Conquering this stage of her life
SWEET, young and dancing to her own beat — KirunaLind Devar has a promising future ahead of her. She has bagged the lead role in a school production of the hit musical Sweet Charity, which will premiere later this month.
Kiruna, who is in Grade 12 at the National School of the Arts in Johannesburg, is the daughter of the late Siva Devar, the renowned composer who wrote the theme song for Isidingo.
Kiruna, 17, said she auditioned for the role and “obsessed about getting it right”.
“The musical is set in the 1960s and my character, Charity Hope Valentine, is a bubbly, quirky, earnest lady who works as a dance hall hostess. She has a string of failed relationships, but she longs to be truly loved. The story is about Charity’s journey to finding love.
“It is a wonderful triplethreat musical role for me — I sing, dance and act. The role was made famous by American actress Shirley MacLaine, who played it on the big screen and on Broadway.”
The play is directed by Janna Ramos-Violante and Mark Hawkins, who is also the choreographer.
Kiruna said she had done multiple dance shows with her school and the Johannesburg Youth Ballet, and performed in the King and I. Among her many other performances, she featured as a dancer in Hansel and Gretel in 2012.
“I love being on stage — it’s a feeling like no other. I would like to go into musical theatre after completing school. It has always been my dream to be a performer. My great-grandmother, Agnes Lind, was a professional actress in Norway in the early 20th century. I hope one day I will be a great performer too,” said Kiruna.
Sweet Charity runs from February 26 to March 2 in the Mandela Theatre at the Joburg Theatre Complex.