Esteemed theatre director Janice Honeyman’s award-winning musical, The Color Purple, is heading to Shanghai, China for a two week run mid-July.
It will open at the famous SAIC-Shanghai Culture Square Theatre with an all South African cast telling the story made famous by American writer Alice Walker, whose book by the same name was made into a movie starring Danny Glover, Whoppi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey.
Set in 1909, it is a coming of age musical that tells the story of Celie, an African American teenager growing up in rural Georgia who has had two children by her abusive father, both of whom have been taken from her. Her father then gives her away as a wife to widower Albert "Mister" Johnson, who already has three children and who also abuses Celie.
The South African version of the musical opened in February 2018 at the Joburg Theatre, due to popular demand, the show was given another season in August of the same year.
According to the Sowetan , Executive producer Bernard Jay regards the China tour as the play's biggest achievement saying, “I am so proud of the achievement of each and every member of this production. They deserve acknowledgement of success and will be flying the flag for Joburg Theatre, for the City of Joburg and for South Africa as a country by taking their talents internationally with this glorious musical.”
The 1,800-seater theatre in Shanghai', pictured below, is one of its major tourist attractions with many huge productions from Broadway to the West End having appeared on its stage.
