“Teksmark was an inspiring event with exciting theater concepts and informative discussions, which also challenged.”
This is what Hugo Theart, chief executive and artistic director of the Klein Karoo National Arts Festival (KKNK), says about the eighth Text Market that was recently presented in Cape Town.
Concepts by well-known artists such as Albert Maritz, Ilne Fourie, Ingrid Winterbach, Ludwig Binge and Phillip Rademeyer are part of 18 concepts selected for further development at the event.
Teksmark, which has been offered since 2016, is not a competition, but creates a platform for emerging and established writers to test their text ideas in front of representatives from the theater industry, as well as potential investors and the public.
According to Theart, it was noteworthy that theatre-makers ventured with themes that look wider than the self and identity, and came up with concepts that give a greater, more holistic impact to the world.
“Next year will definitely be an interesting theater year. It excites me that the past is looked at with a new lens, with a look at the present and the future, without being caught up in the immediate world. One thing is certain: There is exciting theater work on the way for 2024 and 2025.”
Lara Foot, CEO and artistic director of the Baxter Theatre, says the text is the starting and ending point of a play. That is why she believes in the importance of an initiative like Teksmark. “A project like this is very important for the industry. It’s about innovative dialogue, and we need to support the writers in this way.”
According to Cornelia Faasen, CEO of NATi, the last Teksmark was one of this project’s best yet. “The range of texts was particularly strong and I am more excited about the future of theater than ever before.”
Faasen announced during the event that a new text development project will be presented for the first time in Gauteng later this year. “We are excited about this project which will be presented on 3 and 4 November in Johannesburg. Another 13 texts will then be seen on stage at the Foxwood Theatre.”
The eighteen texts that will be further developed are driftwood by Nell van der Merwe, Found by Darryl Nel, Do you know Dewie? by Ilne Fourie, Khanya and Her Golden Dream by Sibahle Mabaso, Counterpoint by Jason Jacobs and Devon Delmar, Mahlomola a Lockdown – An Unspoken Story of Covid-19 by Ngwako Maifala, Martha by Ilse van Niekerk and Albert Maritz, Will and mutiny by Ingrid Winterbach, Disappear by Philip Rademeyer, Please don’t call Ms Moffie by Zubayr Charles, talk again soon by Kanya Viljoen, Punch lines by Brent Palmer, Stoffel by Elisha Zeeman-Knoesen, The Good White by Mike van Graan, The Massacre at Mount Ursula by Louis Viljoen, To an end by Ludwig Binge, Lost by Andi Colombo and Where the wind blows us by Mikyall Harris.
