TO LIFE, WITH LOVE. Witten by Mike van Graan. Directed by Josh Lindberg. With John Maytham. Societas Theatre.
KAREN RUTTER reviews
Esteemed radio host John Maytham also enjoys an extra-curricular career as an actor, popping up in a range of diverse roles (think Shakespeare in Love, Bucket Boy, The Sin Drinkers) which are always well-received. So it’s yet again a pleasure to see him onstage, in a solo set this time, and one which reverberates with personal overtones.
As a performer who has appeared in quite a few locally-scripted works, it is perhaps no surprise that Maytham commissioned this latest one-person play. And equally fitting that he chose apex playwright Mike van Graan, a multi-award-winning theatre maker, to write this piece. The result is a perfectly-crafted fit – Van Graan’s script and Maytham’s delivery go together like a hand inside a glove.
In the notes to To Life, With Love it appears that Maytham gave Van Graan a blank canvas regarding themes. Van Graan, inspired by Atul Gawande’s Being Mortal and drawing on Helena Dolny’s book, Before Ever After, has produced a meditative reflection that many can relate to. Although specific to the central character – and perhaps Maytham himself, although how much of the work is biographical one doesn’t know – there is a universal rhythm to the narrative that is achingly accessible.
This fragile, shining thing we call life
In To Life, With Love, we meet Thomas Michael Faulkner. Over the years, he has savoured romance, quietly enjoyed professional triumph, had his share of social esteem, and endured heart-breaking personal loss.
But in his sixties, he receives the unexpected diagnosis of a dread disease. The prognosis holds a strong promise of recovery, yet the news forces Thomas to face his own mortality. What follows is a deeply human meditation on choice, and the stubborn beauty of living.
Played with nuance and intensity, Thomas charts his course through this late chapter with the resolve of a man who still has much to write into his story. The result is a poetic, tender piece – an ode to resilience, and to the fragile, shining thing we call life.
Maytham doesn’t miss a beat with an intense performance that is also not without moments of humour. What’s also great is the context supplied to each segment of the story – dates and events which authentically match both Thomas and Maytham’s timelines. With Josh Lindberg’s crisp but flowing direction, it all makes for a powerful one-hour experience.
To Life, With Love has successfully played a number of venues for short runs. This three-week booking will give Capetonians a proper chance to get to see the show. And a big thumbs up to the venue – the hall of the Groote Kerk in Kloof Street. It’s wonderful to see a new space being offered for the performing arts.
What: To Life, With Love
Where and when: Societas Theatre, Gardens, Cape Town from 12 to 30 August 2025
Tickets: Quicket
WS
