| What: this bra’s a pyscho Writer/director: Zubayr Charles Performers: James Stoffberg and Anzio September Where: Artscape Arena Theatre Location: Location on Google Maps When: Tuesday, 29 July 2025 – Saturday, 2 August 2025 (6 Performances) Age restriction: No U/16. Language and violence Duration: 70 minutes (no interval) Tickets: R150 Bookings: Webtickets Direct booking link: https://www.webtickets.co.za/v2/event.aspx?itemid=1571252182 |
Zubayr Charles’ new play this bra’s a pyscho, is premiering in Cape Town, in the Artscape Arena, from July 29 to August 2, 2025. The “multi-dimensional frame narrative” is steered by The Bra, a rape-victim turned perpetrator (played by James Stoffberg) and the policeman who is on the prowl to bring justice within this disquieting situation (Anzio September). September also plays the victims of The Bra. Charles who is directing, talks about the play which is a bricolage “of crime thriller genre, psychological thriller, rape-revenge thriller and the cat-and-mouse tale”. He says: “I wanted to challenge myself and see if I could write my own thriller but from a male, Coloured and queer perspective. In regard to male sexual assault, this is still a taboo topic that I hold close to my heart …” Charles is a brave and audacious playwright – prodding us to engage with the taboo, the unmentionable – in the safe space of theatre:
TheCapeRobyn: The killer is unravelling before us? Is he aware that the policeman is on the hunt and that the victims are out there giving evidence? Are they all aware of each other? You say that it amplifies the “cat-and-mouse dynamic. Can you elaborate? I am intrigued by The Bra character.
Zubayr Charles: this bra’s a psycho is a multi-dimensional frame narrative. The first frame is a classic rape-revenge thriller. The audience first meets The Bra, who literally wakes up in a drug-induced delirium after being tricked into attending a sex party. The Bra is still trying to make sense of his trauma and blames himself for downloading Grindr, a queer hook-up and dating an app, and meeting up with a stranger. He is unaware of what truly happened to him and who his initial perpetrator(s) is or are. This sets up The Bra’s motivation: to uncover who assaulted him. With that, The Bra spirals. Not only is he grappling with his assault, but he also tries to make connections or find love online – through Grindr – as a way to heal. On one occasion, things go wrong, which results in him snapping and this leads to him becoming a serial killer. Whilst all this is happening, the police are investigating The Bra’s murders – introducing the second frame of our narrative: the classic crime thriller, as the audience follows the policeman’s journey to uncover The Bra’s identity. As with any thriller, there is suspense, intrigue, and a few twists in the tale. We see The Bra’s s psyche unravel: “Why is he doing what he does?” “What is motivating him?”. The policeman is also trying to gain enough evidence to catch The Bra, whilst the Bra breadcrumbs the police, still trying to get away with his killing spree. This heightens the cat-and-mouse aspect of the genre. As a writer, I wanted to challenge myself to mix the various elements of the crime thriller genre, psychological thriller, rape-revenge thriller and the cat-and-mouse tale.
TCR: Does the The Bra have a name?
ZC: this bra’s a psycho is a play on queer hook-up culture. The narrative centres the queer hook-up or cruising app called “Grindr” – where many individuals try to build various forms of physical or sometimes emotional connections. The play begins just after The Bra was invited to a masquerade party by someone he was chatting to. He was intrigued by the thrill of not knowing who the person was, yet unaware that he was going to be drugged and sexually assaulted. The Bra does not have a name. Neither do the other characters in the play. This alludes to the anonymous profiles one finds on Grindr and certain dating apps.
TCR: Does The Bra seek justice for his sexual assault through the criminal justice system first or does he go straight out on his hunt for revenge?
