Selwyn (mid-20s)
A young white man in his mid twenties. He works as a trainee estate agent. Bright, troubled and deeply unhappy.
Selwyn & Gabriel
"This is a poignant, tender piece of theatre – wryly observed, skilfully crafted, funny and affirming."
— Robyn Cohen, Cape Times
Synopsis
Selwyn & Gabriel
A magical modern mystery about two strangers with secrets.
Late one night, after an electrical fire plunges his apartment into darkness, twenty-six-year-old Selwyn Bernstein wakes to find a stranger sitting calmly at his kitchen table.
Claiming to be an assessor sent to investigate the incident, Gabriel arrives carrying a briefcase filled with an electrician's toolkit, a fingerprint kit, a magnifying glass, a typewriter and a sheaf of official forms.
What begins as an investigation into an electrical fire gradually becomes an examination of a young man's life. Through a series of hilarious, provocative and at times tender encounters, Gabriel challenges Selwyn's ideas about race, identity, ambition, creativity and love. Together they argue, sing and dance as Gabriel questions the beliefs Selwyn holds about himself.
Hidden grief, artistic longing, loneliness, depression and Selwyn's fear of acknowledging that he is gay gradually surface as the boundary between reality and imagination becomes increasingly uncertain.
As Gabriel's true purpose becomes clear, Selwyn is forced to confront both his attempted suicide and the truth he has spent his life denying. By dawn, he reaches a profound moment of self-acceptance, choosing truth and life.
Production History
From Cape Town to the National Arts Festival
Selwyn & Gabriel was originally staged at the Alexander Bar & Theatre in Cape Town, directed by Tara Notcutt and starring Kai Luke Brummer and Mbulelo Grootboom.
The production returned for a second season following sold-out performances and was later presented at the National Arts Festival.
It was subsequently presented at several South African arts festivals and adapted for Afrikaans television.
Read about the original production and watch highlights from the show →Characters & Play Details
Gabriel (mid-30s)
A tall imposing black man in his mid thirties. He is a modern wingless angel, assigned to earth.
GenreContemporary Drama / Magical Realism / Mystery
Cast2 actors
Running Time60 minutes
SettingSelwyn's apartment, over the course of one night
ThemesIdentity, belonging, mental health, self-acceptance, creativity, love and human connection
AudienceSuitable for audiences aged 15 and older. Addresses depression and suicide.
Gabriel’s Orations
GABRIEL
There was fire and there was sound... a fiery sky of anguish that woke the angels from their slumber and then such great, great darkness – impenetrable, engulfing – as though the sun itself were bled of light. And I…
I was impelled to move from there to here… I could not be unmoved... so now, here we are in this drab and undetermined life – dim-lit, dim souls with our noises and our smells and our dim, dim vision – men without reason – earth of man – darkness of man – I am here in your dark heartbeat.
SELWYN
What the fuck? In my dark heartbeat?
GABRIEL
Yes… I fear so.
SELWYN
Who are you?
GABRIEL
I… I am the assessor.
