Renowned actress Aletta Bezuidenhout has sadly passed away at the age of 76.
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Originally from Nairobi, Kenya, where her father worked as an engineer, Bezuidenhout received her training at the University of Cape Town (UCT) under the tutelage of Professors Rosalie van der Gucht, Robert Mohr and Mavis Taylor.
Throughout the 1970s, she graced the stage in numerous productions at the Space Theatre, a pivotal alternative theatre space in Cape Town. Among these productions were Dusa Stas Fish and Vi, The Resistable Rise of Arturo UI, and Treats.
Her noteworthy performances for the Performing Arts Councils included Reza de Wet’s Drie Susters Twee (Three Sisters Two, ArtsCape) and Oscar in Afrika (Aardklop, 1999).
As a playwright, her repertoire encompasses Time of Footsteps (Windybrow Theatre), Silent Envelope (Market Theatre – Director), Angel in a Dark Room (Adcock Ingram Theatre), and Little Big World (Market Theatre). Additionally, she directed Straws, her play, at the Pot-Pourri Festival in 1985.
She also appeared in numerous films, including Lied van die Lappop, In My Country and Orion, among others.
Johan Engelbrecht, an award-winning author, actor, singer and designer, paid tribute to her on Facebook:
Bezuidenhout’s contributions garnered her numerous accolades, including a DALRO award for Best Actress for Klaaglied vir Koos and Anthony and Cleopatra, Scenes from an Execution, and The Maids, for which she received both a DALRO and Vita award for Best Actress.
In 1997, she clinched an FNB Vita award for Best Lead Actress in Drie Susters Twee.
‘Aletta Bezuidenhout was a luminary of South African theatre, casting a brilliant presence before the movie cameras. Her powerful performance in the Afrikaans rendition of Bertolt Brecht’s Mutter Mut und ihre Kinder remains etched in my memory,’ says Anroux Marais, Western Cape minister of cultural affairs and sport.
‘It was a tour de force – robust theatre, and truly magnificent. Her capacity to breathe life into any character with her immense talent has indelibly marked South African film and theatre. My sincere condolences go out to her family and friends during this challenging period.’
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