Paul Slabolepszy
Encyclopedia
Paul Slabolepszy or Paul "Slab", is a South Africa
n actor
and playwright
.
, England
. His mother was English and his father was a Polish refugee. The family then emigrated to South Africa.
He grew up in Musina
, Polokwane
and Witbank
. Slabolepszy went to a Catholic boarding school, the College Of The Little Flower in Polokwane.
His initial intention was to become a radio sports commentator. When the school played soccer, he would commentate and record the commentary for later playback. These commentaries soon became an institution. Slabolepszy then extended this to doing sports reports. The local newspaper accepted some of his contributions so he became a published sports journalist when he was 14.
Originally intending to pursue a career in radio, he majored in English and Drama at the University of Cape Town
. During this period, he saw his first professional theatre and was hooked on the buzz and the sense of immediacy. He then decided to focus on acting.
In 1983, Paul received the Standard Bank Young Artist Award
.
Arguably South Africa's preeminent playwright after Athol Fugard
, Slabolepszy is a prolific writer and performer. He was a founder member of The Space Theatre, South Africa's first non-racial theatre company, with Athol Fugard, Yvonne Bryceland
and John Kani
in 1972. Also a founder member of world renowned The Market Theatre in Johannesburg, together with Mannie Manim and Barney Simon in 1976.
His plays exploit the unease and uncertainty of lower-middle-class white South Africans.
He was a longtime friend and collaborator of the late actor Bill Flynn
. Slabolepszy has won multiple awards over the years, including every Best Actor award in 1993 for the role of Eddie in his self penned The Return of Elvis Du Pisanie
. This play won more awards than any other play in the history of South Africa theatre. These include the 1993 Vita, Fleur du Cap and Dalro Awards, Best New South African Play, Best Actor, Best Production, Best Director – as well as The Star
Tonight IGI Life Vita Award for Comedy.
His plays have been performed internationally.
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
Overview
Slabolepszy was born in BoltonBolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. His mother was English and his father was a Polish refugee. The family then emigrated to South Africa.
He grew up in Musina
Musina
Musina or Messina is the northernmost town in the Limpopo province of South Africa near the Limpopo River border to Zimbabwe. It has a population of between 20,000 and 40,000. Iron ore, coal, magnetite, graphite, asbestos, diamonds, semi-precious stones and copper are mined in the...
, Polokwane
Polokwane
Polokwane, meaning "Place of Safety",is a city in the Polokwane Local Municipality and the capital of the Limpopo province, South Africa. It is also often referred to by its former name, Pietersburg. Polokwane is a major urban centre, the biggest and most important north of Gauteng. The population...
and Witbank
Witbank
Witbank , also known as eMalahleni is a city situated on the Highveld of Mpumalanga, South Africa, within the eMalahleni Local Municipality. The name Witbank is Afrikaans for White Ridge and is named after a white sandstone outcrop where wagon transport drivers rested...
. Slabolepszy went to a Catholic boarding school, the College Of The Little Flower in Polokwane.
His initial intention was to become a radio sports commentator. When the school played soccer, he would commentate and record the commentary for later playback. These commentaries soon became an institution. Slabolepszy then extended this to doing sports reports. The local newspaper accepted some of his contributions so he became a published sports journalist when he was 14.
Originally intending to pursue a career in radio, he majored in English and Drama at the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
. During this period, he saw his first professional theatre and was hooked on the buzz and the sense of immediacy. He then decided to focus on acting.
In 1983, Paul received the Standard Bank Young Artist Award
Standard Bank Young Artist Award
The Standard Bank Young Artist Awards were started in 1981 by the National Arts Festival to recognise emerging, relatively young South African artists who have demonstrated exceptional ability in their chosen field. These prestigious awards are presented annually to deserving artists in three to...
.
Arguably South Africa's preeminent playwright after Athol Fugard
Athol Fugard
Athol Fugard is a South African playwright, novelist, actor, and director who writes in English, best known for his political plays opposing the South African system of apartheid and for the 2005 Academy-Award winning film of his novel Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood...
, Slabolepszy is a prolific writer and performer. He was a founder member of The Space Theatre, South Africa's first non-racial theatre company, with Athol Fugard, Yvonne Bryceland
Yvonne Bryceland
Yvonne Bryceland was a South African stage actress.-Career:Bryceland worked as a newspaper librarian before her theatrical début in Stage Door in 1947...
and John Kani
John Kani
Bonsile John Kani is a South African actor, director and playwright.He was born in New Brighton, South Africa.Kani joined The Serpent Players in Port Elizabeth in 1965 and helped to create many plays that went unpublished but were performed to a resounding reception.These...
in 1972. Also a founder member of world renowned The Market Theatre in Johannesburg, together with Mannie Manim and Barney Simon in 1976.
His plays exploit the unease and uncertainty of lower-middle-class white South Africans.
He was a longtime friend and collaborator of the late actor Bill Flynn
Bill Flynn
Bill Flynn was a South African actor and comedian. He was born in Cape Town and matriculated from Plumstead High School...
. Slabolepszy has won multiple awards over the years, including every Best Actor award in 1993 for the role of Eddie in his self penned The Return of Elvis Du Pisanie
The Return of Elvis Du Pisanie
The Return of Elvis Du Pisanie is a play by South Africa's Paul Slabolepszy.-Plot:This is a one-man play where the actor plays a raft of characters....
