Sometimes, in war, famine and radical times of change, there is someone still standing. And sometimes, they are not alone. Amongst the dunes of post-2050 earth a mirage of humanity glimmers in the heat.

Directed by Helen Iskander (Nominated ABSA ‘Best Director 2009’ award at the KKNK, for The Famished Road). Designed by Jemma Khan and performed by Kyla Davis (ImpACT award winner for Theatre 2010) and Mongi Mthombeni (NAF Golden Ovation Award Winners for The Butcher Brothers, 2010 and Naledi Award winners for Best Cutting Edge production 2010) this collaboration of award-winning artists brings you an exquisitely visual new play of epic proportions.

Helen Iskander, Director/ Devisor (Fresco)

Helen Iskander runs Fresco Theatre alongside James Cuningham. They have both spent many years devising and performing theatre with a variety of innovative theatre companies in the UK and Europe such as Blow Up Theatre, Tohu Bohu, Theatre Sans Frontieres, Total Theatre Award winners, Theatre O; and in South Africa for Creative Madness, Shoestring Productions and The Fortune Cookie Theatre Company. Helen is best known for their play ‘Baobabs don’t grow here’ which toured extensively in both South Africa and abroad and most recently as Director of ‘The Famished Road’ which premiered at NAF in 2008. The company is committed to providing audiences with entertaining, quality theatre that is fresh, visual, nourishing and vital.

Jemma Kahn, Designer

Jemma studied Fine Art at WITS, specialising in Painting, then Drama (specialising in Performance and Production Design). In 2006 she was awarded the Leon Gluckman Prize for Best Creative Work for The Animals, a play co-created and performed with Bryan Van Niekerk. During her time in Japan, 2008, she was able to study Kamishibai, a traditional form of Japanese street theatre. Along with veteran Kamishibai performer Rokuda Genji, Jemma performed her story The Atom Seed in Hiroshima. Jemma lives and works as an artist and set designer in Johannesburg, producing work both collaboratively and by herself.

Mongi Mthombeni, Performer/Devisor (Dark Laugh)

Mongi has been involved in the theatre and film industry for 7 years in works ranging from local to international recognition. Mongi has worked on over 40 Film & Theatre productions ranging from physical comedy to tragic drama to even Opera. Some of the most striking productions included works by Andrew Buckland, 1st Physical Theatre Company. A highlight of 2006 was the prestigious invitation to be a performer for the renowned Cirque Du Soleil.

2009 – 2010 saw his theatre company, Dark Laugh Theatre produce the award winning show: The Butcher Brothers, a masked physical theatre thriller. After winning the coveted Golden Ovation award at the National festival, the show has gone on to win acclaim and the Johannesburg Naledi award for Best New cutting Edge Production. Currently, Mongi is acting in Well Worn Theatre’s new show: Planet B which will premiere at the 2010 National festival in Grahamstown South Africa. Mongi is also a writer, director, actor who teaches at the Market Theatre Laboratory in Johannesburg.

Kyla Davis, Performer/Devisor (Well Worn)

Kyla Davis was born in Johannesburg and graduated from the National School of the Arts in 1998. She then moved to London where she lived and worked for 8 years. While in London, she trained at The School of Physical Theatre under Ron East, a Le Coq practitioner. She also took part in many workshops and summer schools with inspiring theatre companies that include Complicite, Told By An Idiot and Stone Crabs. Her international theatre credits include: ‘Tariro’ a cross-cultural theatre project in Malawi, ‘Remote Patrol’ a site specific performance in a derelict cemetery in Bath; and in London: ‘Her in the Red Dress’ at The Camden People’s Theatre and ‘Broken Voices’ at the Tristan Bates Theatre. Kyla has also devised and performed in theatre in Austria, Greece and Italy.

Since returning to South Africa with a passion for devised theatre and with specific interests in Physical Theatre and ecology, she established Well Worn Theatre Company. Well Worn aims to create new and exciting original work around the themes of climate change and global warming, sustainable and holistic development, social justice and ‘Eco-Consciousness’. Since it’s birth, Well Worn has gone from strength to strength and as well as performing their original environmental education show the ‘Pollution Revolution’ for over 27 000 primary school learners in Gauteng in 2010/2011, Well Worn has just co-produced ‘Planet B’ in collaboration with Dark Laugh and Fresco Theatre. Planet B tours SA festivals in 2011.

Press for Planet B:

‘A brilliantly versatile set, evocative sound effects and gifted actors combine to make this a thoroughly enjoyable show’
- CUE, NAF 2011

‘What (Helen Iskander) brings with her from Fresco theatre is a delight in objects, in cleverly refashioning a set into multiple possibilities. Together with Khan, she’s created a remarkably innovative and surprisingly sturdy design, which kept me intrigued throughout the production.’
- Anton Krueger CUE, NAF 2011

‘Planet B is a performance where incredible technical performance skill meets simple yet finely detailed design elements that allow the characters’ world to be wonderfully envisioned by the audience.Those elements merge to drive home the message of sustainability, of climate change and compassion with a magnitude and heart that is rarely seen in performance today.’
- Rahiem Whisgary, Artslink May 2011

The two performers take you on a journey that convinces you that theatres can and will be filled to maximum capacity again.
- Thomie Holtzhausen, Review, Artslink, SA, July 2002

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