| What: Aaron Posner’s Stupid Fucking Bird – a reimagining of Chekhov’s The Seagull Cast: Featuring The Baxter’s Fires Burning Company: Awethu Hleli, Carlo Daniels, Lyle October, Nolufefe Ntshuntshe, Tamzin Daniels alongside Lwanda Sindaphi and Nirel Sithole When: April 9 to May 2, 2026 Where: Baxter Studio, Cape Town Tickets: Webtickets Director: Maria Weisby Assistant director: Anathi Godlo Set and costume design: Kieran McGregor Lighting design: Franky Steyn Sound design: Jannous Nkululeko Aukema |
And here we are …
Aaron Posner’s Stupid Fucking Bird is on at the Baxter Theatre, Cape Town, April 9 – May 2, 2026. Superb direction by Maria Weisby (from Sweden) and assistant direction by Anathi Godlo (South Africa). Sensational performances by the Baxter’s Fires Burning Company: Awethu Hleli, Carlo Daniels, Lyle October, Nolufefe Ntshuntshe, Tamzin Daniels; with Lwanda Sindaphi and Nirel Sithole.
F Bird is an “adaptation” of Chekhov’s The Seagull – or based on – or inspired by, whatever. The Seagull premiered in 1896. Posner wrote F Bird in 2013. And here we are – 2026 – Cape Town, South Africa – with a cast of South African actors – a Swedish director and a South African assistant director.
And?
It is effing brilliant theatre. I loved all two hours – which went by in a flash – for me. A side-note – I attended, heavily medicated as a result of a broken elbow. The text and performance held my attention from the first moment, when the cast heckles the audience that it is “time to start the fucking play”.
In Chekhov’s The Seagull, a bunch of people are in love – just not with each other. It is unrequited love on steroids. In Posner’s Bird, a bunch of people, are in love – just not with each other. It is unrequited love on steroids.
The period, location and accents has changed for this production, to South Africa 2026, but people are people – driven by the quest to love and be loved, to seek new ways of being creative and making art, finding a balance between commercially viable theatre and theatre which is “real” and “authentic”, finding meaning to life, when everything seems bleak and futile (same-same for Chekov’s day as it is now)
The Bird – a seagull – is a recurring leitmotif in The Seagull. Con – the tragic anti-hero aspiring playwright shoots a bird and presents it to Nina– an ambitious actress who dumps him for Trigorin – the lover of Con’s mom, Emma. The bird is also referenced in F Bird– hence the barbs and jibes against – ‘the stupid fucking bird’. Posner is saying, I think, enough about the damn bird and its symbolism as a totem of Con’s love – let’s get to grip with the essence of the play – the importance of love and being loved and in tandem with that -the creation of art – and making art/theatre which is relevant, accessible for its time.
The Seagull, is oozing with meta-text. The protagonists are constantly reflecting on the process of making art and theatre, creating art, with Con’s play emblematic of that. They are watching themselves and are watching, us the audience as we watch them. Lots of breaking of the 4th wall as they perform for us and to us.
In F Bird, the meta-text thing is sharpened, with hilarious outcomes. Con’s play is not a ‘play’. It is an art-installation/showing, starring Nina. Obviously it pings for us who know the Chekhov. We are cognisant that F Bird is itself a play about a play (The Seagull). F Bird – satirizes the 4th wall. One can see how tempting it is for directors, to make the play into stand-up comedy – with the actors and audience heckling each other. I watched a recording of F Bird in this vein, and found it tedious in its pursuit of meta-text, self-referential grandstanding; trying so hard to be “clever”. The joy of watching Weisby directing, assisted by Anathi Godlo is how they keep the meta-stuff and 4th wall in check, stripping away gimmicks and frippery. There is interaction with the audience, breaking of the 4th wall; but it doesn’t dominate.
F Bird becomes a drama, with the actors transcending the archetypes of Chekov, with knock-out ensemble work and enthralling solo performance.
Lyle October and Nolufefe Ntshuntshe as Dev and Mash are hysterically funny. Mash is witheringly droll and Dev’s clawing fixation is beautifully teased out, climaxing in the unexpected resolution of their relationship four years later (Act 2). Awethu Hleli is magnificent and regal as Emma, the fading actress and mom of Con. She urges us not to judge her in the choices she has made, urging us to see her beyond aging diva. There is a pragmatic acceptance of her man, Trig, played by Carlo Daniels, who is cool, laid back, curated in every way, apparently lacking in remorse. Con (Nirel Sithole) is a towering presence – with his mommy issues – and obsession for Nina. Lwanda Sindaphi as Sorn (a doctor and brother of Emma)is a complex figure, the aging dude with his own existential issues, who just wants a hug. Nina is not fine. Posner gets very “real” with her character. She is broken by the loss of a baby (with Trig) and the realisation that she has not lived up to her own expectations of being an artist. Tamzin Daniels renders her as utterly shattered – an emotional wreck. A brilliant performance by the young actress – railing against archetype of discarded muse.
And how does it end?
The protagonists tell us how they end up. Two couples kind of get what they need – companionship, affirmation and in one case – three children – rather bizarre – but such is life. Families are complicated. Relationships are complicated. As the Rolling Stones, song goes- you can’t get what you want but you may get what you need.
I loved the set by Kieran McGregor. It looks like a Scandinavian sauna with a bespoke outdoor theatre patio in Clifton or a yoga retreat – with neutrals and pastels. In the party/celebration scene in Act 2, it segues into a surfie vibe, perhaps in Kommetjie or Jeffrey’s Bay (J-Bay is mentioned). Everything is tasteful and curated. Same with costumes – muted, stylish palette. Franky Steyn’s beautiful lighting heightens and warms up the muted curated palette in a glow, with sound design by Jannous Nkululeko Aukema.
Stupid Fucking Bird stands alone – as an existential trip into art, love, life – but it riffs off The Seagull – so it makes sense to read The Seagull – before watching. I did. The script is available free online. I also read parts of Posner’s script that I found online. It’s like being at a dinner party and people are relating fascinating stories but you don’t know the history, the backstory, so you don’t get the full picture, you don’t get the gags and references. Same, I reckon with Stupid F Bird: Read The Seagull in prep to see F Bird.
With this cast and the articulated direction, it makes for delicious theatre. This production is better than therapy. Who cares, if the “catharsis” in the narrative has absconded?
Here we are. Let’s embrace what we can, in the safe space of theatre.
I loved this production. Bravo to Weisby, Godlo, cast and creatives. Stupid Fucking Bird not only delighted and entertained me but it also spurred me into taking a deep dive into Chekov’s Seagull, a play that I was not familiar with. How wonderful is that!
✳ Featured image: Lwanda Sindaphi, Carlo Daniels, Awethu Hleli, Lyle October and Nirel Sithole. Pic: Fiona MacPherson. Pic: Supplied.