. This play won more awards than any other play in the history of South Africa theatre. These include the 1993 Vita, Fleur du Cap and Dalro Awards, Best New South African Play, Best Actor, Best Production, Best Director – as well as The Star
The Star (South Africa)
The Star is a daily newspaper based in Gauteng, South Africa. It has a readership of 840 000 and is owned by Independent News & Media. It gained worldwide attention in 2006 when it published survey results according to which about twenty percent of South African men have raped a woman in...
Tonight IGI Life Vita Award for Comedy.
His plays have been performed internationally.
Plays
- Renovations (1979)
- The Defloration of Miles Koekemoer (1980)
- Saturday Night at the PalaceSaturday Night at the PalaceSaturday Night at the Palace is a play by South Africa's Paul Slabolepszy and Bill Flynn.-Plot:The play relates the story of two working class whites who arrive at an isolated roadhouse just as it is closing....
(1982) - winner of Amstel, Vita & Fleur du Kap Best Play, ISBN 0-86-852062-4, Ad. Donker, 1985 - Karoo Grand (1983)
- Under the Oaks (1984)
- Over the Hill (1985) - Dalro Best Play award
- Boo to the Moon (1986)
- Making Like America (1986) - Vita Best Play award
- Travelling Shots (1988)
- Smallholding (1989) - Vita Best Play award
- One for the High Jump (1990)
- The Eyes of Their Whites (1990)
- Braait Laaities (1991) - Pick of the Fringe award, Grahamstown Festival
- Mooi Street Moves (1992) - Paper Boat Best Play award, Glasgow MayFest, Amstel Playwright of the Year AwardAmstel Playwright of the Year AwardThe Amstel Playwright of the Year Award, an independent non-governmental prize, was launched in South Africa in 1978. It recognised South African playwrights. The prize was awarded to many of South Africa's anti-apartheid playwrights....
, 1992, ISBN 1-86-814243-4, Witwatersrand University Press, 1994 - The Return of Elvis Du PisanieThe Return of Elvis Du PisanieThe Return of Elvis Du Pisanie is a play by South Africa's Paul Slabolepszy.-Plot:This is a one-man play where the actor plays a raft of characters....
(1992) - Vita, Fleur du Cap and Dalro Best Play awards - Pale Natives (1993)
- Victoria Almost Falls (1994)
- Tickle to Fine Leg (1994)
- Heel Against the Head (1996) - Vita, Star Tonight Best Comedy awards
- Once a Pirate (1996)
- Going for the Jocular (1997)
- Fordsburg's Finest (1997)
- Planet Perth (1998)
- Life's a Pitch (1998)
- Crashing the Night (2000)
- Running Riot (2001)
- It's Just Not Cricket (2002)
- Whole in One (2003)
- Art of Charf (Lady Lonely Hearts) (2005)
Screenplays
- Saturday Night at the PalaceSaturday Night at the PalaceSaturday Night at the Palace is a play by South Africa's Paul Slabolepszy and Bill Flynn.-Plot:The play relates the story of two working class whites who arrive at an isolated roadhouse just as it is closing....
- Merit Award, AFI (American Film InstituteAmerican Film InstituteThe American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
), Los Angeles, 1987 - Oh, Shucks - Here Comes UNTAG
- Heel Against the Head
- Swansong for Charlie - based on his play Over the Hill
- Running Riot
- Van Der Merwe P.I. - co-wrote for Philo Pieterse
- Prince of Pretoria - co-wrote for Franz Marx
- Taxi to Soweto - co-wrote for Edgar Bold
Books
- Drama for a New South Africa: Seven Plays, David Graver (Editor), ISBN 0-25-321326-6, Indiana University Press, 1999 (contains Mooi Street Moves)
- Mooi Street and Other Moves, by Paul Slabolepszy, Robert Greig (Introduction), Wits University Press, 1994, ISBN 1-86-814243-4. Includes Under the Oaks, Over the Hill, Travelling Shots, Smallholding, The Return of Elvis Du Pisanie and Mooi Street Moves
Acted in
- Senor Smith (1986) TV series - played Godfrey
- Saturday Night at the Palace (1987) - played Vince
- Reason to Die (1989) - played Kyle Bellows
- Rhodes (1996) TV mini-series - played Frederick Selous
- The Making of the Mahatma (1996) - played JC Smuts (aka Apprenticeship of a Mahatma)
- Heel Against the Head (1999)- played Crispin Wentzel
- Stander (2003) - played Politico
- Running Riot (2006) - played Crispin
Wrote or co-wrote
- Senor Smith (1986) (TV series)
- Saturday Night at the Palace (1987) (Screenplay)
- Kwagga Strikes BackOh Shucks! Here Comes UNTAGOh Shucks! Here Comes U.N.T.A.G! is a South African comedy film and Leon Schuster's big screen debut about a rugged farmer named Kwagga 'The Lion-Killer' Robertse having to deal with a corrupt major in the UN peace corps.- Plot :Kwagga Robertse owns a farm shop in the fictional Southern African...
(1990) (aka Oh Schucks... here comes UNTAG!) - Heel Against the Head (1999)
- Mama JackMama JackMama Jack is a 2005 Leon Schuster movie made in South Africa. It was directed by Gray Hofmeyr and distributed by Nu Metro.Tagline: He's hiding out... in someone else! or alternatively He's back... in black!-Plot:...
(2005) - Running Riot (2006)