PACT Youth Company

PACT Youth Company was a bilingual company of young performers doing plays for children and theatre in education productions at schools in the Transvaal province.

Known as PACT Youth Theatre, TRUK Jeugteater (in Afrikaans), also referred to as PACT Children's Theatre when performing plays written for children.

The company

This company was a continuation of the NTO Youth Group (NTO Jeuggroep), transferred to the newly formed PACT and existing from 1963 till 1974. Initially run by Eghard van der Hoven , with members of the former NTO company, as such as Cobus Rossouw, Jannie Gildenhuys and Carel Trichardt.

Later members included Don Lamprecht, Christopher Hale, Jan Prinsloo, Price Coetzee, George Ballot, Billy Egan, Henk Hugo, B. Niemand, Adéle van Blommenstein, Lorraine Elberg and Lynette Marais.

They were funded by a grant from the Transvaal Education Department and other educational authorities to do theatre for schools.

Besides the school prescribed work, the company also produced a number of original plays specifically written and/or translated for the children's company by local authors, under the name of PACT Children's Theatre]]. The plays include works such as The Old Kabobly Tree (), Beauty and the Beast (1967), Die Dansende Donkie, Lappies die Lappiesmous, Jack and the Turtle-doves (1968), Professor Poffel en Professor Moffel (1968).

When Robin Malan became head of the group in 1974, he changed the name to PACT Playwork and shifted the emphasis to TIE.

Sources

PACT Children's Theatre Programme for Jack and the Turtle-doves.

For more information

See also National Youth Theatre, PACT and PACT Playwork

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