Re-imagining Tragedy from Africa and the Global South

Re-imagining Tragedy from Africa and the Global South (RETAGS) is a five-year research project undertaken by the University of Cape Town’s Centre for Theatre, Dance and Performance Studies (CTDPS, previously the Drama Department and the School of Dance). The project, which began at the start of 2019, is undertaken with funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The project is led by Mark Fleishman with Mandla Mbothwe, and as Fleishman explains, the overall project "proposes to take the concept of ‘tragedy’ - from the very beginnings of theatre in its European manifestation - and to reimagine it from a perspective in Africa, that is, at once, directed at the complex challenges of our global postcolonial present and towards our possible futures.” (Cited in ArtsLink, 09/02/2019)

Part of the project involves the making and creation of four new ‘tragedies’ with partners Magnet Theatre and the Baxter Theatre Centre, and the first work from the project - Antigone (not quite/quiet) opens at the Baxter in September 2019.