Skierlik is a powerful, poetic one-man play that follows Thomas’s return to his remote hometown of Skierlik years after a devastating event that cost him his wife and daughter. Through memory, storytelling, and urgent, uncompromising performance, Thomas retraces the lines of love and loss, interrogating grief, community, and the stubborn, tender humanity that survives tragedy. The production blends theatrical immediacy with cinematic language in a manner that honours both forms — yielding a visceral, intimate experience that lingers long after the lights go down.

Thomas returns to Skierlik — a little-known informal settlement — and confronts the landscape of absence and memory. The play unfolds as an intimate testimony and a collective echo: the personal wound becomes a lens on communal history, social rupture, and resilient hope. Phillip Dikotla inhabits multiple voices and emotional registers, moving between raw confession, incisive observation, and poetic reverie.

Production History & Selected Milestones

2010: Debuted as a 10-minute graduation piece at Market Theatre Laboratory.
2011: Expanded to full-length production at Market Theatre Laboratory Zwakala Festival (produced by Karabo Kgokong).
2011: Mmabana Arts Centre, Studio 3 (Directed by Mpho J Molepo).
2012: Selected for the Zabalaza Festival.
2013: Winner — Zabalaza Festival; two-week season at the Golden Arrow Studio (Baxter Theatre Centre). Winner of Fringe Ovation and Encore Award. Subsequent touring to the National Arts Festival (Grahamstown) and Wits 969 Festival (Johannesburg).
2014: International tour with AfroVibes Festival — performances across the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (13+ cities).
2015–2020: National touring seasons and festival presentations, including schools and community programmes.
2022: Playscript re-published; the filmed stream edition of Skierlik released digitally.
2019–2022: Development and filming processes culminating in the official cinematic version directed by Angus Gibson and Sydney Ndlovu, produced by Dikotla Originals / BOMB Productions.

Awards & Critical Recognition

Winner: Zabalaza Festival (2013)
Fringe Ovation Award: National Arts Festival (2013 season)
Encore Award: (2013 season)
Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) ImpACT Award: Theatre category (2012)
Olive Schreiner Prize for Drama: (Youngest recipient to date)
Fleur du Cap Theatre Award: Best Performance in a One-Person Show for Skierlik (2013)

Playscript Publication & Educational Canonical Text

Title: Skierlik — The Playscript (re-published by Dikotla Originals (Pty) Ltd).
Notes: Features a new foreword by MoMo Matsunyane, updated text, and writer’s note. The playscript provides the canonical text used for recent seasons and serves as an essential reference for productions, schools programmes, and academic study. Available directly via Dikotla Originals.

Future Objectives & Touring Goals

The production seeks to consolidate its legacy by returning to South Africa’s most significant stages and festivals:

Market Theatre: “Homecoming” season positioning the production within its original institutional context.
National Arts Festival: Main Festival Presentation to highlight the piece to national and international programmers and festivalgoers.
Baxter Theatre: Return season in Cape Town.

Bookings, Press & Contacts

For bookings, workshop enquiries, festival submissions, press requests, or technical riders:

Producer / Company: Dikotla Originals (Pty) Ltd
Email: dikotlaoriginals@outlook.com
Stream Link: Watch Skierlik on FilmFreeway