The story of Albie Sachs: Father, Son and Soft Vengeance, is vividly brought to life at The Baxter from 13 to 31 October, with Graham Hopkins as Albie Sachs.

Fiona Ramsay and Graham Hopkins once again join forces in a significant new South African play, Albie Sachs: Fathers, Sons and Soft Vengeance, which comes to the Baxter Studio for a limited season from 13 to 31 October 2026, at 20:00, with Saturday matinees at 15:00.

Written by Gail Louw, directed by Ramsay and starring Hopkins as Albie Sachs, the one-person play honours one of South Africa’s most remarkable figures: activist, survivor, constitutional architect and champion of human rights.

Poetic, intimate and deeply human, the play draws on Sachs’ experiences of the bomb attack he survived, his relationship with trauma, and his bonds as both a son and a father. It traces his lifelong commitment to justice – from marching against apartheid at the age of 17, through exile and the devastating 1988 car-bomb attack in Mozambique, to his vision of “soft vengeance”: the creation of a democratic, just and humane South Africa.

Sachs lost an arm and the sight in one eye in the attack, which was carried out by apartheid-era security forces. His extraordinary journey of recovery and resilience forms part of a narrative that moves between the public and private dimensions of his life.

Told in Albie’s own voice, the play is a poetic slice of biography that explores family, resilience, forgiveness and fatherhood, while asking what “soft vengeance” means in a world still learning how to heal. ‘Soft vengeance is the heart of the production and is Sachs’ philosophy – the idea that achieving a free and democratic society, founded on human rights and justice, represents a victory over oppression, replacing the desire for bitter retribution.

The play also looks at Sachs’ relationship with his own father, Solly Sachs, and his experience of becoming a father later in life to his youngest son, Oliver. Thought-provoking, accessible and deeply relevant, it offers a portrait of an idealistic young activist, wounded survivor, devoted father and philosophical elder.

“Staging a play on the life of Albie Sachs offers rich emotional and dramatic terrain,” says director Fiona Ramsay. “His story is both epic and intimate – spanning resistance, loss, recovery and fatherhood. It captures not only what happened to Sachs and what he did, but also who he is: his moral vision, emotional resilience and unwavering idealism.”

She adds: “Albie is an inspiring figure who overcame great odds and, with this play, the audience will leave not just with knowledge but feeling transformed by the experience.”

The Baxter season follows the production’s successful run at Theatre on the Square in Sandton earlier this year, where it received favourable reviews from audiences and theatre critics. Barry Morrissee, wrote: “By the final moments of the evening, there was not a dry eye in the house, including, it must be said, his own.”

The Something Guy described it as “… a deeply moving piece of South African theatre … emotional, funny, powerful and unforgettable. It is a reminder that history is not only something we study. It is something we must continue to feel, remember and protect.”

The multi-award-winning Ramsay, has been seen at The Baxter in recent years in Blonde Poison, also written by Gail Louw and Janna Ramos-Violante’s The Opera Singer. She previously collaborated with Hopkins (Twelfth Night and My Fair Lady) on Hansard, to great acclaim.

The creative team includes Oliver Hauser (lighting design), Dean Pitman (sound design), James Dee (short arm) and set design by Fiona Ramsay and Graham Hopkins. The production is presented by Troupe Theatre Company and the Baxter Theatre, in association with Daphne Kuhn.

Booking for Albie Sachs: Fathers, Sons and Soft Vengeance is through Webtickets online and at Pick n Pay stores.

For further media enquiries or interview requests please contact Fahiem Stellenboom on 021 685 7880 or e-mail fahiem.stellenboom@uct.ac.za OR Shireen Fisher on 021 680 3963 or e-mail shireen.fisher@uct.ac.za.

Fahiem Stellenboom
fahiem.stellenboom@uct.ac.za
072 265 6023
Baxter Theatre
http://www.baxter.co.za