Farouk Valley-Omar
Farouk Valley-Omar (1945-). Actor, director, teacher.
Also found as Fahruq Valley-Omar
Contents
Biography
Born Farhuq Ismael Valley-Omar in Worcester in the Western Cape in 1945, he matriculated at an early age and went on to train as a teacher at the Hewat College in Athlone. His teaching career started as an English teacher at the Esselenpark High School in Worcester.
In 1963 he saw a brilliant performance by South African performer Bill Curry in Archibald McLeish's J.B.at the Little Theatre in Cape Town, and that first inspired him to enter the theatre industry. As a result of this he registered for a teacher's diploma in drama at the University of Cape Town in 1968, the only person of colour in the course at the time. This was followed by a BA (Drama) degree at the same University and later a B.Ed degree from the University of the Western Cape.
Between 1970 and 1975 he was an itinerant speech and drama teacher for Battiswood Teacher's Training College in Wynberg and the Wesley Teacher's Training College in Salt River, and in 1976 he was seconded as a full-time speech and drama teacher to the Bellville Education College , where he worked for 18 years.
In 1983 he completed a directing course with the (now defunct) British Theatre Association in London.
Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance
As an actor he appeared in J.B., The Royal Hunt of the Sun, 1969; Skyf 1984 and 1998; The Boys Next Door 1986; Fiela se Kind 1986; Die Asjaspassie 1987; District Six – The Musical 1988; Just Like Home (as Gupta) 1990; Salaam Stories 2004.
Other productions include Toorberg, Die Verminktes, Antjie Somers, Hamlet, As You Like It (Maynardville 1999).
Directed and acted in Die Verminktes (year?),
He directed Dialogue With a Dying Man, 1987
He was on the first steering committee of the Cape Town Theatre Laboratory, 1998
Awards, etc
Sources
See sources of various productions.
Die Burger, 18 August 1986.
Prisma 3(8), October 1988.
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