Compare Bafana Republic and Other Satires: A collection of monologues revues

The seed of this collection was sown in 2007 when South Africa won the right to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The debate about huge amounts of public funds being spent on a 'vanity project' instead of being used to improve the lives of the majority of the country’s citizens inspired Mike van Graan, one of South Africa's leading contemporary political playwrights, to use sport as an entry point for satirical commentary. Van Graan follows this with piercing attention towards matters of the state. With themes ranging from the World Cup to the political football of land, from the violent abuse of women to state capture, this selection of satirical sketches takes readers on a rollercoaster trip through many of the issues that face democratic South Africa. The sketches come from six one-person revues, (2007), (2008), (2009), (2016), (2017) and (2018). Van Graan uses a potent mix of comedy, poetry and drama to make points that hit hard at core issues which 21st-century South Africans are struggling with. Readers will laugh and cringe and sometimes cry, but one thing they will not be able to do is remain unaffected.