summer holidays.
One of the friends, Buzz Hauser (played by Blaise Koch), has HIV/Aids and the gatherings are characterised by questions about life and death. But it is not a gay play or a play necessarily about Aids.
Gay men and Aids are catalysts in the ultimate telling of a human story about love, valour and compassion that transcends sexual orientation.
The play was first staged in the US in 1994.
But, much like My Night With Reg, director Henry Mylne * who believes a South African story to which its people can relate works far better than a foreign narrative * has adapted the play to tell the story of eight South African gay men.
His production is set in a country house in Mpumalanga near a lake, so you can expect a lot of swimming * and, of course, nudity.
Koch, who has at least 30 years' experience in theatre, described his role as Buzz Hauser as "the role closest to myself I'll ever play".
After his much-talked about book on his experiences about Aids (In, Around, Through & Out) Koch has stayed out of the limelight as an actor. His first passion, namely acting, took a back seat to his role as an Aids activist.
His return to theatre is his way of reclaiming the "Blaise Koch he was" before Aids.
The rest of the cast includes former TV presenter Rowan Cloete, former Isidingo actor Terrence Bridgett, Justin Strydom from M-Net series Snitch, Grant Swanby of 7de Laan and Isidingo, Fezile Mpela, also of 7de Laan and Isidingo, and Steven van Niekerk from Snitch.
*Love! Valour! Compassion! opens on July 17 at the Joburg Civic Theatre, with preview nights on July 14, 15 and 16. For details, call (011) 877-6800.
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