Tell me about your play, how did it happen, what inspired you to write It?
My co-author, Dr Barbara Whitfield, saw a news article in the UK years ago about a couple who had 'the perfect wedding'. She was beautiful, he was beautiful, the church was beautiful etc. But one week later they discovered that the vicar who had married them had actually failed an exam the week before, and was not therefore allowed to conduct the ceremony! Apparently they felt cheated. Was their day 'real'? What did it mean etc? Barbara suggested that it may be interesting to extend the idea to one year after the wedding, after the metaphorical 'honeymoon' phase had ended and cracks had shown up in the marriage. It flowed from there. She brought the plot ideas to me, and we workshopped and wrote!

The play has had an interesting journey from its first performance in Oxford?
First performance was with the oxford university playwriting society (Barbara and I are 2 of the founding members). It's amazing bringing it to South Africa, and quite challenging as it really is quite a British play! I think the cast are doing admirably though!

There seems to be a trend of young theatremakers like yourself starting off abroad with a  play, then returning to homebase to launch the play.your views on this?
I think it's wonderful, and it applies more broadly. I think for many decades many South-Africans have looked at 'overseas' in a dreamy kind of idealised way,which is really not accurate. In most respects I think it's easier to get things done in South Africa. People are usually generous and 'can do' people - which gives loads of opportunity for creativity. So it's no wonder that many young South Africans in a variety of spheres are returning to realize their dreams. I also think that now there's a growing appreciation that we do so much so well here! I think a lot of great talent from this country now goes abroad for a while, and then returns with lessons and wisdom from a diverse broader world. I'm very optimistic that this 'homecoming trend' will lead to a great injection of creativity to the country - in the arts, commerce, education and many spheres of life.

Do you think that it is maybe because we tend to see 'home' and our own lives better when we are away from it?
Absolutely! I have friends who only discover how much they love home once they're away from it! I've always been consciously patriotically South African, but that became a deeper experience living abroad! The consciousness of our unique-ness, diversity and vibrancy is something that cannot be entirely appreciated until being outside it for a while. I remember watching 'The Lion King' in London, and bursting into tears in the opening scene! I missed Africa so much! And I am so so pleased to be home in what i think is the most beautiful and fascinating country in the world.

Are there any writers or plays (films) that inspired Hitched?
Dialogue wise, Oscar Wilde, though contemporary. I love verbal repartee. Filmically barbara and I watched plenty of rom-coms in order to get structural ideas, but none especially spring to mind.

You wear the hat of writer and director, but have also made an impact as an actor?  Tell me about this?
Acting is my first love. I cannot wait to get on stage in SA, as it's where I thrive most. I love the immediate act of giving that acting involves, feeling the audience, feeding the audience, and being energized in the process. I also think being an actor informs my writing and my directing, as i know what I'd be able to do with situations and lines. As I write, I have a very distinct series of character's voices in my mind - complete with intonation, emphases and character. I love actor / writer / directors myself because i think having that 3-d role offers creative richness.

You have a great cast that is turning words into action..
I love my cast. They're mostly pretty young and upcoming, and that energy has been great to explore and work with. Then there is the incredible Michele Maxwell. I think she's my favourite actor I've ever worked with. She understands the rhythm of the scene, the phrases, the words, the everything perfectly - and can see the options and opportunities in the text quickly. It has been an absolute joy to direct her.

Is there one character in particular that you see yourself as?
Ha ha! No one will believe this, but I think i'm mostly like the Joanie character actually! Just 1/2 the age, male, and definitely not vampish at all!!! If the character's have spiritual cores, beneath their bravura, conflict and questions - Joanie's is the same as mine. She's one of my favourite characters I've ever written.

How different is the play now than when you first put the first words on paper?
70% of the words are the same. The other 30% are tightened, different, textured through performance, actors contributions (there are 2 great one's rory berry threw in for his role of lance for instance) etc. Each incarnation has taken it closer to the finished product Barbara and I have been after.

It is play that everyone can enjoy and take something home with them  Was this your intention?
Absolutely. I wanted it fun, with a deeper meaning running subtly below it. If it makes you think and question great. If it makes you laugh, even more so. If it does both, jackpot. I think that all people - 8 to 108, married, unmarried, thinker, lover, artiste, pleb, can enjoy it - and I think it's important to have theatre that can work on a number of levels.

How do you see the future of independent theatre in South Africa? Any Advice for aspirant writers who would like to get their work on stage?
Network, collaborate, swap ideas etc! If you're lucky enough to have another source of income (i run another company for instance) that obviously helps too. Remember that you probably have several resources to draw from to feed your theatre. Of course you can also stage things inexpensively for experience. I did several shows like that in the uk, just to see what things could be / should be like. It helps tremendously in learning.

Future plans. What's next and when will Hitched be on stage again. Any comments you would like to share about the play?
Barbara and I have recently finished a show titled "Last Christmas" which I would love to see at a larger venue like Theatre on the Bay, or the Teatro in Johannesburg.  It's a Christmas farce, eight hander (hence the need for a large space). From beginning to end it's filled with misunderstanding, circumstantial comedy, wordplay and wit. It's my favourite thing i have ever written. I intend to put it on at the oxford playhouse &/or the westend in the next two years.
I'd also love to start exploiting Cape Town's unique historical and natural heritage and beauty in staging outdoor work. In Oxford I would do at least one outdoor show a year in the summer, exploiting the unique spaces the historical town of oxford had to offer. Especially strongly in my mind is a peripatetic production of Macbeth I directed in which the audience started at a 17th century mound (the heath) in a beautiful manicured garden, then moved through a gothic quad where the vaulting of the side walls served as the macbeth's bedchamber, eventually to a magnificent 14th century chapel with 60 statues of almost life-size saints rising above above a guilt ridden and collapsing lady Macbeth (for the hand-washing scene). Another year I had the audience stationery beneath an ancient bell tower in the most beautiful cloisters in Oxford. I loved doing that - and would love to explore the equivalents in cape town. I have a lot of ideas i'd love to explore in CT!
Back to Hitched, I'd just like to encourage people to come watch! The cast are growing from strength to strength as we work now. We need your support, and we know you'll enjoy our offering!

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Copyright © Daniel Dercksen, 2011