Passion or profession: the training of theatre directors in South Africa

This article explores director training in the context of contemporary South Africa. Through individual interviews with ten South African theatre directors, we explore their origins and inspirations towards becoming a director. The selected directors differ in their ways of working and their personal backgrounds, providing a diverse spectrum of profiles that highlight the different skills required by theatre directors. Together, these interviews reflect the reality of the theatre industry in South Africa, which is somewhat haphazard and fragmented.The interviews explore how most of the selected directors, working across the spectrum of formal, well-funded theatre and under-resourced, community-based theatre, have fallen into directing as a default position, rather than receiving specific directing training during their studies. In most cases, this has been born out of a necessity to create their own work as actors, or to produce their own scripts as writers. This practice reflects how South African theatre directors are often driven by their own passion rather than by the professional training provided for directors in other countries.Based on these experiences, and the needs within the theatre industry in South Africa, the article concludes with suggestions for curriculum reform for theatre directors in the context of the South.

Automated summary

This article explores director training in contemporary South Africa. Ten South African theatre directors were individually interviewed to uncover their origins and inspirations for becoming directors. The interviewed directors have different working styles and personal backgrounds, providing a diverse range of profiles that showcase the various skills required by theatre directors. These interviews reflect the somewhat haphazard and fragmented nature of the theatre industry in South Africa. Most of the directors have fallen into directing as a default position due to the necessity of creating their own work as actors or producing their own scripts as writers. This highlights how South African theatre directors are often driven by their own passion rather than formal director training.