FROM Wela Kapela Productions, the creators of the multi-award winning Vincent – His Quest To Love and Be Loved, comes a new musical about the life of comedic genius, Charlie Chaplin, starring Daniel Anderson with Paul Ferreira on piano.
Following rave reviews during its debut season in Johannesburg in July, The Tramp is now on at Artscape Arena until this Saturday, 11 October 2025.
The Tramp, Charlie Chaplin’s alter ego: He’s a gentleman, a poet, a dreamer, a lonely fellow, always hopeful of romance and adventure. He would have you believe he is a scientist, a musician, a duke, a polo-player. However, he is not above picking up cigarette butts or robbing a baby of its candy. And if the occasion warrants it, he will kick a lady in the rear – but only in extreme anger!
The Tramp is a charming new musical that tells the story of Charlie Chaplin through the perspective of his old friend. the beloved Tramp character.
The Tramp explores the complicated bond between an artist and the character they create, blending comedy and tragedy in a heartfelt reflection on fame, identity, and betrayal. Through the use of innovation audio-visual design, physical comedy and reimagined versions of pop, rock, jazz and musical theatre songs, The Tramp explores a different side to the comedic genius, Charlie Chaplin.
The show follows the Tramp as he reflects on Chaplin’s rise to fame. He ponders on their symbiotic relationship, and the eventual betrayal of their friendship that led to Chaplin’s exile from America for communist sympathies.
The retelling of Charlie’s story through popular music and silent film gives a fresh view on the life of the iconic yet controversial comedic genius. The Tramp was everyman’s champion shielding a shy, moody, fastidious Chaplin.
With the arrival of the talking movies, the Tramp was sidelined, and Chaplin himself stepped into the limelight. With this newfound voice, Charlie tarnishes his image with naïve political speeches and scandalous love affairs.
Without the Tramp in his corner, he became an easy target for the cross-dressing J Edgar Hoover and his handmaiden, the gossipmonger Hedda Hopper.
Writer/director Amanda Bothma explains, “We bring audiences face to face with the many sides of Charlie Chaplin – the poor boy, the comic genius, the scandal-ridden public figure, and the old exile looking back. It struck me that he was inseparable from the Tramp, that silent double carrying both his dreams and his sorrows, but for me, the real challenge was not to be dazzled by the myth, but to uncover the silences…the loneliness between the laughter.”
- Performances are Wednesday to Friday at 7pm and Saturday at 4pm and 7pm
- Tickets are R220 with discounted prices for pensioners and scholars
- Bookings via Webtickets
- The show is 85 minutes with no interval
- For more information, click here
