TokisoM Writes

I sometimes wonder when plays like The Colored Museum – that highlight societal issues such as race and identity – come to an end; do people’s souls shake them into an intense introspection or do they walk away and get back to their usual living of life. The Colored Museum written by George C Wolfe on at the Market Theatre now, directed by James Ngcobo ; is a 90 minutes dissecting of what it means to be black in America using humour and song. It runs until the 23 rd of February, Black History month in the United States. Black History month is an annual period when important people and events in the history of African Americans are remembered. This has been happening since 1926.  It was founded by Dr. Carter G. Woodson , He took it upon himself to write Black Americans into the American history when he realised that the black population was ignored or when mentioned it was of an inferior nature. Hence the importance of a play like The Colored Museum which features...

There was once a Tokoloshe, her name was Pinky Pinky – she lived in the girls’ school toilets, sang a song that introduced her and told you about her parents. She’d then end the song by demanding you give her something. Thanks to Pinky Pinky, her choice of location and her singing – I've yet to feel completely comfortable using public toilets. I first heard about Pinky Pinky when I was in Sub A (now known as Grade 1). She terrorized girls my age, demanding money or (as I recently heard) stole their panties. I think she’d also want whatever pink item you had on you. If you couldn't give in to Pinky Pinky’s demands – you were in big trouble. I don’t remember the details of what she’d do to you but what I knew is that it would be painful. Pinky Pinky was so dangerous she even made it into a national newspaper – although they used a blurry picture. There were different stories told about how she looked – none mentioned a beautiful creature. Her looks were things horror mo...

I love stories that don’t have the predictable happy endings – that’s mainly because they are rare to find. Animal Farm , a classic written by George Orwell , is one such story. First published in 1945 this satirical tale remains a worth while read in 2014, especially if you follow South African politics. It’s my second read of the book (the first being in high school), and I couldn't  help but make comparisons with the happenings on Animal Farm with modern day South Africa. The gist of the story is; after years of abuse from humans, the animals of Manor Farm (as it is initially named) stage a rebellion that sees Jones (the farmer), his wife and workers kicked out of the farm. What gave the animals courage to take matters into their own hands? Well, firstly they were not blind to their under fed, over worked conditions. Secondly, an aged pig, Old Major, prophesised the rebellion and shared it with the animals just before he died – even teaching them a song th...