The atmosphere in Johannesburg’s Market Theatre fairly crackles with tension as The Brothers Size transports us into the lives of three black men in Louisiana. The impeccable script was written by American playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney, who later won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Moonlight, the film based on his play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue.

His writing here is tight, funny and tragic, and the play has returned to the Market Theatre as this year’s offering for Black History month. Last time it was presented by American actors from the Syracuse Stage in New York, but now local actors fill the roles and they’re absolutely excellent. They speak with convincing American accents and magnify the poetry of the text.

Katlego Chale plays Oshoosi Size, fresh out of jail and dossed down at his brother’s car repair workshop while he finds his feet again. Nhlakanipho Manqele plays his brother Ogun, a hulk of a man whose tough exterior covers a caring heart.

Ogun is anxious to keep Oshoosi out of jail again now that he’s back under his care but gets the balance wrong and his reminders become constricting. “I have got enough memories without you putting in another load every five minutes,” Osooshi complains.

Image: Lungelo Mbulwana

Image: Lungelo Mbulwana

The third character is Elegba, a cellmate who offered Oshoosi protection – at a price – from other threats that were rife inside their jail. Marlo Minnaar plays Elegba perfectly, oozing menace and cold-hearted calculations behind his sly façade of friendship.

The names McCraney chose give us clues about their characters too, with Ogun named after the spirit of iron and labour in the Yoruba culture in West Africa; Oshoosi named after the spirit of the forest and a wanderer; and Elegba the spirit of chaos and god of the crossroads. Together the three men create a cocktail of strength, vulnerability and menace – an unstable combination that will inevitably explode.

McCraney also included stage directions in the play; for example, Manqele will be in his character, talking and suddenly add: “Ogun, angry, exits the stage.” It’s disconcerting at first, then amusing; it confirms one’s own thoughts about the characters’ moods, adding another layer of drama, reminding the audience that this is a play with a crescendo looming.

Image: Lungelo Mbulwana

Image: Lungelo Mbulwana

The story is a powerful tale of brotherhood, with a steadily crafted background of poverty and ambition; it also shows the inequality and precariousness of life as a poor black man in a racist country. The police are a constant presence in their lives, giving the characters a chance to sneeringly re-enact their encounters with the law in a world where they are guilty until proven innocent.

The action is tightly directed by James Ngcobo but he leaves space for thoughtful movement too, with Chale sometimes using dance to express the nightmares and frustrations of Oshoosi. The choreography by Lulu Mlangeni, the moody lighting by Simon King and the simple and minimalist set by Nadya Cohen with just a heap of tyres, all enhance the tension in the air, while sharpening your attention.

The tangible anxiety on the stage is peppered with light moments of humour. First, the audience’s admiration goes to Manqele as Ogun when he makes a stirring speech of brotherly love; then one wonders if Chale isn’t the better actor when he moves you with an outburst of frustration and ambition; but when Minnaar oozes onto the stage, it becomes evident that this play is led by a wonderful and powerful triangle of talent. DM/ML 

The Brothers Size runs at the Market Theatre until 28 February. Tickets available at Webtickets.