2023 Fleur du Cap Theatre Awards in SA: All the winners

Winners emerged from different categories including musicals, music theatre production, sound design, live performance and performance in opera, among others.

The most decorated production of the night was Contested Bodies, produced by Abrahamse and Meyer Productions, a company which received 16 nominations. It garnered awards for Best Director, Best Costume Design and Best Performance by an Ensemble.

The Mozart opera, Le Nozze di Figaro, made a clean sweep with Conroy Scott and Brittany Smith garnering the awards for the Best Performances in the Male and Female categories in an opera, respectively. Mikayla Joy Brown of Stellenbosch University won the Most Promising Student Award.

David Kramer and Peter Cazalet received Lifetime Achievement Awards. Kramer was honoured for his immeasurable contribution to the arts and entertainment industry as a national and internationally renowned artist, singer, songwriter, guitarist, creator and producer of iconic musical theatre production and as an archivist of South African music and stories.

Peter Cazalet was acknowledged for his vast contribution to the national and international arts and entertainment industry, initially as a ballet dancer and subsequently as an award-winning set and costume designer and the Cape Performing Arts Board’s (CAPAB’s) head of design.

Below is full list of winners:

Best Sound Design, Original Music, Soundscape or Live Performance

• Gideon Lombard | Karatara | Sound design
• Charl-Johan Lingenfelder | A Streetcar Named Desire | Sound design
• Kyle Shephard | Life and Times of Michael K | Original music
• Simon Kohler | Life and Times of Michael K | Sound design
• Wessel Odendaal | Star+Crossed | Original music

Best Performance in an Opera – Male

• Conroy Scott | Le Nozze di Figaro | Figaro
• Lwazi Dlamini | Le Nozze di Figaro | Bartolo
• Smelo Mahlangu | Sara Baartman – The Opera | Georges Cuvier
• Van Wyk Venter | L’elisir d’amore | Belcore
• William Berger | Le Nozze di Figaro | Count Almaviva

Best Performance in an Opera – Female

• Megan Kahts | Alcina | Ruggiero
• Bongiwe Nakani | Sara Baartman – The Opera | Sara Baartman
• Brittany Smith | Le Nozze di Figaro | Susanna
• Setsoane Jeannette Ntseki | Alcina | Morgana
• SiphamandlaMoyake | Le Nozze di Figaro | Countess Almaviva

Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical or Music Theatre Show

• Isabella Jane | Star+Crossed | Bess
• Jawaahier Petersen | Aunty Merle: Things Get Real | Soraya
• Keiko Mdwaba | Once on this Island | Little Ti Moune/Peasant
• Noluthando Dlamini | The Marvelous Wonderettes | Betty Jean
• Tankiso Mamabolo | Aunty Merle: Things Get Real | Ayanda/Dr McTavish

Best Performance by an Actor In A Musical or Music Theatre Show

• Earl Gregory | Star+Crossed | Billy
• Anzio September | Aunty Merle: Things Get Real | Zane
• Loukmaan Adams | Aunty Merle: Things Get Real | Benny
• Marc Lottering | Aunty Merle: Things Get Real | Aunty Merle
• Shaun Oelf | Aunty Merle: Things Get Real | Lead Dancer

Best Performance by an Ensemble

• Lungile Lallie, Marcel Meyer and Matthew Baldwin | Contested Bodies | John Nobody, Doctor James Barry and Lord Charles Somerset
• Albert Pretorius, De Klerk Oelofse and Geon Nel | Nêrens, Noord-Kaap | Ronnie, Andries and Frans
• Andrew Buckland, Billy Langa, Carlo Daniels, Craig Leo, Faniswa Yisa, Marty Kintu, Nolufefe Ntshuntshe, Sandra Prinsloo and Roshina Ratnam | Life and Times of Michael K | Various roles
• Brendan van Rhyn, Christopher Dudgeon and Rudi Jansen | The Triplets of Bellville | Cathy Specific, Holly and Molly
• Dean Balie, Grant van Ster and Shaun Oelf | Karatara | Themselves

Most Promising Student

• Mikayla Joy Brown | University of Stellenbosch
• Anna Olivier | LAMTA
• Buhle Stefane | Magnet Theatre
• Gerard van Rooyen |LAMTA
• Katherine Sharp | AFDA
• Ketsia Velaphi | AFDA
• Koketso Mere | Waterfront Theatre School
• Miché C van Wyk | University of Stellenbosch
• Minke Marais | University of Stellenbosch
• Sunny Yoon | LAMTA

