The second presentation in the 6th Artscape Spring Drama Season, and the first full production, will be launched in the Artscape Arena on October 16 with The Night Doctor, a new play by Juliet Jenkin.
"A close friend of mine is a doctor and we were living together when she was at med school and doing her community work," says Jenkin. "I was interested in what being a doctor in South Africa is like. I used medicine as a symbol and a starting point, and it developed from there into what we have now. It has many points of reference and deals with family, violence and hope."
The play is directed by Liz Mills and stars Alex Halligey in the title role as Catherine, Adrienne Pearce plays her mother, Adrian Galley her father, Tinarie van Wyk Loots plays her veterinarian sister, Margot, and Thato Cele plays the role of Benedict.
Designs are by Alfred Rietmann, with lighting by Kobus Rossouw.
Catherine returns to her parents' house in Pietermaritzburg after reaching a crisis point in her career. The lines of communication are strained until Benedict's arrival shakes things up.
"I like to think that all my work is different," she says. "This piece doesn't have any kind of agenda or examine anything on macro-political scale. These are very personal stories. It is a mixture between realism and a kind of magical lyricism.
"The structure is quite traditional in that it has a clear beginning, middle and end. I hope that audiences will be moved by it. It's a play about violence, but it's not a violent play. It's about the value in finding ways to communicate to each other when it's most difficult to. I hope that people see parts of themselves reflected onstage. All my plays are about hope. I hope."
Jenkin has written plays including The Boy Who Fell From The Roof, Venom, More South African Deep Freezing and Library. Even after having all of these performed on stages around the country, she still gets very nervous on opening night.
"There are some amazing people who are staging the play," she says. "Even so, there's a huge amount of fear involved in seeing your work onstage for the first time.
"I always feel like vomiting and I get migraines. Just the thought of opening night makes me want to take seven Myprodols."