Centurion teenager directs original play for Pretoria Youth Theatre festival
From childhood stage fright to earning national singing colours, a young performer takes the creative leap from acting to directing her own work.
A 14-year-old from Centurion, Amelia Jane Oosthuizen, is turning her imagination into stories for the stage.
The Centurion teenager wrote and directed her production, Brush Strokes, selected for Pretoria Youth Theatre’s (PYT) Young Directors Festival, which will take place from December 9 to December 12.
“I have always had a busy brain. I didn’t just want to read stories; I wanted to create them,” she said.
Stage beginnings
Amelia’s love for performing started early. Her interest in musical theatre grew after her mother, Sunet du Preez, took her to audition for Matilda at nine. Although she did not get the role, Amelia said the experience strengthened her motivation.
She auditioned again in 2024 for The Princess and the Frog, directed by Ruth Weiss, which ran in 2025. As an ensemble performer, she immediately fell in love with theatre.
Du Preez said Amelia had been singing and dancing since she could walk and talk. After starting singing lessons in 2023, she initially struggled with stage fright despite her strong voice.
To build her confidence, Du Preez enrolled her at PYT in 2024. She credited theatre professionals Clive Martin and Kerry-Anne Beldon for helping her daughter’s confidence grow.
Amelia has performed as Glinda in The Wizard of Oz, Charlie in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Wendy in Centurion Theatre’s Peter Pan Junior.
She has earned national colours for singing, making her eligible to represent South Africa internationally, and provincial colours in tap dance.
Stepping into directing
Her latest achievement has seen her explore writing and directing. Early last year, Amelia began putting her story ideas into books, although she had not finished any. The festival course gave her the opportunity to develop one idea into a production.
Brush Strokes explores the frustration of possessing passions but being unable to pursue them because of life’s responsibilities. It follows Marie, a young woman whose job prevents her from painting.
Amelia said the story was inspired by having to put aside things you love because other responsibilities get in the way.
“That’s what this is about: the obstacle in Marie’s life, the obstacle that she can’t get over,” she said.
She credited Beldon with helping shape the production when her ideas diverged, while her mother supported her.
Du Preez recalled sitting down as Amelia read her completed play, saying she was struck by what her daughter had achieved, adding: “I remember thinking, wow! Not sure I could have done that at her age.”
Balancing school and future dreams
Du Preez initially helped Amelia balance school and artistic commitments. She said her daughter now manages her own schedule, with online schooling helping her catch up.
Amelia hopes to pursue performing professionally.
“I can’t picture myself doing anything else,” she said, adding that she dreams of performing on London’s West End or Broadway.
Du Preez hopes her daughter never loses her enthusiasm, saying: “She is so kind and humble and I pray that she always keeps that while she reaches the heights I believe she can!”
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