Season 6 was co-curated by architect and urban designer Thiresh Govender and dancer and choreographer Sello Pesa of Ntsoana ContemporaryTheatre, alongside founder William Kentridge and co-animateurs Bronwyn Lace and Phala Ookeditse Phala.

[A video of the FULL Performance can be seen here: https://vimeo.com/371846830]

THE WALL OF TOOLS ENSEMBLE

“Few activities have come to define us more than that of our work,” begins Season 6 co-curator Thiresh Govender, standing on stage and in the shadow of a floor to ceiling installation – The Wall of Tools. “It remains an underexplored ritual in our contemporary lives.” As he speaks, occasional verbal interruptions come in the form of fellow curator Sello Pesa who bussies himself at an ironing board, letting slip nonsensical instructions: “We’re drinking oil and cooldrink, guys. Do something different, something new.”

It is this intentional disruption of the process of repetitive work and ritualised labour that is at the heart of the performance, and of the Season as a whole.

Through The Wall of Tools Ensemble, work as an everyday formality, aspiration, and necessity is explored and unpacked across a series of performative vignettes, each forming a part of the broader curatorial inquiry of this Season: Work. As such The Wall of Tools Ensemble can be viewed as a multifaceted and staged distillation of the many themes, provocations, and streams of thought that arose over the course of this Season.

There is the continuous beating of the drum, an unending beat that oscillates between the discordant and the deeply rhythmic. There is the inner-city boxer, pumping his fists at everything and absolutely nothing simultaneously while tooled-up creatures move about the space, finding their purpose, or perhaps only adding their unique din to the greater harmony and cacophony of a city at work. Streetwise pantsulas glide across the stage while lone individuals try and assert themselves in vain, and a towering presence barks out orders and warnings alike – ‘Vimba! Baleka!’

Amidst it all, a growing chant emerges, using the energy of the audience and rising up to a resounding chorus. It is a stirring refrain that collapses without warning, the sound of stainless-steel giving way to the heavy strike of a sledgehammer echoing out into the darkness.

The Wall of Tools Ensemble puts forward an enduring curatorial inquiry: How do we engage with work or labour in our everyday lives – physically, intellectually, or spiritually? It is only through the free-flowing exploration of the body, the mind, and the spirit at work – on stage and in the streets – we can begin to make sense of work and its impact on our contemporary, urban lives.

Directed by | Phala Ookeditse Phala, William Kentridge & Nhlanhla Mahlangu

Contributions & Performances by | Napo Masheane, Andisiwe Mpinda, Faniswa Yisa, Princess Tshabangu, Lorin Sookool, Thabo Rapoo, Vusi Mdoyi, Michael Micca Manganye, Kieron Jina, Warrick Sony, Humphrey Maleka, Sello Pesa & Thireshen Govender.

Designed by | Thireshen Govender & Kyle Hollis

Props & Costumes by | Shruti Nair

Built by | FODES – Fountain of Design and Electrical Solutions

Cinematography & Editing by | Noah Cohen

Writing by | David Mann

Photography | Zivanai Matangi