Following its world premiere at the Augsburg State Theatre in Germany, “Isingqala Samanzi: The Call of Water” will be staged at the Baxter Flipside from September 22 to 24.
Written by Andreas Hillger and directed by Dorothea Schroeder, “Isingqala Samanzi: The Call of Water” shines a spotlight on the rising global issue of water scarcity.
“Isingqala Samanzi: The Call of Water,” a collaboration between South Africa and German, is set to take the audience on a magical journey of two animals telling their story through puppets handmade by the Cape Town-based Ukwanda Puppet Company.
Speaking to IOL Entertainment, Schroeder said the piece would paint a global picture of the worldwide water scarcity problem through humour.
“In Augsburg, we had just gotten the Unesco World Heritage title in 2019 for the old water management system. And when the theatre was thinking to apply for a foundation for Germany, African collaboration, we were in the process of getting this world heritage,” explained Schroeder.
“At first, we didn't really know if the city was going to get the title. And when we did, we started questioning ourselves on what the title meant for our country.
“At the same time, colleagues of ours had just come back from Cape Town, and they were telling us about the water restrictions here.
“We realised that we could face similar problems, considering climate change, so we decided what better way to inform the public than through the arts.
“And now what's very interesting is that we wanted to come out two years ago, but we didn't because of the pandemic.
“Fast forward to 2022. The water crisis is a big issue in Germany as well. Now everyone knows that we will have more problems if we do not start saving water and change our way of behaviour towards the water.”
In the play, the world-famous fountain figures of the Augustus Fountain in Augsburg, Germany, meet Inkomo Yamanzi (the cow that brings the water) and Roman deities meet ancestor worship.
“So what we are doing in the show, and I think it came out quite nicely, we invented the fairy tale or a story. We wrote it together, the South African artists, and the German artists, about water, but it's not like we are explicit as I'm talking about water problems with you.
“We don't do that in the show. It's more like a fairy tale that we are telling about two animals that travel and meet. They then try to see the problems that we (humans) are facing and try to solve them.
“The show is also about coming together and understanding each other’s cultures. And we hope that the audience will get a feeling of this inter-cultural meeting because we've been working with each other now for five years, which is very special and unusual.
“We already have established a good relationship and finally came out with this common story.”
The show stars Sipho Ngxola, Thomas Prazak, Karoline Stegemann, Siphokazi Mpofu, Luyanda Nogodlwana and Franziska Rattay.
The puppet construction is done by Ukwanda Puppets & Designs Art Collective, with training by Craig Leo, music by Fabian Löbhard, lighting by Günter Zaworka, costumes by Marie Wildmann, set design by Luyanda Nogodlwana and dramaturgy by Kathrin Mergel and Sarah Mössner.
“Isingqala Samanzi: The Call of Water” with be staged at Baxter Flipside from September 22 to 24.
Tickets are available at Webtickets for R150.