We are Tonight’s Entertainment

            The title of this blog post is inspired by a quote from the late Heath Ledger in his role as The Joker in the record-breaking movie, The Dark Knight. The Joker announces this quote during a scene in which he and a few of his clown-faced gang members crash a party that Bruce Wayne is throwing for Harvey Dent, the DA of Gotham. This particular scene, along with the quote and ultimately the entire movie can be paralleled to the role of entertainment (theatre, film, television etc.) in South Africa.             First and foremost let’s take a look at the actual scene where The Joker shows up to the party unannounced and proclaims, “good evening ladies and gentlemen, we are tonight’s entertainment.” Such actions are similar to those that Professor Dyer, South African actress, activist and current teacher, discussed during the other morning’s class session. She talked about how the theatre in South Africa has often had a tough time in reaching out to its intended audience, namely the poor, black communities who have struggled for so long during apartheid and after, even up until today. These particular people did not have the funds and resources necessary to go out and view entertainment at the typical theatre venues in the heart of the city. Also, if they did in fact have the funds and resources, people still would not go because they felt out of place seeing that the theatre has a reputation for being a luxury. So, the theatre went to the people.             By bringing the theatre to the masses, entertainment began to evolve into a new identity. Having a new identity can also be compared to that of Bruce Wayne and Batman in The Dark Knight. Rather than being purely a dazzling show or a young, rich and handsome bachelor, the theatre discovered a way to help better society, much like Batman. Community theatre in South Africa was at its height during the 70’s and 80’s as it started to shine a light on important social issues. Not only was it entertainment now, theatre became a form of protest that mass audiences could join in. Aside from bringing the theater to local communities and performing in the streets, there were two major community theatre venues in South Africa, one in Johannesburg called The Market Theatre and one in Cape Town called The Baxter Theatre. Most shows generally avoided pointing any fingers and simply told the story how it was by satirizing the apartheid.             After the apartheid era, there was a sharp drop in theater audience numbers as well as theaters going out into the surrounding communities. The theater went back to its original role mainly putting on classic shows and being a form of entertainment as opposed to biting satire. This struggle for a place or a role in society is very similar to that of Bruce Wayne’s or Batman’s. The theatre does not know its true identity. Is it purely a source of entertainment or is it a way of speaking out against the political and social systems of a society?             In my eyes, it cannot just be one or the other. It must be both. Bruce Wayne is Batman. Theater along with film and television all play a part as resistance and renaissance in regard to societal and political systems while entertaining an audience. Professor Dyer probably said it best when she told our class how people relate to real-life situations such as recognizing a person or event or action that hits close to their hearts and that entertainment should, “make people laugh but with a tea.r. Even though the struggles of apartheid and its aftermath are quite foreign to me, I witnessed this firsthand the other night at the Baxter Theatre during the show, Learner Husband, and while watching a South African movie just last night. It is amazing how watching a live show or a movie on the television set in my hotel room here in Cape Town can pull so much out of what we have been studying and learning about this place and affect the way we interpret information for ultimately a better understanding.