Out of the Shadows: Notions of Memory and Remembrance

This chapter documents the experience of musical director Leonore Bredekamp and some of the band members who took part in the Stellenbosch production of Prinz Bettliegend. Engagement with the music included reworking arrangements by the musical director of the Australian production, reinterpreting and adapting the songs to fit a younger cast, and adding improvised sections and underscoring of stage actions. The chapter reflects on decisions made from a local, and therefore outsider, perspective and how stereotypical ideas of the other may influence interpretations of essentially unfamiliar and unshared histories. In creative processes, acceptance of outsider status can work towards creating a new perspective, by linking the known to the unknown. In this case the music was infused with musical elements that may reflect “Jewishness”, and with local influences – essentially a fusion of Klezmer and Cape Jazz styles – the latter intuitively introduced by the assistant musical director and piano repetiteur, Throy Petersen. While interrogating re-interpretation of memory, the chapter touches on questions of cultural appropriation and references local student protests and other political issues that coincided with the production timeline.

Keywords: #FeesMustFall ; appropriation ; Cape Jazz ; Klezmer ; Re-imagining