ZC: The Bra carries a lot of shame: He is ashamed of his queer identity, ashamed that he downloaded Grindr to try to find a connection, ashamed for developing feelings for an anonymous profile and for trusting him enough to go to the masquerade party, and ultimately – like many men who have been in a similar situation – he is ashamed of his sexual assault. With all that shame, THE BRA is also unaware of what truly happened to him, as he was drugged at that party. All the attendees also wore masks so he cannot identify who they were. Sadly, he knows that he can’t find justice through the police, because he himself cannot fully make sense of what happened. All he can do is go back online and try to uncover the truth from the unknown profile he was originally chatting to.
TCR: Can you tell us about the genesis of this play? Did something in particular lead to this story? Is The Bra, the psycho character, inspired by someone you know of, have read about or he fictional; a composite?
ZC: As with many of my stories, my inspiration is not linear. Sadly, I was first inspired to write this after an ugly and severely traumatic break-up. I was an emotionally and physical wreck, and I honestly thought I was going to end up in a psychiatric ward or facility due to the emotionally and psychological torment my ex-partner was putting me through. Thankfully, I snapped out of that state and I decided to channel my feelings onto paper. That’s where the title comes from. We can joke around about having a “psycho” ex, but often times, and in relationships, we don’t often comprehend how toxic situations can be and it is only once it’s over that we realise. During my journey through healing, I become obsessed with both the crime genre mini-series, and traditional cat-and-mouse thriller and psychological thriller films. I then wanted to challenge myself and see if I could write my own thriller but from a male, Coloured and queer perspective. In regard to male sexual assault, this is still a taboo topic that I hold close to my heart. I have done extensive research for my own personal clarity and for the various stories that I have written. I have uncovered that many males have met along my journey in life have also been affected with that nuanced trauma. In mainstream film and media, however, male sexual assault is often told from a comedic point of view. No form of assault should be made fun of. With all that, that is how the first draft of this bra’s a psycho was born, and I applied for the 2024 Artscape’s New Voices Programme.
TCR: Can you talk about casting and process and collaborating with Anzio? You and Anzio make a formidable team having previously worked on Please, don’t call me moffie. Reflections of working on this play?
ZC: I wish everyone could see what a brilliant mind Anzio has, as well as how insightful he is in predicting what will work. When we first did Teksmark together in 2023, he was the one who kept saying that we are going to create beautiful art together, there are many stories for us to tell and that we are going to be creative muses, one day. At the time, I didn’t understand what he meant. Perhaps, I even didn’t believe in the power of his affirmations that day at the Baxter Theatre. He also encouraged me to turn Please, don’t call me moffie into a one-man show. I honestly learn so much from him each day, as he inspires me daily to be a better artist and better human being. He is not just an actor, he fully immerses himself in the project – always on my case and wanting to know about the costumes, lighting, staging; constantly picking at my brain, so I have to constantly be ready. I realised that the main character in Please, don’t call me moffie and The Bra have some similar traits as they are both extended versions of me. When Anzio read the script for the first time, he was so emotional and for The Bra’s opening monologue, particularly about the experiences about queer love. At the time, I wanted to challenge Anzio to play the policeman and all The Bra’s victims, just as he always challenges me. Please, don’t call me moffie was a cathartic experience for Anzio and I; we both healed in many unexpected ways. As with this show, we are having more fun.
TCR: This time around you and Anzio have James in the mix. What has this process been like?
ZC: James I had seen perform a few years ago. It was a personal piece about queer dating, and there were many subtle themes interwoven. I found his performance so authentic, inspiring, and honestly sweet. I made a vow to work with him then. Fast forward to a year later, I wrote the character of The Bra for him. I knew he could bring The Bra’s anxieties and the mental deterioration to life, whilst simultaneously bringing a grounded, quirky yet intense approach to the serial killer aspect of the character. As with Anzio who played many extended versions of me in Please, don’t call me moffie, it has been interesting to see James portray The Bra and bring my words to life in the opening monologue. He also kept encouraging me to make The Bra more grounded in his characterisation and in the language he uses. I also love how James’ analytical brain and the quirkiness – particularly his catch phrases, the random sounds he makes [laughs] and his physicality – spills over into The Bra. Together the three of us make an amazing team or “theatre throuple” as James jokes.
