Evita se Frock
Günther Simmermacher, Dr Raymond Perrier and Pieter-Dirk Uys on stage of the Evita se Perron theatre with Evitas Bezuidenhout’s dress that features the image of the late Archbishop Denis Hurley. (Photo: Illa Thompson)
When Southern Cross editor Günther Simmermacher and columnist Raymond Perrier — who is also the director of the Denis Hurley Centre (DHC) in Durban — visited Pieter-Dirk Uys’ theatre venue Evita se Perron in Darling in the Western Cape, the veteran comedian was delighted to show them a dress from Evita Bezuidenhout’s closet featuring the image of Archbishop Denis Hurley.
Evita Bezuidenhout is Uys’ alter ego — the respectable Afrikaans tannie who, since her debut in 1982, has poked fun at South African politics and society. Evita, now sporting a fashionable short hairstyle, is still performing at the Darling venue.
The dress was made for Evita during a visit to Durban in 2017. It incorporates shweshwe — a traditional South African cotton fabric with distinctive geometric patterns — and the image of Archbishop Hurley. It was facilitated by fashion consultant Julia Buttery, who had been helping the women in the DHC sewing group to expand the range of the products they make.
The Hurley shweshwe was originally created in 2015 to mark the centenary of the birth of Durban’s late archbishop: a South African icon whom another South African icon chose to honour through the medium of dress.
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