Evita Bezuidenhout
An iconic fictional character created by Pieter-Dirk Uys first as a "spokesperson" in a column he was writing toward the end of the 1970s and then as part of his satiric one-man performances, starting with Adapt or Dye (1982). Ostensibly a staunch Afrikaner, parliamentarian and ex-Ambassador to the (fictional) independent homeland (see Apartheid) of Babetikosweti, she was utilized as a means to satirise South African life and politics. Originally a minor character, she gradually became the core character of his performances. By the mid 1980s the character had become a “personality” in her own right, eventually gaining enormous celebrity status: hosting her own outragious TV show, being interviewed to comment on anything in the country, and helping with voter education during the 1994 and 1998 elections. In 2000-2001 Uys used Evita’s stature to run a free series of Aids-awareness programmes for schools throughout the country. Confirmation of this status came in 2000 when the Womens International Center astoundingly presented Uys as “Evita Bezuidenhout” with the Living Legacy 2000 Award, during their celebration of “women who led us into the 21st century”. (Among the former honorees are Melina Mercouri, Maya Angelou, Empress Nagako, Pearl Bailey, Hillary Roddam Clinton, Mother Theresa, and many others.) Among the more prominent shows featuring “Tannie Evita” [“Aunt Evita”] are ***, ****, ****, Tannie Evita Praat Kaktus [“Aunt Evita Talks Cactus” – “Kak” in Afrikaans meaning “shit”]
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