ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of a revolutionary trend noticed at the National Arts Festival of South Africa in 2017. It discusses some of the noteworthy productions which represented an unapologetically revolutionary agenda. This particular instalment of the annual festival indicated a strident return of revolutionary theatre: the mainstreaming of revolt. The theme of the festival was ‘Disruption’, and this was played out in theatre referencing the nation-wide student protests of 2016, which demanded free education, a decolonised curriculum, and gender parity. South African theatre has traditionally thrived on protest and resistance, however, the ethos presented by some of these productions indicates an angry turn away from hopes for reconciliation and towards a growing racial polarisation. Works discussed include Ankobia, The Fall, Reparation, Cult Clit, and October, as well as reworkings of Tartuffe and Giselle.
