The Kate T Show | EP 14 | Kate Turkington & Malcolm D Purkey on 50 Years of South African Theatre
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Kate Turkington sits down with legendary theatre-maker Professor Malcolm D Purkey for a powerful conversation spanning 50 years of South African theatre.
From their early days staging Ubu Rex under apartheid to the rise of politically fearless theatre at Junction Avenue, the Market Theatre, and Wits University, Purkey reflects on art as resistance, teaching as legacy, and the evolution of storytelling in a democratic South Africa.
The episode explores how theatre has shifted from confronting a single oppressive system to grappling with today’s complex questions of identity, language, and gender — and why provocation, imperfection, and authenticity still matter. A rich, reflective conversation with one of the architects of South African stage history.
From their early days staging Ubu Rex under apartheid to the rise of politically fearless theatre at Junction Avenue, the Market Theatre, and Wits University, Purkey reflects on art as resistance, teaching as legacy, and the evolution of storytelling in a democratic South Africa.
The episode explores how theatre has shifted from confronting a single oppressive system to grappling with today’s complex questions of identity, language, and gender — and why provocation, imperfection, and authenticity still matter. A rich, reflective conversation with one of the architects of South African stage history.
