Kopano brings extra sparkle to Sparky!

Parktown’s beloved children’s theatre, the National Children’s Theatre, has reopened its doors to guests and from October 3 will showcase Sparky!

The production is about a loveable sloth who teaches children to accept themselves and others for their unique qualities. Among those whose hearts Sparky has captured is Kopano Tshabalala, director of the show.

Tshabalala said she loved working with children and had learned to engage with them and with the community through involvement in church life, specifically children’s church. “I have learned that the best way to engage with others is through the heart of a servant, and to approach a situation with humility and willingness to learn,” she said.

This is exactly what she did when she received the offer to direct the children’s production. She said this was her first stint as a director of something as big as the National Children’s Theatre. She said she had previously acted in a recent Pied Piper production put on by the theatre team. Tshabalala studied an honours in dramatic arts at the University of the Witwatersrand, and said she always tried to bring light into every situation, and believed this was why acting and the stage held such an appeal for her.

She is mom to a 21-year-old daughter whom she said was ‘larger than life’ in her approach to life, and she suspected this was her own influence. She added she usually was offered new work through doing her best in each performance she did. “I don’t get work through auditions. I believe it isn’t just an audition that opens a way for a performance, but a performance which opens a way to an audition.”

She said taking on Sparky! had meant doing lots of research, even Googling ‘sloth’ and understanding the unique attributes of the unique animal. She said this special performance taught children to accept themselves and love others as they were. “A sloth might not be able to jump through hoops, but he is a good listener. He might not be able to run fast, but he gives great hugs.”

Details: For bookings for Sparky!; 011 484 1584 or bookings@nctt.org.za

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https://www.citizen.co.za/rosebank-killarney-gazette/250821/national-childrens-theatre-celebrates-their-30th-milestone-with-a-facelift/