Statements After An Arrest Under The Immorality Act

One of Athol Fugard’s least performed plays, Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act is a rare and powerful exploration of love, oppression, and the devastating reach of apartheid laws. Written in 1972, this intensely intimate drama is set in a time when relationships across South Africa’s racial divide were criminalized under the notorious Immorality Act.

At the heart of the play are Errol Philander, a man of mixed-race heritage, and Frieda Joubert, a white woman, who meet in secret in the library where Frieda works. In the privacy of their stolen moments, they share more than their bodies—they expose their fears, desires, and longing for freedom. Their fragile world is shattered when a neighbour informs the police, who covertly photograph them from a backyard before breaking in and arresting them under the inhuman apartheid law that deemed their love illegal.

Directed by Greg Karvellas, this Fugard Theatre and KKNK co-production opened to rapturous acclaim at the 2019 Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees (KKNK). With stark yet evocative staging, the production laid bare the raw emotions and harrowing consequences of state-controlled morality, making it one of the most gripping and rarely-seen works in Fugard’s repertoire.

This acclaimed production received five nominations at the 2019 KKNK Kanna Awards, including Best Production, Best Debut Production, Best Design (Wolf Britz), Best Actor (Marlo Minnaar), and Best Actress (Liezl de Kock).

★ “Marlo Minnaar (7de Laan, Santa Gamka, Sara Se Geheim, Boland Moorde) delivers a gripping performance as Errol Philander, while Liezl de Kock (Piet se Optelgoed, Crazy in Love, Pictures of You, African Gothic) is equally captivating as Frieda Joubert.”