P.J. Conradie

(1931- ) Classicist, lecturer, critic and drama specialist.

Biography
Born Pieter Jacobus Conradie on 7 February, 1931 in Grahamstown, and completed his schooling at Nassau High School in Mowbray, Cape Town. He obtained the B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Stellenbosch, before completing a D.Litt. degree in Greek Literature at the Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht, in the Netherlands.

He became a lecturer and later professor in Greek at the University of Stellenboschj, and later became head of the Department of Classical Languages. He retired in 19**.

Contribution to South African Theatre, Film, Media and Performance
His area of specialization was the Greek theatre and playwrights. However his wide-ranging interest in drama per se led to his role as drama critic and a specialist reader for Nasionale Pers (publishers of Afrikaans literary works), as well as his publication of a number of books on academic and critical matters pertaining to theatre. His basic handbook on how to analyse a play (Hoe om ‘n drama te ontleed, 1968, 1974)has been a fundamental handbook for schools and universities over many years and was reprinted several times.

In the 1990s, after his retirement, his interest shifted to comparative studies of Greek and African plays, publishing a series of articles in the South African Theatre Journal.

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