"Pieces of Me": A classic SA story about healing family secrets, past traumas

Multi-award winning actress Bo Petersen performing Pieces of Me. Picture: Supplied

When artists want to tell their life story, normally they write a memoir or commission someone else to write a book or film a documentary. Very few artists dare to bare their soul on stage as intimately as multi-award winning actress Bo Petersen does in her exceptional one-woman show, Pieces of Me. 

Capturing the complexity of identity and the imprints of a painful past, Petersen’s performance encapsulates the very essence of what it means to navigate a world shaped by the lingering shadows of apartheid. 

At just 19, Petersen stumbled upon the life-altering revelation that would forever change her perspective: her father, Benjamin "Benny" Johannes Petersen, was a Coloured man who, for the sake of societal acceptance and safety, had passed as a White man. This revelation was not merely a family secret; it threatened to unravel her entire understanding of her lineage and the identities she held dear. 

Petersen paints a vivid portrayal of her father’s sacrifice. Living as a White man enabled Benny to pursue a life filled with privileges reserved for that race in apartheid South Africa, but only at the steep cost of alienating his family. To maintain his secret, he forsook his roots, visiting his mother only under the cloak of night. Despite the hidden truths simmering beneath the surface, Petersen recalls her parents’ 62-year marriage, which produced five children, blissfully oblivious to the racial complexities that defined their existence. 

Multi-award winning actress Bo Petersen performing Pieces of Me. Picture: Supplied

The deeper implications of her father's 'passing' weighed heavily on Petersen's conscience, leading her to become the custodian of his silence. In a sense, Petersen had also 'died' upon discovering her father’s secret, and had to keep his secret but also while she was learning to form a new identity, one with which she would be at peace and be able to embrace. 

It is Toni Morrison who says: "No one ever talks about the moment you found that you were white. Or the moment you found out you were black. That's a profound revelation. The minute you find that out, something happens. You have to renegotiate everything."

The performance artfully unfolds the tension and complexity of family loyalty, racial identity, and societal expectations. Through the portrayal of five distinct characters—including her grandmother, a pivotal figure in her narrative—Petersen breathes life into stories about her father's upbringing and the unexpected obstacles race imposed even on familial love.

Bo Petersen as her grandmother in Pieces of Me: Picture: Supplied

A standout moment in the show depicts her grandmother receiving a letter from her son, inviting her to watch her grandchildren swim, aware that segregation laws barred her from joining them as the amenities were reserved for “Whites Only/Slegs Blankes”. 

Petersen eloquently captures the poignant tragedy that lies in her grandmother's love—yearning for connection while being barred by an unjust society. In this heart-wrenching vignette, she twists Shakespeare's famous existential dilemma, transforming it into a profound acknowledgement of duality: “To be seen as another, but to be true to the other.” It explains her father having to be seen as a White man while remaining a Coloured person at heart. 

As the narrative journeys through Petersen's evolution in understanding her father, she finds herself wrestling with her own identity. A conversation with her brother about apartheid injustices when they were young led her father to remind her with understated authority: “Jy is jou pa se kind” — “You are your father’s child.” This phrase emerges as a powerful motif, compelling Petersen to deconstruct the layers of familial complicitness and her own. 

Petersen’s choice to present her experiences through the medium of theatre introduces an evocative dimension to storytelling, particularly since the main character on stage is actually the real subject matter of the story. The stage becomes not just a platform for performance, but a canvas where her memories, struggles, and triumphs bleed into the fabric of the narrative. 

At the heart of Pieces of Me lies a poignant exploration of sensitive themes such as identity, race, parenthood, family dynamics, and the transgenerational trauma wrought by apartheid laws, offering audiences a glimpse into the complex tapestry of Petersen's life. Each monologue is a thread woven with both personal and shared histories, inviting spectators to witness the unspoken stories that threaten the fragile bonds of familial connections. 

The play delves deeply into the often-overlooked experiences of the Coloured community, offering a compelling narrative that challenges the binary understanding of race in a divided society. For the audience, Pieces of Me provides a nuanced understanding of the struggles faced not just by Black South Africans, but also by Coloured individuals as they navigated through the complexities of skin colour and privilege. 

Traditionally, the oppressive nature of apartheid has been seen as a straightforward dichotomy—Black versus White. For Black people, the existence of the Dom-Pass was a stark reminder of their subjugation. However, the play eloquently illustrates how the system's stratification also wreaked havoc on the Coloured community, embedding deep-seated divisions based on skin tone. Those with lighter skin often found themselves caught in a painful limbo, wrestling with their identity amid societal expectations and discrimination.

Bo and her cousin Chris Petersen performing Pieces of Me: Picture: Maggie Gericke.

Accompanied by the gentle notes of a piano played by her cousin Christopher Petersen, the performance gains an added layer of emotional depth. The music reminds the audience of her father's legacy, who found solace in melodies during tumultuous times. As the plot unfolds, audience members bear witness to the struggle for recognition and belonging that characterised the Coloured experience. 

What makes Pieces of Me unique as well is that at selected performances the audience is given an opportunity to interact with Petersen in a Q&A session, getting to know more about what inspired her to portray her life in this manner and what she hopes to achieve. 

For Petersen, performing pieces of herself in the Barney Simon Theatre, named after the co- founder of The Market Theatre, is a full-circle moment that will also add to the unforgettability of her run in Jo’burg. 

"Barney was a mentor of mine and a huge influence in my life. I told him my secret all those years ago and he said to me, ‘Your inheritance is so rich. You are a true South African. One day you will be able to share it with everyone’, and now it's happening," she says.

"These stories are still shrouded in a conspiracy of silence. I can no longer remain silent. The intrinsic damage this ‘secret’ has done to our family and to so many others needs to be seen and heard and hopefully start the journey to healing."

Notably, the performance coincides with Freedom Month in South Africa, a time that resonates deeply with the themes of liberation and the ongoing ramifications of apartheid's legacy.

Directed by Royston Stoffels, Pieces of Me runs for a strictly limited season of only three weeks, from 9 – 27 April 2025 at The Market Theatre.