‘JM Coetzee’s Life & Times Of Michael K’ is visually extraordinary with remarkable storytelling. Coetzee’s novel has been adapted by Lara Foot in collaboration with the Handspring Puppet Company. Produced by The Baxter Theatre Centre and Dusseldorfer Schauspielhaus. This production explores imprisonment, escapism, love and loss in the most beautifully balanced way.
The hauntingly beautiful story follows Michael K, a simple man who embarks on a journey through South Africa, ravaged by civil war, to return his mother to die on the farm where she was born. He finds strength in his own humanity, his profound connection to the earth and his unique path which, as it unfolds, reveals to him – his reason for living. Epic in scale, the multi-layered theatrical staging which combines puppetry, performance, film and evocative music, gives life to Coetzee’s Booker Prize-winning novel and brings together some of South Africa’s most revered, multi-award-winning artists and creatives.
The actors give an outstanding performance; Sandra Prinsloo, Andrew Buckland, Faniswa Yisa, Carlo Daniels, Billy Langa and Nolufefe Ntshuntshe. The humility that oozes off of the stage is beyond humbling, it’s the sincerity of the performers in delivering the performance which makes it so special. Some actors take on multiple roles to drive the narrative, each character distinguished expertly from the next, the use of pitch in order to achieve this outcome is the most notable. The delivery of the narrative is excellent, each performer takes their time, carefully filling in the gaps of action poetically.
The puppeteers Craig Leo, Roshina Ratnam and Marty Kintu all express absolute dedication to the performance. Their dedication truly brings the movement of the puppets to life. They use their own body language and facial expressions to become one with the puppet at times, almost making you forget their involvement in the action. They also interact with the puppet, creating genius moments of humour to combat any moment which may take away from the livelihood of the puppet – for example eating on behalf of the puppet etc. The puppeteers’ reactions were exceptionally important in our ability to buy into the novelty of the puppets on stage.
The production’s visual stimulation was incredible. The intricate details of the puppet, close up photography, short film, fantastic score and projections made the performance come to life. Although the story of Michael K roped us in, the creative decisions wowed the audience. The multimedia aspects worked in tandem with the puppetry and live actors to create an almost cinematic experience, with an extreme ephemeral feeling. These creative decisions added complex layers, which aided the emotive storytelling of the performance to strike a chord with the audience.
The performance explores Michaels imprisonment from birth to his adult life, his yearning for freedom and his passive resistance. This performance is thought provoking, bringing up feelings of privilege, simplicity, spirituality and our place on earth. A truly emotive, eye capturing piece of theatre which should be seen by all.
Fiona McPherson
Theatre Scotland 
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