Dara Beth

Dara Beth is a UCT Theatre & Performance graduate (and received the class medal for theatre-making, the Ruth Peffer’s Prize and distinctions in Drama) who has been performing in productions since the age of six, and now with Plumsong for over ten years.

Since graduating, Dara has split the majority of their time between Plumsong and theatre productions, now adding work as a vocalist as part of Sharyn Seidel’s new rock tribute band, Wildflower. Dara has worked in multiple capacities from writer and director to producer and stage manager, their debut production being “Just a Song and a Dance” with co-performer Sharyn – a perfect blend of Plumsong and theatre. In 2017, Dara also wrote, directed and produced “Nasty Womxn” which played to sold-out houses at the Alexander Bar and started 2018 by working on Tara Notcutt’s “The Taming of the Shrew” as Assistant Director before going on to direct “Medusa Incarnate” which received a Standard Bank Ovation Award from the 2018 National Arts Festival before playing to audiences at Cape Town’s Alexander Bar and Raptor Room, and Johannesburg’s POPArt Theatre. In 2018, Dara was also nominated for “Best New Director” at the Fleur du Cap Awards.

In collaboration with Ameera Conrad, Dara staged “Lolly” at the Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees in 2018. At the festival, “Lolly” was nominated for a Kanna in the category of “Best Uitkampteater”.

In 2019, Dara brought back “Nasty Womxn” with performances at the Alexander Bar as well as Baxter Theatre’s Masambe Theatre. At the same time as they were restaging this work, Dara produced a new project, “The Chronicles of Athena, Babes”. After a successful theatrical run at the Alexander Bar in 2019, Dara was awarded a PESP grant by the NAC in 2021 with which they are currently adapting “The Chronicles of Athena, Babes” for television.

During 2020, while theatre was put on hold, Dara produced several short online film projects: “The Womxn’s Day Comedy Special” – a production featuring some of South Africa’s best female comedians; “Send It” – a raw short film exploring love, desire, and confessions (which recently aired as part of Woordfees TV on DSTV); and “Scenes on Screens | Season One” and “Scenes on Screens | Season Two” – curated productions comprising several short film-based projects created by artists across South Africa. Most recently, Dara’s newest work “all my ex-lovers are dead” was staged as part of the Artscape’s New Voices Programme 2021.

In their spare time, when no one is looking, Dara plays ukulele and guitar. Despite their various theatre credits, Dara considers Plumsong their most rewarding creative endeavour.