Copyright by Tyler David Fleming 2009
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Copyright by Tyler David Fleming 2009 The Dissertation Committee for Tyler David Fleming Certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: “King Kong, Bigger Than Cape Town”: A History of a South African Musical Committee: Toyin Falola, Supervisor Barbara Harlow Karl Hagstrom Miller Juliet E. K. Walker Steven J. Salm “King Kong, Bigger than Cape Town”: A History of a South African Musical by Tyler David Fleming, B.A.; M.A. Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Texas at Austin August 2009 Dedication For my parents because without them, I literally would not be here. “King Kong, Bigger Than Cape Town”: A History of a South African Musical Publication No._____________ Tyler David Fleming, Ph.D. The University of Texas at Austin, 2009 Supervisor: Oloruntoyin Falola This dissertation analyzes the South African musical, King Kong , and its resounding impact on South African society throughout the latter half of the twentieth century. A “jazz opera” based on the life of a local African boxer (and not the overgrown gorilla from American cinema), King Kong featured an African composer and all-black cast, including many of the most prominent local musicians and singers of the era. The rest of the play’s management, including director, music director, lyricist, writer and choreographer, were overwhelmingly white South Africans. This inter-racial collaboration was truly groundbreaking in a nation where apartheid was officially enacted a little over a decade prior to King Kong ’s 1959 debut. Relatively apolitical in its message, King Kong proved accessible to South African audiences regardless of race or background, and became overwhelmingly lauded as an endeavor that all of the country could enjoy and cherish. The musical successfully toured South Africa’s major v metropolises, often to sold-out crowds. Its domestic success later spurred a tour of Britain in 1961, making it the first major South African theatrical production to be staged abroad. Due to the multi-racial efforts behind King Kong , its success and the high quality of its performers, the musical initiated a new era in South African music and theatre for decades to come. Despite being based around King Kong , this dissertation contextualizes the production, as it uses King Kong ’s creation, development and legacies to further analyze larger themes within South African and global histories. Each chapter, as a result, examines the evolution of the musical from the life story of the boxer from which the play is based, the musical’s making and tour of South Africa, the play’s 1961 tour of the United Kingdom, the experiences of the black casts in exile, and the failure of the play’s 1979 remake. By examining the play, its cast, and their collective legacies both in South Africa and further afield, this project complicates our understanding of the Black Atlantic framework by infusing Africans as active participants in these transnational discussions. vi Table of Contents Introduction ..............................................................................................................1 Chapter One "Marvelous Muscles": Black Boxing on the Reef during the 1950s and the History of King Kong, the Heavyweight ................................................16 The Emergence of Boxing in South Africa ..................................................17 The Place of Black Boxing on the Reef ........................................................24 King Kong: The Man Behind The Myth.......................................................27 King Kong: From Boxer to Idol ...................................................................37 Boxing Monikers and the Origin of "King Kong" .......................................43 The Overthrow of a King .............................................................................46 Kong Lives On As "South Africa's James Dean" ........................................62 Chapter Two "Back of the Moon": Entertaining the Possibility of a New South Africa ..................................................................................................................... 68 The Establishment of the Union of Southern African Artists .......................73 Todd Matshikiza: An African Composing the All-African Musical ............80 Conceptualizing King Kong .........................................................................85 Casting and Staging King Kong ...................................................................93 Rehearsing Africa under White Supervision .............................................104 Funding an "All-African" Musical .............................................................109 Reaction to King Kong by the Press and Public ........................................112 Touring South Africa (Or Not) ..................................................................132 Complete Collaboration or Continuing with Apartheid? ...........................136 Conclusion .................................................................................................148 Chapter Three "Kwela Kong": The Trials and Tribulations of a South African Musical Abroad ...........................................................................................151 Jack Hylton, Theatre and Popular Music in Britain ....................................153 Bringing King Kong to the West End Heading ...........................................165 Initial Expectations of this British King Kong ...........................................175 vii Critiquing King Kong .................................................................................183 The Politics of Being Apolitical ................................................................199 (Potentially) Coming to America and the Demise of a Musical ................214 Conclusion .................................................................................................219 Chapter Four "Sad Times, Bad Times": Issues of Exile, the King Kong Cast, and South African Jazz in Britain, 1960-1980 ...................................................220 Preconceived Notions of Exile and Life Abroad ........................................222 Exile and the South African Community ....................................................224 King Kongers and African Music in Britain ...............................................231 The Pain of Failure and the Taste of Disappointment ................................239 Out of Work and Into Acting ......................................................................243 Back Home..................................................................................................249 Assimilating into the Real World and Real Jobs ........................................253 Conclusion ..................................................................................................259 Chapter Five "The Boy's [and Girl's] Doin' It": Moving to America and Re- Discovering Africa, 1960-1985 ..................................................................260 Choosing America over Britain ..................................................................262 Kongers Coming to America ......................................................................264 Being African in America ...........................................................................269 Africanizing American Music.....................................................................274 Politics and the Performer Post-Kong .........................................................291 The Lost Promises of Africa and "Almost" Back Home ............................302 Conclusion ..................................................................................................314 Chapter Six "Death Song": The 1979 King Kong (s), Remaking a Legend, and Producing a Disaster ...................................................................................316 Shifts in Black Drama Since 1959 ..............................................................317 An African American Directing an African Experience: ...........................323 Redoing a "Sensational African music drama" ..........................................335 Remaking a Remake ...................................................................................348 Conclusion ..................................................................................................352 viii Bibliography ........................................................................................................357 Vita…. ..................................................................................................................374 ix Introduction On February 2, 1959, a “jazz opera” entitled King Kong premiered at Johannesburg’s University of the Witwatersrand. In relationship to South African society of the 1950s, this musical was a radically novel venture in that it featured an African composer, orchestra and cast while the directorial and organizational teams were overwhelmingly comprised of white South Africans. With its interracial makeup, the musical represented a bold cultural experiment of cooperation and interaction between blacks and whites, and therefore encapsulated precisely the kind of endeavor that the apartheid state frowned upon. This event in itself was a moral victory against apartheid. Even more shocking than its staging, the audience