Truth in Translation

You only have to flick through the Fringe programme to see that musicals are a ridiculous genre. From Jihad: The Musical to any number of cut-price, half-brained Shakespeares-with-songs, they are clearly created by idiots for idiots.

Truth in Translation is, however, quite a different animal. Essentially a play about post-apartheid South Africa dealing with its horrific past, its use of music is extraordinary and brilliant. It includes many tradtional African choral pieces, but most powerful, at least to an English speaker, are the songs which mix African influences with a hint of Broadway, creating an eerie beauty when combined with lyrics describing the terrible tragedies and atrocities.

Unfortunately, the non-musical elements of the play are not as strong. Non-South Africans may find it hard to comprehend the many culturally-specific references relating to stereotypes and events. The plot – such as it is – is set among a group of eight interpreters at the Truth and Reconciliation Commision. Although the characters' interactions effectively illustrate the problems of reconciling a divided nation, none of the personalities are more than examples of a type or problem. Additionally, none of the characters are individually affecting simply due to the multitude involved.

Still, telling the story of one or another person is not the mission of this play. Its brilliance lies in using the material of Apartheid horrors to stun the audience in the most beautiful manner, and it deserves its standing ovation for that alone.