Tannie Evita returns to where it all began

South African satirist Pieter-Dirk Uys is bringing his legendary alter ego, Evita Bezuidenhout, back to Johannesburg’s Market Theatre on 21 October, revisiting the political and social upheavals that shaped South Africa between 1981 and 1994.

The performance, Evita @ 91, forms part of the Market Theatre’s 50th anniversary celebrations and marks a return to the venue where the character first captured public attention.

Evita made her debut in April 1981 in Uys’s production Adapt or Dye, Artslink reports. Since then, the fictional former ambassador to the equally fictional Independent Homeland Republic of Bapetikosweti has become one of South Africa’s most recognisable satirical characters.

Through Evita, Uys chronicled the final years of apartheid, the transition to democracy and the political contradictions that followed.

Her fictional career has included membership of the ANC and a continuing role in the kitchen of Luthuli House, where she remains preoccupied with the ingredients of national reconciliation.

Although Tannie Evita supposedly keeps her opinions carefully to herself, the character has never been reluctant to confront political personalities or uncomfortable national questions.

Over more than four decades, Evita has become a vehicle for social commentary, combining humour, political satire and theatrical performance.

The forthcoming production promises a frank examination of contemporary South Africa, drawing on the irreverence and sharp observations that have characterised Uys’s work. Evita @ 91 celebrates the character’s theatrical legacy while questioning how much South Africa has changed since the turbulent years preceding democracy.

The performance begins at 19:00 on Wednesday, 21 October, at the Market Theatre in Johannesburg.

Tickets are available through Webtickets.