Performing Christ A South African Protest Play and the Theological Dramatic Theory of Hans Urs von Balthasar by Marthinus Johannes Havenga Thesis presented in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Systematic Theology and Ecclesiology, Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch University Supervisor: Prof. Robert R. Vosloo April 2019 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Declaration By submitting this thesis, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the authorship owner thereof (unless to the extent explicitly otherwise stated) and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. Marthinus Johannes Havenga April 2019 Copyright © 2019 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved i Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Abstract In the latter part of the 20th century, against the backdrop of incidents such as the Sharpeville Massacre and the Soweto Uprising, theatre became one of the principal means of ‘artistic resistance’ in apartheid South Africa. An important play from this time was a work titled Woza Albert!, which was created and performed by the actor-duo Percy Mtwa and Mbogeni Ngema in 1981, with the help and creative input of the renowned theatre-maker and political activist, Barney Simon. What made this piece of protest theatre so powerful and provocative was the fact that it retold the Christ-narrative, as found in the Gospels, in the context of apartheid South Africa, with Jesus, or Morena (as he is called in Sesotho), arriving at the Pass Office in Albert Street, Johannesburg, to preach the Good News to the poor and to liberate the oppressed, who were suffering under the apartheid regime. This dissertation will aim to provide a theological reading of this important protest play, informed by the theological dramatic theory of the Swiss Catholic theologian, Hans Urs von Balthasar. It will begin by conducting an investigation into the nature, task, and scope of theology, before offering an extensive engagement with Balthasar’s theological dramatic theory, as developed in his five-volume work, Theo-drama (the second installment of his trilogy on ‘beauty’, ‘goodness’, and ‘truth’). This will be followed by an exploration of the history of (protest) theatre in South Africa, and a discussion of how Woza Albert! came into being. Balthasar’s theological dramatic theory will then be used to give a theological reading of the play. Opsomming In die tweede helfte van die 20ste eeu, teen die agtergrond van gebeure soos die Sharpeville- slagting en die Soweto-opstande, was teater een van die vernaamste maniere waarop die kunste weerstand teen apartheid in Suid-Afrika gebied het. ‘n Belangrike protes-toneelstuk wat in hierdie tydperk die lig gesien het, was ‘n werk getiteld Woza Albert!, wat in 1981 deur Percy Mtwa en Mbogeni Ngema, met die hulp en kreatiewe inset van die bekende dramaturg en politieke aktivis Barney Simon, geskep en opgevoer is. Wat hierdie protes-teaterstuk so treffend gemaak het, was die feit dat dit die Christusverhaal, soos dit in die Evangelies vervat is, in die konteks van apartheid oorvertel het, met Jesus, of Morena (soos hy in Sesotho genoem word), wat onverwags by die Paskantoor in Albertstraat, Johannesburg, opdaag om die Goeie Nuus aan diegene wat onder die apartheidsregime ly, te verkondig. Hierdie doktorale verhandeling het ten doel om ‘n teologiese lees van hierdie belangrike protes- teaterstuk te bied, wat deur die teologiese dramatiese teorie van die Switserse Katolieke teoloog Hans Urs von Balthasar geïnformeer is. Eerstens, sal daar ondersoek na die aard, taak, en omvang van teologie ingestel word, waarna Balthasar se teologiese dramatiese teorie, soos dit in sy vyf-volume werk Theo-drama (die tweede gedeelte van sy trilogie aangaande ‘skoonheid’, ‘goedheid’, en ‘waarheid’) ontwikkel is, onder die loep geneem sal word. Hierna sal die geskiedenis van (protes) teater in Suid-Afrika, asook die agtergrond van die toneelstuk Woza Albert!, bespreek word. Laastens sal Balthasar se teologiese dramatiese teorie as lens aangewend word om ‘n teologiese lees van Woza Albert! weer te gee. ii Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Acknowledgments First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Professor Robert Vosloo, for his encouragement, guidance, and generosity – not only during the writing of this doctoral dissertation, but ever since I first entered his classroom as an undergraduate student. Our conversations, usually over a cup of good coffee, have continually fuelled my theological imagination and have instilled in me a passion for theology in service of the Church and the world. I am both humbled and grateful to have him as mentor. I would furthermore like to thank all my other teachers at the Faculty of Theology at