Relationship between Gertrude Stein and Alice B Toklas brought to life in play

Lynita Crofford and Shirley Johnston in Gertrude Stein and A Companion. PICTURE: Supplied byTheatre On The Bay

Lynita Crofford and Shirley Johnston perform in Gertrude Stein and A Companion at Theatre On The Bay from Tuesday February 1 to Saturday February 5.

Written by Win Wells and directed by Chris Weare, the play explores the extraordinary relationship between lifelong partners Gertrude Stein and Alice B Toklas who rejected the conservative values of middle class America in the early 1900s and found refuge in the bohemian decadence of Paris… and in each other.

Stein drew artistic genius to her salon like a magnet, numbering among her close friends Hemingway, Picasso, Matisse, Cezanne, Klee and Scott Fitzgerald among other artists, writers and poets. They inspired each other to create art, drank often, fought often, fell in and out of love… and occasionally indulged in Alice’s hash brownies. The mystique of the “Lost Generation” in Paris, a term coined by Stein, serves as a backdrop to a tender and unconventional love story.

The production was first performed at the Alexander Bar in Cape Town in 2018 and was nominated for a Fleur du Cap Theatre award for Best Ensemble Performance. In 2019 the production was invited to the Dublin International Gay Theatre Festival where Lynita Crofford won the award for best female performance. In November 2019 the play was performed at the Theatre on the Square in Sandton in Johannesburg where Lynita Crofford and Shirley Johnston both won the prestigious Naledi award for best lead performances in a play.

There is an age restriction of 13.

Tickets cost between R180 and R220 and are sold in pairs.

Book through Computicket or Theatre On The Bay box-office on 021 438 3300.