The tongue © Kannemeyer and French
Image for the reading, Sept. 2025, Teater Katapult, Aarhus (Denmark)
Readers of The tongue @ Teater Katapult
Introducing the play @ Teater Katapult © Josefine Baark
Reading @ Teater Katapult © Josefine Baark
Audience of the reading @ Teater Katapult © Josefine Baark
Mercy Kannemeyer and Claire French
The tongue | Die tong
The origin story of Afrikaans is in the hands of two fringe academics – and a runaway tongue.
Glori is about to finish a PhD that makes a bold claim: that Afrikaans predates Dutch. Her friend and fellow academic, Julia, is moving countries again – but not before they meet in Johannesburg.
When troubles in the mouth throw their lives off course, they must confront a world no longer willing to accept the official story. They’re drawn into a battle of ideas: How can we decolonise the archive - and still get tenure?
The tongue explores well-worn tensions between mind and body, the strange intimacy of academic friendship, and the lifecycle of knowledge – from disruption to doctrine. Special appearances by the Netherlands, South Africa, Australia - and briefly, England.
Public reading at Teater Katapult, Godsbanen, Aarhus (Denmark), 15. September 2025:
The readers
We extend our gratitude to the following readers for bringing to life the roles from The tongue.
Ushma Chauhan Jacobsen
Narrator
Mercy Kannemeyer
Glori and The tongue
Claire French
Julia
Lauren Groenewald
Helean
Lizette Vorster Larsen
Woman 1 and Amanda
Diana González Martin
Woman 2 and Carine
Joseph Kalisa
Man 1
Edward Alan Payne
Man 2
"There is so much pain surrounding the subject of South Africa, language, people, apartheid, and you succeeded in making it into something light, and comical at times but still profoundly moving and deep" - Audience member
Glori is about to finish a PhD that makes a bold claim: that Afrikaans predates Dutch. Her friend and fellow academic, Julia, is moving countries again – but not before they meet in Johannesburg.
When troubles in the mouth throw their lives off course, they must confront a world no longer willing to accept the official story. They’re drawn into a battle of ideas: How can we decolonise the archive - and still get tenure?
The tongue explores well-worn tensions between mind and body, the strange intimacy of academic friendship, and the lifecycle of knowledge – from disruption to doctrine. Special appearances by the Netherlands, South Africa, Australia - and briefly, England.
Public reading at Teater Katapult, Godsbanen, Aarhus (Denmark), 15. September 2025:
The readers
We extend our gratitude to the following readers for bringing to life the roles from The tongue.
Ushma Chauhan Jacobsen
Narrator
Mercy Kannemeyer
Glori and The tongue
Claire French
Julia
Lauren Groenewald
Helean
Lizette Vorster Larsen
Woman 1 and Amanda
Diana González Martin
Woman 2 and Carine
Joseph Kalisa
Man 1
Edward Alan Payne
Man 2
"There is so much pain surrounding the subject of South Africa, language, people, apartheid, and you succeeded in making it into something light, and comical at times but still profoundly moving and deep" - Audience member
Publish Date & Country
South Africa/ Denmark, September 2025
Role
Co-author/ playwright
Project Type
Semi-autobiographical political satire with large-scale puppetry
Producing Company
Seeking a co-production between South Africa and Europe.