I can't think of a single one of my plays that does not represent a coincidence between an external and an internal event. Something outside of me, outside even my own life, something I read in a newspaper or witness on the street, something I see or hear, fascinates me. I see it for its dramatic potential.
Interpretation
The quote highlights how external experiences and observations inspire creativity in artistic expression.
Athol Fugard expresses the idea that his plays are created from the intersection of external events and personal internal feelings. He draws inspiration from the world around him, whether it’s something he encounters in daily life or in the news, and recognizes the dramatic potential that resides in those moments, suggesting that art is deeply rooted in both experience and reflection.
In practice
A theater director can use this quote when discussing the importance of real-world events as sources for contemporary plays.
What I quickly discovered is that our so-called new South Africa has as much material for a story-teller as the old one. The landscape hasn't really changed. Who is in power now is different to who was in power then, but the squatter camps grow like cancer, the rich get richer, the poor get poorer.
For most of my writing life, I've refused to allow myself to believe that writing was a significant form of action. I always felt very uneasy about the fact that all I did was write in a situation as desperate as apartheid South Africa. Whether I was correct or not is a different issue.
You'll see that the strong, the affirmative, the positive voice in any of the plays I've written is that of a woman. My men are, well, not quite worthless, but they are certainly weak, and that reflects the reality I grew up with and what I think has in a sense shaped me.
For you in the West to hear the phrase 'All men are created equal' is to draw a yawn. For us, it's a miracle. We're starting out at rock bottom, man. But South Africa does have soul.
As fascinated as I was by words on paper, it was matched by my fascination with words in people's mouths. The spoken word. And that is the world of theatre.
It has often been observed that the repercussion of poetic language on prose language can be considered a decisive cut of a whip.
The emotion of beauty is always obscured by the appearance of the object. Therefore, the object must be eliminated from the picture.
I don't know what is better than the work that is given to the actor - to teach the human heart the knowledge of itself.
People observe the colors of a day only at its beginnings and ends, but to me it's quite clear that a day merges through a multitude of shades and intonations with each passing moment. A single hour can consist of thousands of different colors. Waxy yellows, cloud-spot blues. Murky darkness. In my line of work, I make it a point to notice them.
Perhaps Bach and Beethoven are strange bedfellows for Mickey Mouse, but it's all been a lot of fun.
Look and think before opening the shutter. The heart and mind are the true lens of the camera.
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