‘Master Harold’… and the Boys

Set in a tea room in Port Elizabeth on a dreary, wet afternoon in 1950, ‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys is a poignant coming of age story and exploration of a friendship between a young white boy (Hally) and the two adult black men he has grown up around (Sam and Willie), against the backdrop of the oppressive, divisive apartheid laws of the time. Although their educations are worlds apart, Sam has helped guide Hally from boy to manhood, educating him about the realities and injustices of the world, while Hally, in turn, teaches Sam what he has learnt at school. Their friendship has taken on an almost fatherly role for Hally, as he struggles with the strained relationship with his alcoholic father. During their debates and reminiscing on a rainy afternoon, Sam and Willie talk about their dreams of winning a ballroom competition – their ‘world without collisions’ – a metaphor for their aspirations and yearning to create a better life for themselves. The peace is broken with the news Hally’s drunken father is returning home, unleashing a wave of anger in Hally that leads to an unprecedented bigoted outburst.