On Thursday 9 June, the matrics who take Afrikaans were in high spirits when the Educational Theatre Company, Pit Produksies, brought the IEB Afrikaans syllabus to life. Their performance of our set work Asem by Jan Vermeulen and nine of the 12 matric poems were beautifully played out by the three talented actors: Arno Meyer, Lee Visagie and Tiaan Slabbert.

We were joined by the matriculants who take Afrikaans at St Teresa’s and together we were entertained by the spectacle put on by Pit Produksies. Pit Produksies is a company that is passionate about education and has been helping IEB matrics since 2000. The company prides themselves in treating actors fairly and being reliable. This was truly reflected in their performance as the actors made the audience laugh at their eccentric characterisations of the characters in the novel as well as think deeply about the moving choreography of the many poems.

Their performance perfectly contextualised our set work. I am endlessly grateful to the Afrikaans department at St Mary’s for giving us this opportunity. A peer in fact said that it was the best thing she had seen all year. This made me think that, in a year as demanding as matric, the Afrikaans department was able to turn that pressure into a fun learning experience. We would like to express our gratitude to the Pit Produksies and the department.

HANNAH DE LANGE
MATRIC STUDENT