Stellenbosch University, who have contributed to my intellectual and spiritual formation over the years. A special mention is owed to Ms. Wilma Riekert, for her administrative help in finishing and submitting this dissertation, as well as to the staff at the theological library, for the way in which they have supported my research. Many thanks, also, to my fellow doctoral students in the discipline group of Systematic Theology and Ecclesiology, for their friendship and camaraderie. I would like to extend a word of thanks to Professor Graham Ward for inviting me and my wife to spend a term at Christ Church, Oxford, and to Professor Alexander Deeg for hosting us at Leipzig University, during the final stages of this dissertation. I gratefully acknowledge the financial support I have received from the South African National Research Foundation (NRF), the Deutsche Akademische Austauschdienst (DAAD), and the Curatorium of the Dutch Reformed Church of South Africa. Lastly, I wish to thank my parents, my siblings, my in-laws, and, most importantly, my wife Angelique, for their endless support, inspiration and, above all, love during the last three years. I dedicate this dissertation to them. Marthinus Johannes Havenga April 2019 iii Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Table of Contents Declaration i Abstract ii Acknowledgements iii 1. INTRODUCTION 1 1.1. South African Protest Theatre 1 1.2. A Theological Engagement with Woza Albert!? 5 1.3. Hans Urs von Balthasar and his Theological Dramatic Theory 7 1.4. Research Question, Chapter Outline, and Research Methodology 8 1.5. Performing Christ 9 2. A ‘CULTURALLY ENGAGED’ SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY 10 2.1. Introduction – The Task of Theology? 10 2.2. God and Everything in Relation to God 11 2.3. Unravelling the Tapestry of Heaven and Earth 21 2.4. Graham Ward's 'Culturally Engaged' Systematic Theology 30 2.5. Hans Urs von Balthasar as 'Culturally Engaged' Theologian 37 2.6. Conclusion – Towards Balthasar's Theological Dramatic Theory 50 3. THEODRAMA I: THE THEATRE STAGE AND THE WORLD STAGE 51 3.1. Introduction 51 3.2. From Aesthetics to Dramatics 52 3.3. A Theological Dramatic Theory 60 3.4. Responding to Objections 68 3.5. Theatre as the 'Symbol' of the World 82 3.6. Theatre and the Illumination of Existence 85 3.7. The Actor's Role / Mission on the World Stage 90 3.8. Conclusion 96 4. THEO-DRAMA II: THE DRAMA OF REDEMPTION 97 4.1. Introduction 97 4.2. A Christology of Mission 99 4.3. The Witness of Jesus’ Public Life 106 4.4. Christ's Death – For Us and With Us 116 4.5. Resurrection 126 4.6. The Christian Life 135 4.7. The Political Dimensions of Balthasar's Theological Dramatic Theory 144 4.8. Balthasar's Sermons 148 iv Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za 4.9. Conclusion 153 5. SOUTH AFRICAN PROTEST THEATRE AND A THEOLOGICAL ENGAGEMENT WITH WOZA ALBERT! 155 5.1. Introduction 155 5.2. Pre-Colonial Theatre and the Introduction of Christianity 156 5.3. Dhlomo, Kente, and Fugard 162 5.4. Barney Simon and the Market Theatre 174 5.5. The Genesis of Woza Albert! 182 5.6. Woza Albert! 188 5.7. Woza Albert! and Balthasar's Theological Dramatic Theory 199 5.8. Conclusion 220 6. CONCLUSION 221 6.1. A Brief Overview of the Dissertation 221 6.2. For Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places 226 7. BIBLIOGRAPHY 230 v Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za As kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies draw flame; As tumbled over rim in roundy wells Stones ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell's Bow swung finds tongue to fling out broad its name; Each mortal thing does one thing and the same: Deals out that being indoors each one dwells; Selves — goes itself; myself it speaks and spells, Crying Whát I dó is me: for that I came. I say móre: the just man justices; Keeps grace: thát keeps all his goings graces; Acts in God's eye what in God's eye he is — Chríst — for Christ plays in ten thousand places, Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his To the Father through the features of men's faces. As Kingfishers Catch Fire Gerard Manley Hopkins1 1 Gerard Manley Hopkins, The Poetical Works of Gerard Manley Hopkins, ed. Norman H. MacKenzie (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990), 141. Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za – 1 – Introduction “More than a mere instrument to be used in the worship of God, the body is also a site and weapon of protest, as we see in art and theatre both sacred and profane.” Frank C. Senn2 “Theology … meets us at every turn in our literature, it is the secret assumption, too axiomatic to be distinctly professed, of all our writers; nor can we help assuming it ourselves, except by the most unnatural vigilance.” John Henry Newman3 1.1.