TCR: Can you talk about being the writer and director and the process of staging your work. Do you work with the input of the actors – for example if they suggest language shifts – or do they follow the script and that’s it?
ZC: I consider myself a writer first, and then a theatre maker and director. For me, the script format is extremely important. Not only is it easy for a thriller to become confusing, but any form of writing can easily lose the reader. My supervisor and Creative Writing mentor, Professor Imraan Covadia, always used to say, “You read like a writer, and you write like a reader.” He would explain that, as a writer, things may make sense to you because the story is in your head, but the reader will, of course, have a completely different experience. Therefore, he encouraged our class never to assume that the reader knows everything. I wanted to first ensure that anyone who reads this script could immediately pick up what is happening without being confused. Then, I applied Imraan’s same advice to playwriting and staging. The last thing we want is for our audience to be confused or let alone the actors. With that in mind, I have the privilege of working with both James and Anzio. James is quite particular about the text and what sounds best for the characters, whereas Anzio is always many steps ahead of me, wanting to know what’s in my head in regard to costumes, staging, and lighting. It’s important to me that all their concerns are heard. They allow me to be sharp and to be the best version of myself. At last year’s New Voices Programme, we had many insightful positive and constructive critiques on how to improve certain aspects of the story. I am most privileged to have all these parties to help me improve the script.
TCR: Can you talk about the design in the play – warehouse, lighting and general aesthetic?
ZC: I realised that because The Bra is committing multiple murders on stage, I had to think of clever ways to depict violence theatrically. I hate corny symbolism in theatre, but with this show, I am most interested to see how the audience will interpret the violence and the intense sexual nature of the story – particularly due to The Bra never physically touching his victims in any of the violence or sex scenes. I was torn with using the word “bra” in the title. My original title of the play was this boy’s a psycho – yet James encouraged me to use the word “bra”. Although the term “bra” adds a local context to the play, James mentioned that many countries also use the term “bra” in colloquial settings – of course this is pronounced differently – so in his essence, The Bra is actually a universal character. When I created all the transitional sounds, I used pop songs I like with the word “boy” in the title. I hope the audience will pick up that Easter egg. Finally, I placed all costumes and props strategically on the stage in the initial warehouse scene and this stays in the middle of the stage throughout the play. The costumes and props play a significant role in both the bra’s initial sexual assault, as well as all his murders. As The Bra continues on his rampage and the policeman tries to catch him. The goal is for the audience to physically feel as though they are also solving the murders.
TCR: Your thoughts on creating a complex killer, driven by revenge – a victim who becomes a perpetrator -and how that interfaces with the policeman – wanting justice for the victims?
ZC: One of my main inspirations for the script was the film Promising Young Woman – which in my opinion is the best thriller films ever made. I hope to one day be as skilful in writing and directing as Emerald Fennell. However, a massive critique about that rape-revenge story is that the main character isn’t actually “doing” anything to her victims on her quest for revenge [this is me trying not to spoil the film]. I then realised when writing this story that The Bra cannot merely try to uncover who initially assaulted him. He has to somehow regain his power. As his mental health is massively deteriorating due to him being emasculated, getting his heart broken, and him unsuccessfully uncovering the truth of his assault, he unfortunately becomes a serial killer. Something surely has to have triggered him. There is more trauma he holds onto which is revealed in the final scene. By no means are we trying to glamourise nor sensationalise his actions – this is an additional critique of many of the true crime mini-series. this bra’s a psycho aims to create awareness around male sexual assault and the dangers of online dating. We want to showcase to the audience how easily these taboo and perhaps uncomfortable situations can happen to anyone.
✳ Zubayr Charles – writer and director of this bra’s a pyscho . The play is premiering in Cape Town, in the Artscape Arena, from July 29 to August 2, 2025.
