{"id":213,"date":"2014-10-03T10:20:06","date_gmt":"2014-10-03T08:20:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/?p=213"},"modified":"2025-08-18T12:53:30","modified_gmt":"2025-08-18T11:53:30","slug":"be-transported-with-the-year-of-the-bicycle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/?p=213","title":{"rendered":"Be transported with The Year of the Bicycle"},"content":{"rendered":"

An instantaneous resounding applause and standing ovation. What more needs to be said? The Year of the Bicycle<\/em> is good and the people know it. They feel it.<\/p>\n

I will say more, though. It\u2019s not difficult to explain why it’s good\u2026<\/p>\n

Quick context: 1997: Andile (Aphiwe Livi) is \u201c8 years old\u201d and his favourite subjects \u201care all the subjects\u201d. His grandmother is a domestic worker in Hout Bay. Playing there one day, he accidentally kicks his ball into the neighbour\u2019s garden. Only child Amelia (Amy Wilson), also 8, can\u2019t find the ball but insists he should return the following day to ride on her bicycle she got for Christmas. A friendship blossoms.<\/p>\n

Neither are concerned with, nor even seem to notice their difference in \u2018privilege\u2019. Andile is only concerned that the boys will laugh at him for \u201cplaying with a girl\u201d. Amelia describes that only the white children can also go to the horse school \u2013 but she doesn\u2019t really know why\u2026<\/p>\n

A story like this runs the risk of being sentimental. But all I saw were two kids having fun together, aware of but unfazed by the worlds that separate them. All that matters is the world they create that brings them together. But they are kids too, they’re spiteful sometimes. These rough, hurtful moments keep sentimentality at bay.<\/p>\n

The plot is complexly arranged and intriguing. Andile lights beacons throughout his life, represented by the solar lights on stage. These memories keep him rooted when he finds his \u201cbody is broken\u201d. Amelia\u2019s body is broken too, after a bicycle accident, but her \u201cmind is still working\u201d. In this state, Andile tries to get through to Amelia, but she doesn\u2019t \u201cwant to wake up\u201d, she won’t acknowledge him, the true situation of his life. Switching off, staying removed is easier for her.<\/p>\n

A fishbowl, used as a terrarium, contains the world they know. Amelia explains where everyone lives: the whites this side, the blacks here, and the coloureds by the sea so they can catch their fish. Her \u201cmom gets headaches\u201d from the political unrest and violence \u201con the black side\u201d \u2013 she fears the civil war, the uprising, that many whites feared would happen post-1994 (some still await it), the one which never happened. Living in a fishbowl\u2026<\/p>\n

A cardboard \u201cbaby brother\u201d is what eventually disrupts their friendship. They argue over him, she wants to cut him in half, but \u201clike the Solomon story\u201d Andile wants to keep him whole \u2013 \u201cshe\u2019s already got everything, why does she want baby brother too?\u201d  But, baby brother \u201cwon\u2019t be safe\u201d at Andile\u2019s house, Amelia says. She wants the best of both worlds. The cracks start to form, the mutual judgements on each other\u2019s social standing appear\u2026 From what outsiders have said to their young minds? Or is it inevitable that people from \u2018opposite sides\u2019 can never be true friends?<\/p>\n

Their imagination games bond them in their youth. Later in life a series of terrible events lands both youngsters, now 18, in a sorry state of isolation. Somehow, their bond is rekindled, within the confines of their minds.<\/p>\n

Livi and Wilson, directed by Joanna Evans, create a wonderfully different world. They dance with a bicycle wheel, indulge each other\u2019s bad bollamakiesies and overplayed airplane crash scene, and forgive easily so their happy play times can continue. These crafted details, viewing South Africa\u2019s tense transformation, through children\u2019s innocently perceptive eyes, makes for a superb, moving, haunting piece of theatre. – Sarah Roberson<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Year of the Bicycle<\/em> is on today (03\/10) @ 1.05pm @ City Hall. Click here for production info<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An instantaneous resounding applause and standing ovation. What more needs to be said? The Year of the Bicycle is good and the people know it. They feel it. I will say more, … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[10,11],"tags":[66,86,152,383,847],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=213"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5299,"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213\/revisions\/5299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=213"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=213"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=213"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}