Carol Kgafela
The No 1 Ladies Opera House is fast becoming the number one spot for performing arts in Botswana having hosted opera performances by the likes of The Three Tswana Tenors and Boitumelo Pilane to mention but a few. This past Saturday the coffee shop played host to Adrian Brincat’s My Father’s Hat. My Father’s hat is an hour long solo play performed by Adrian. Adrian, who is head of the department of drama at Maru-a-pula School, is also a real-life magician who has in the past entertained young children. Speaking about this particular play Adrian says, “The play looks at three generations of men who love to do magic, it is also about father-son relationships especially in families raised in showbiz”.
In the play, Adrian displays exceptional acting prowess, as he switches between the many characters (at least 10); being an old woman one minute, a young boy the next all the while using physical theatre, masks , mime and magic to enhance the performance.
According to Ayanda Khala, who has been working with Adrian as his director for the past six months, My Father’s Hat is not just a play but a true story based on the actor’s own life and personal experiences. “Adrian is an amazing and talented performer, and the audience finds it easy to relate to him and enjoy the show. The play is simple but very effective as we can all relate to the story of hardships and following your dreams,” stated Ayanda.
The performance was described as outstanding and captivating by a number of people in the audience. According to them, Adrian is an excellent and talented performer who has the ability to captivate and hold the audiences’ attention, drawing them into the story through the various characters and emotions he displays on stage.
This was mostly done through his interactive performance, making the audience feel like they were part of the story by talking to them directly and having them participate in his magic tricks. Some of these tricks included the disappearing handkerchief act and, pulling money from the oddest of places. According to Ayanda, these tricks added the “magic touch” to the performance as they appealed to all audiences across age-o-meter allowing adults too to “relax and be kids again.”
Judging from the marvelous audience response in the opera house, Ayanda says that they had not planned for another show but because of popular demand, they are now considering it so as to give more people the opportunity to come and see this exceptional play.
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Entertainment 
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