Over the past 23 years at tvplus, it has been our privilege to watch our local shows grow and change to reveal who we are as South Africans, debate our future, and reckon with our past. tvplus was just a few months old when soapie Backstage was launched in May 2000 on e.tv. We were swept up in the excitement of watching characters like performing arts college principal Ipeleng Theledi (Grace Mahlaba) rocketing from one crisis to another. It was also the show that got Grace thinking seriously about what South African TV still needed. We chatted to her about how she put her belief in herself into action, and why representation matters . . . even if all you want is a gripping story.
BEYOND BACKSTAGE
When Backstage ended in July 2007, Grace set off for a new life
