By Savannah Farris
“Dude, you look like shit!”
“This is what manhood looks like!”
These lines from the last scene capture the essence of Poppycock: at first, a funny throwaway joke, but after some thought, you find several more layers lie beneath. Poppycock may translate to “nonsense”, but this play’s brand of nonsense is surprisingly calculated. A tapestry of several different skits, with an array of different characters and contexts, Poppycock highlights different aspects of the collective lived experiences of Generation Z males.
The result is a production that is as chaotic as it is cohesive, using comedy to stitch together an exploration of modern masculinity. Director and cast member Aidan Davies, an Honours in Drama and Theatre Studies (Voice and Speech) student, phrased it best, “Poppycock was created by Gen Z males for Gen Z males.”
From modern “alpha males” to melodramatic nobles played by Mateo Komlosy (left) and Torden Van Rensburg (right), Poppycock’s rapid-fire sketches leave no stereotype untouched. Photo: Mila Sobolewski
What made Poppycock so golden was the structure of the production, the intentional crafting of the script, and above all, the skill of its actors. Die Matie had the opportunity to speak with the cast to discover how the production’s organised chaos came to life. As it turns out, there was very little “poppycock” behind the creative process, with every joke, every sketch and every seemingly ridiculous moment carefully considered.
Rather than following a consecutive narrative and assigning fixed characters, Poppycock unfolds as a series of sketches, “with each sketch having a life of its own and a unique contribution to the performance”, explains cast member and assistant director Matthew Gray, an Honours in Drama and Theatre Studies (Voice and Speech) student.
As Matthew Gray (pictured) said, “Each sketch has a life of its own and a unique contribution to the performance.” Photo: Mila Sobolewski
The sketch format allows the production to examine different facets of modern masculinity without anchoring itself to a single protagonist, which created such fluidity amongst the characters. This was also very intentional, as cast member Torden Van Rensburg (Honours in Drama and Theatre studies (Voice and Speech) student) explained, “A big word we had going into this was ‘ensemble’ and that we didn’t want one individual to stand out.”
The sequence of the sketches was equally deliberate. Rather than easing the audience into the production, the first skit immediately throws them into the deep end. Deliberately raunchy and boundary-pushing, it establishes from the outset that nothing is off limits. Once that expectation was set, the audience was no longer distracted by the shock of the humour and was able to recognise the underlying social critique.
That same intentionality extended to the script. Davies, as the director, explained that a central aim of the production was to challenge society’s preconceptions of manhood. To achieve this, Enzo Cocciante – Honours in Drama and Theatre Studies (Cabaret) student and co-writer to Mateo Komlosy, who is also an Honours in Drama and Theatre Studies (Writing) student – explained that the creative process began with a deceptively simple question: “What do men do? What are the things that make up our lives?” The answers to these questions is what birthed the script, rather than a conventional plot. Themes of masculinity, “boys will be boys”, homoeroticism, and the search for identity within this generation emerged naturally from these conversations.
Who knew emotional vulnerability came with an Afrikaans accent? Enzo Cocciante (standing) plays a stereotypical Afrikaans teacher, leading a group therapy session which exposes just how performative the “alpha male” persona can be. Seated, left to right: Matthew Gray, Buhle Funani, Torden Van Rensburg. Photo: Mila Sobolewski
Every joke and reference was carefully situated within a specific cultural context. As Cocciante aptly put it, “it’s offensive, but difficult to be offended by.” The humour never punches down; instead, it satirises the rituals, stereotypes and performances that shape modern masculinity, as well as critiquing the lack of positive male role models and the figures that have stepped in to fill that void. Whether poking fun at Andrew Tate-esque role models, or boarding school hazing, the audience is invited to laugh at the performance of masculinity, not the people it so often targets.
Another vital aspect was the production’s South African flavour. Whilst the commentary is relatively universal, the inspiration for the skits was drawn from experiences of the actors and writers who have grown up in the country. The result is an authentic South African context, niche cultural references and slang woven throughout, making it all the more relatable and humorous for the audience.
After a whirlwind of characters, chaos and comedy, the cast takes its final bow. Left to right: Enzo Cocciante, Torden Van Rensburg, Aiden Davies, Buhle Funani, Mateo Komlosy, Matthew Gray. Photo: Mila Sobolewski
Many of the sketches had great potential to feel awkward or uncomfortable, but the way in which the actors leaned fully into every movement and line, giving themselves complete permission to be uninhibited and revel in the chaos, allowed the audience to feel as though they were in on the joke too. The production also showcased the cast’s range. Actors switched seamlessly between contrasting characters, accents and physicality, often within seconds, without disrupting the pace of the performance.
It is this careful balance of absurdity and authenticity that transforms Poppycock from mere comedy into a social commentary, managing to merge punchlines and social critiques in the same breath.
Yet, the production’s success extends beyond its punchlines: Poppycock made it through to the Première Festival’s semi-finals, bringing home the award for Best Ensemble.
