Kate Normington
Fiona Ramsay
Palesa Mazamisa
FEMALE POWERHOUSES OWNING THE STAGE ALYSSIA BIRJALAL SOUTH Africa is home to a host of amazing and versatile actresses. Let’s take a look at five female powerhouses owning their craft on the theatre front. Kate Normington Award-winning South African actress and the queen of musicals, Kate Normington is best known for her work in the theatre productions, Sweeney Todd, Hair and Nunsense, which earned her a Fleur de Cap award for best actress. Normington, a speech and drama graduate, went on to perform at the Adelphi Theatre
in London’s West End in 1995 and the Haymarket in England in 1996, among other venues abroad. The talented star has also performed jingles and voiceovers for local radio and television and has released her debut album, Mother’s Daughter. Normington has made several TV appearances over the years. Fiona Ramsay Award-winning theatre actress Fiona Ramsay played a critical role in South African theatre in the 1970s and 1980s, a time when theatre exploded with
electrifying activity. Together with Richard E Grant, Henry Goodman, Fred Abrahamse and Neil McCarthy, she formed The Troupe Theatre Company which produced original, daring, creative, innovative and exciting work. Ramsay spent five years performing in the West End and when she returned to South Africa she continued to perform at The Alhambra in Doornfontein. In recent years as it has become harder to fill theatres, Ramsay has taken up film roles, one-woman shows, lecturing and voice coaching.
