Athol Fugard Dies: South African Playwright & ‘Tsotsi’ Writer Was 92

deadline.com:

Athol Fugard, the Blood Knot, Master Harold… and the Boys and Tsotsi writer who is widely regarded as South Africa’s greatest ever playwright, has died aged 92.

According to AP, the South African government has confirmed Fugard’s death and said South Africa “has lost one of its greatest literary and theatrical icons, whose work shaped the cultural and social landscape of our nation.” A cause of death was not given. “We were cursed with apartheid but blessed with great artists who shone a light on its impact and helped to guide us out of it.

We owe a huge debt to this late, wonderful man,” South African Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie said of Fugard, as reported by AP.

Born in 1932, Fugard is widely regarded as South Africa’s greatest playwright, and he was called “the greatest active playwright in the English-speaking world” by Time in 1985.