Best New South African Script

• Nadia Davids | Hold Still
• Basil Appollis and Sylvia Vollenhoven | Dance of the La Gumas
• Fred Abrahamse and Marcel Meyer | Contested Bodies
• Nico Scheepers | Nêrens, Noord-Kaap
• Scott Sparrow | Dinner at the 42s

Best New Director

• Carlo Daniels | No Complaints – New Day, New Dawn
• Duane Alexander | Your Song – The Music of Elton John
• Emma Amber | The Marvelous Wonderettes
• Iman Isaacs | Irma
• Sohail Booise | Hostel Lights (Zabalaza Best of the Fest)

Best Theatre Production for Children and Young People

• Vlooi en die geheim/Kipper and the Secret | Marinda Engelbrecht and Margit Meyer-Rödenbeck
• Liewe Heksie en die rolskaatse | Margit Meyer-Rödenbeck
• Peter Pan | A&M Productions (Fred Abrahamse and Marcel Meyer)
• Sonde met die spoke | University of Stellenbosch Drama Department

Best Performance in a Revue, Cabaret Or One-Person Show

• Daniel Newton | Shadow Boxing | Flynn
• Daniel Anderson | Vincent – His Quest to Love and Be Loved | Various roles
• Erika Marais | Die Goeie Pa | Various roles
• Sibuyiselo Dywili | The House of Truth | Can Themba
• Sophie Joans | Île | Herself

Best Puppetry Design

• Adrian Kohler | Handspring Puppet Company | Life and Times of Michael K

Best Lighting Design

• Gideon Lombard | Karatara
• Faheem Bardien | Star+Crossed
• Joshua Cutts | Life and Times of Michael K
• Mannie Manim | Kiss of the Spider Woman
• Wolf Britz | Firefly

Best Set Design

• Greg King | Fordsburg’s Finest
• Nial Griffin | Dinner with the 42s
• Patrick Curtis | Hold Still
• Themba Stewart | No Complaints – New Day, New Dawn
• Wolf Britz | Kiss of the Spider Woman

Best Costume Design

• Brendan van Rhyn, Christopher Dudgeon and Rudi Jansen | The Triplets of Bellville
• Marcel Meyer | A Streetcar Named Desire
• Marcel Meyer | Contested Bodies
• Nial Griffin | Dinner with the 42s
• Phillis Midlane | Life and Times of Michael K

Best Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Play

• Brent Palmer | Dinner at the 42s | Drinkwater
• Carlo Daniels | The Unlikely Secret Agent | Various roles
• Gerard Rudolf | Neon Smoel | The Lobster Man
• Matthew Baldwin | A Streetcar Named Desire | Mitch
• Sanda Shandu | Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf | Nick

Best Performance by a Supporting Actress In a Play

• Berenice Barbier | Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf | Honey
• Babalwa Makwetu | IKrele leChiza... The Sermon | The mother
• Lauren Snyders | Curl Up and Dye | Charmaine
• Melissa Haiden | A Streetcar Named Desire | Stella
• Nomakrestu Xakatugaga | Ikrele leChiza... The Sermon | Nongoma (Guardian of the ancestral realm)

Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Play

• Mwenya Kabwe | Hold Still | Rosa Feigel
• Emily Child | Dinner with the 42s | Eva
• Fiona Ramsay | A Streetcar Named Desire | Blanche DuBois
• Marí Borstlap | Neon Smoel | Kaval
• Sylvaine Strike | Firefly | Ferine, Sophia and Mariti

Best Performance by a Lead Actor in a Play

• Mncedisi Shabangu | Blood Knot | Zacharia
• Elton Landrew | Dance of the La Gumas | Alex La Guma
• Andrew Buckland | Firefly | Ferase, Uxor and Conrad
• Nicholas Pauling | Dinner with the 42s | Burn
• Paul Slabolepzsy | Fordburg’s Finest | Freddie Volschenk

Best Director

• Fred Abrahamse | Contested Bodies
• Gideon Lombard | Karatara
• Greg Karvellas | Dinner with the 42s
• Jay Pather | Hold Still
• Toni Morkel | Firefly

Best Production

• Life and Times of Michael K | Baxter Theatre Centre; Theater der Welt, Düsseldorf; Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg
• A Streetcar Named Desire | A&M Productions
• Contested Bodies | A&M Productions
• Firefly | Baxter Theatre Centre, SU Woordfees in Association with Fortune Cookie Theatre Company
• Karatara | Marie Vogts