A New Westminster actor will soon be seen onstage in a new production of Valley Song.
The play, originally produced at the Gateway Theatre, is running March 24 to April 8 at Pacific Theatre in Vancouver.
It stars New West’s own David Adams as Abraam “Buks” Jonker, a pumpkin farmer caught in the aftermath of apartheid in South Africa, with Sereana Malani as his granddaughter, Veronica – who yearns to take advantage of her new freedom and become a singer in Johannesburg.
For Adams, the story by playwright Athol Fugard is close to his heart.
“I was born Kleurlinge, or Coloured (mixed race), during apartheid in South Africa,” he says in a press release. “I’ve always been fascinated by how my people have adapted to the new government structure without institutionalized racism at its core. Now that everyone has the ‘freedom’ to be, how have the old ways and deeply rooted caste system changed – or have they?”
The production originally ran at Gateway Theatre in Richmond, and Gateway’s artistic director, Jovanni Sy, who directs this production, is thrilled to be bringing it back to the stage.
“Pacific Theatre is the perfect second home for this jewel of a play,” he says. “Though written very specifically at the end of apartheid, Fugard tells a timeless tale of innocence, experience and the redemptive power of love.”
Valley Song is onstage at the Pacific Theatre, 1440 West 12th Ave., from March 24 to April 8. Shows are at 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays, with 2 p.m. matinees on Saturdays and on Sunday, March 2. There’s a pay-what-you-can preview on March 23. Tickets range from $23.95 to $34.95. Call 604-731-5518 or see www.pacifictheatre.org.
