Originally written in the early 1990s, Poison was very well received in South Africa, Malaysia and England. It had a return season, directed by Bobby Heaney, at the Baxter Theatre in 2004 as part of the Klipfontein Corridor Project.
With this reworked version of the powerful musical, Kramer has decided to tell the story from the point of view of Pamela – a social worker who is writing her thesis on drug abuse in the Cape Flats.
Kramer was also the Music Exchange keynote speaker, this year, and brought a wealth of knowledge to attendees; consider the fact that over two million people have seen his theatre productions.
I caught up with the master, last week.
I’m happiest when I’m in a creative space – using my imagination to find solutions to the problems I’ve set myself
Music is a means of expressing and soliciting emotion.
Thinking about it, and collaborating with other creatives.
I think ego drives the creative process, but it needs to be tempered by humility.
Many – from Charles Chaplin to Chuck Berry.
A ukulele that was given to me by my oupa and ouma when I was six.
A dry white wine.
An original vision. The pursuit of that which gives expression to how I interpret my situation.
I don’t think of myself as a musician. I use music and words to help engage others emotionally. I would paint.
Curious. Hasty. Self-absorbed. Funny. Serious.
My porkpie hat.
Wakkerslaap: To be alert to possibilities.
I don’t make lists or have a bucket.
Performing my work on The West End, Broadway and Carnegie Hall.
Short-sighted politics.
That the greedy will not be stopped.
Elusive, but manifests in my connections with others.
Become the persona that I keep hidden most of the time.
