GALLERY: All the world’s a stage for Meyersdal resident
Ben Pienaar (22) is making huge strides as an actor, writer, director and producer, and he thrives on inspiring others.
BEN Pienaar (22), a resident from Meyersdal, is a successful actor, director and scriptwriter who has written and acted in theatre productions at the Market Theatre, Joburg Theatre and Unisa Little Theatre.
He has performed most of his shows in The Space, the smallest of the three theatres, but his plans are to move into the bigger venues.
Ben grew up in Southcrest and studied drama and acting at Oakfields College in Pretoria.
He has performed in theatre productions such as Dog sees God, Lost, Someone Else’s Dream and The Play That Goes Wrong. He wrote, choreographed, directed and produced Another Love.
Ben is busy writing his next production, Induce, an insightful story about a doctor who loses his sight.
One of his actors is blind in real life, and working with him has been a real learning curve for Ben.
Keep on trying
Becoming an actor has been a difficult path for Ben. As a youngster his legs grew too fast and his muscles turned to sinew. He was told that by the age of 28 he would have great difficulty moving.
At Oakfields, Ben’s physical-theatre lecturer Pieter Human inspired him to keep on trying.
“He instilled the greatest amount of passion within me. When I told him I could not touch my toes, he would urge me to keep on trying.
“Some nights he stayed with me on stage until three in the morning,” Ben said.
Today Ben does physical theatre and contemporary dancing for a living.
“When I said I can’t do it, Pieter would reply, ‘Let’s see how badly you can’t do it.’ And we would keep trying. He made me want to keep on trying.”
Positive reinforcement
Ben does not believe actors are born – he believes anyone can learn the craft. It is all about convincing the audience of the role you are playing.
“If you can lie, then you can act,” he quipped.
“I am no longer Ben when I step into a role. I become the character and I have to convince the audience that I am that character, not Ben,” he explained.
He believes in inspiring people to act, but not pushing them to the point where they lose their passion. He believes in positive reinforcement and commends his students on every small step towards success.
It’s not about fame
Performing many shows, night after night, can be draining.
“Sometimes you do not have a full house and it can feel like your energy is being drained, especially a few nights in,” Ben said.
But he maintains each performance is meant to touch only two people in the audience, “the person who walks into a theatre for the first time in their lives, and the one who walks out having seen their last-ever show”.
Asked why he wanted to be an actor, he said, “Initially I had the same answer as many other actors, that it’s about fame, but it’s not like that for me any more. I want to inspire people. I would rather be remembered for inspiring someone than for being famous for my acting or writing.”
Young actors
Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Ben runs his own drama academy, called DANIEL’s Drama Academy, at the Alberton Methodist Church for children between the ages of seven and 13. “DANIEL” stands for Developing Actors Naturally in Entertaining Live.
He calls this his breeding ground for talent, and he casts these young actors in his shows.
He also hosts physical theatre classes for Grade 11 and 12 learners at schools.
“Physical theatre is all about telling a story using the fewest possible words. It is all about body-acting. The aim is to show the audience emotion through body language, rather than through words and facial expressions,” Ben said.
Alongside a small team of actors, Ben holds educational shows at schools where he teaches learners about the consequences of lying, drug abuse and bullying.
For more information on Ben, his performances or his drama academy, contact him on 079 276 4404 or follow him on Instagram at benpienaar.
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