Wellington actor Jeremeo le Cordeur will proudly showcase his productions at the Free State Arts Festival in Bloemfontein.
Le Cordeur, a former learner of Berg River Secondary School, will perform in his two one-man shows Jerry, an unconventional Hero and Dude, wa’s my Bakkie? at the Festival from 1 to 7 July. He wrote both scripts, which are based on his real-life experiences.
Jerry, an unconventional Hero, is a piece about a shy computer nerd who winds up in an interrogation room. In a convoluted tale of action and absurdity, Jerry faces shady, larger-than-life characters as he’s thrust into dangerous situations. He has to be brave and learn that anyone can be a hero, or even a nerd. The adventure begins with a mysterious pizza delivery.
Jerry, an unconventional Hero, relates to a tragic incident that happend last year when Le Cordeur’s home in Wellington was invaded while he was still inside.
“It was a traumatic experience, and my love for comic books and superhero movies was something that served as a coping mechanism to help face the trauma,” he explained. “My love for superheroes and their stories inspired me to adapt one of my former plays, Pizza’s here, into a monodrama that focuses on the character Jerry who escapes to a world of comics to cope with a traumatic experience.”
Jerry, an unconventional Hero is directed by Ian van der Westhuizen and the choreography is by Lee Roodt.
Dude, wa’s my bakkie? is a piece about Dean September, whose bakkie is stolen, and who casts his mind back to his 21st birthday, when he received the bakkie as a present, and all of the adventures he undertook in the bakkie.
Three years ago, Le Cordeur’s bakkie was stolen in Rondebosch, Cape Town.
“That was a gut wrenching experience,” he pointed out. “As a theatre-maker, I’ve always been encouraged to write about or draw from my personal experiences – so, that is exactly what I did. Once I had the title Dude, wa’s my bakkie? the rest just came organically,” he said.
The play is directed by Dean van der Ventel and the choreography is by Lee Roodt.
Both productions were staged at the Suidoosterfees in Cape Town, where Le Cordeur received the Rising Star award, sponsored by Nati (Nasionale Afrikaanse Teater-Inisiatief) for his work on these productions.
But his work at the Free State Arts Festival does not stop with his two one-man shows, he will also be the director of the production Mama (written and performed by Chenal Kock) and he will be the producer of #ActorsLife (writtend and peformed by Estelle Terblanche).
“This is such a wonderful achievement, and I would love the opportunity to share this positive experience with my Wellington and Paarl community,” Le Cordeur said, “in the hopes that it will inspire other young artists.
“Its very exciting and nerve-wracking. We’ll be performing these productions outside of Cape Town for the first time. It will also be my first time at the Vrystaat-kunstefees.
“I will also be juggling multiple roles – actor, writer, director and producer.”
Le Cordeur, who is also a photographer, is the entrepreneur behind Vulture Productions, an independent production and design platform encouraging the creation of original South African work.
Last year, he was one of two artists who represented Artscape and South Africa as ambassadors in the European Voluntary Service Exchange Programme, which took place in Liverpool, England.
To help Vulture Productions get to the Arts Festival in Bloemfontein, crowd funding was started on www.thundafund. com/project/vultureproductionstobloem.
For further information, please visit www.vulture-productions.com or email info@vulture-productions.com.
