KNYSNA NEWS - News of the death of Clinton Marius, one of the three dedicated men behind the Knysna Theatre, has been met with shock and great sadness by people in the performing arts all over South Africa.
According to business partner William Charlton-Perkins, Marius underwent heart surgery at Groote Schuur in Cape Town for the better part of yesterday but did not manage to pull through in the end.
“Clinton was so thrilled at the prospect of putting his all into the theatre scene in our new hometown. We are battling right now to comprehend his sudden illness and passing. But as I type these words, I can hear him urging us to keep going, in the honoured theatre tradition the world over that 'the show must go on'. We will honour this in every way we can," Charlton-Perkins said, adding that a memorial service will be held for Marius not only in Knysna but also in Durban and Cape Town.
Marius, an acclaimed South African playwright and performer (see abridged biog below), first graced our section of shore along with Charlton-Perkins and Riaan Timson since about July last year. They moved here from Durban to continue their love of theatre under the auspices of their company Copy Dog Productions and immediately opened the Knysna Theatre in Main Street.
Among the streams of tributes that have been pouring in since the news hit SA’s theatre world, Ismael Mahomed, the CEO of the Market Theatre in Johannesburg, had this to say on Facebook:
“Clinton’s sudden passing yesterday has cut short a life filled with so much talent, passion and gentleness. May his soul rest in peace and the work and dreams that he created continue to inspire us… To the community of Knysna where Clinton was just beginning to grow his wings so that other artists could fly under it. Each time that the lights go on in the Knysna Theatre let it be a memorial to this gentleman and his remarkable body of work.”
A multi-award-winning writer-director, The Durban University of Technology selected Clinton in 2012 as the featured writer in their second annual Children's Theatre Festival. His play The Calf with No Name was selected for inclusion in a South African textbook for Grade 8 English FAL. He has served as a regional and national judge in the NLDTF/PANSA Festival of Reading New Writing, and for the Writers’ Guild of South Africa’s Muse Awards. Clinton created and wrote the smash hit radio comedy series Lollipop Lane, which was broadcast twice daily on LotusFM, breaking numerous broadcasting records during its four-year run. Other award-winning triumphs include the children’s theatre production Fantastical Flea Circus and his adult comedy Bitch Stole My Doek, which scooped a Standard Bank Ovation Award when it played on the 2015 National Arts Festival Fringe, before taking audiences by storm on the Cape Town Fringe Festival, and being nominated for six Durban Theatre Awards, winning Best New South African Script, Best Lead Actress and best Comedic Performance awards. Other writing credits include White Christmas, I Feel Pretty and the multi-award-winning Sweetie Darling. (www.copydogonline.com)
'We bring you the latest Knysna, Garden Route news'
