Van der Merwe stars in ‘The Mother’

Circumstances are showing you that you need to be less giving. It will save you from feeling hard-done by. If others don’t like it, it is time to reassess the role they play in your life. ANNA-Mart van der Merwe stars in South Africa’s premiere of acclaimed Florian Zeller play The Mother.

After a sell-out season of Zeller’s The Father with Marius Weyers, Van der Merwe stars in the SA premiere of Zeller’s companion piece The Mother.

Zeller’s internationally acclaimed The Mother, translated from French by Christopher Hampton, will premiere at the Fugard Studio Theatre from February 7 and will run until March 4.

An Eric Abraham and Fugard Theatre production, The Mother will be directed by Janice Honeyman with an all-South African cast headed by Van der Merwe (The Painted Rocks at Revolver Creek, Dis koue kos, skat, Sewende Laan, Die OngelooflikeAvonture van Hanna Hoekom) as Anne. Graham Hopkins (Jeeves & Wooster in Perfect Nonsense, Black Sails, Barney Barnato, A Reasonable Man), Sven Ruygrok (SPUD, Zulu, Of Kings and Prophets) and Amy Louise Wilson (The Father, Book of Negroes, The Year of the Bicycle) complete the cast in this moving portrait of a woman losing her grip on reality as her life spins out of control.

Lighting design is by Mannie Manim with set and costume design by Birrie le Roux and Rocco Pool is associate set designer.

Anne loved that time in her life when she prepared breakfast each morning for her two young children, Sara and Nicholas. Now they have grown up and have lives and loves of their own. Spending hours alone, Anne’s world falls in on her. Has her son Nicholas, always her favourite, really come back home? And what of her suspicions about her husband?

Zeller has been described as “the most exciting new theatre writer of our time”, by The London Guardian.The Mother will run from Tuesdays to Saturdays at 8pm with a 4pm matinée performance on Saturdays.

The Fugard Theatre ison the corner of Harrington and Caledon streets in the bustling Central business district of Cape Town.

Tickets are available from R130 to R160 and can be booked through Computicket on 0861 915 8000, or at any Shoprite Checkers outlet.

Bookings can also be made at the Fugard Theatre box office on 021 461 4554.

There is a 15% discount available for the Friends of The Fugard members.

PISCES (FEBRUARY 19-MARCH 19)