Business Role Player and Facilitator, Actor

Stephen Van Niekerk is a regular and senior Role Player for Performance Role Play Training, having worked in a variety of organisational areas, from Medicine to Finance and Audit,  through to Leadership and Performance Management.  He has worked with the Medical Protection Society (MPS), Vodacom, Barclays, ABSA, Sun International and Vodafone and Kumba Iron Ore for DukeCE. He is currently a Director of a Lingerie Supply Company, and one of the elite, few certified Bra-fitters in South Africa, giving him a great knowledge of the corporate market.

Stephen studied at the Pretoria Technikon where he completed his Drama Diploma. He became a versatile member of the entertainment industry; from Puppetry to directing, script writing to educational theatre, sexual awareness workshops to children’s theatre, industrial and  mainstream theatre.

Stephen has a passion for screen and film acting and has starred in many local TV shows like SNITCH on M-NET, Home Affairs on SABC1 and is most recognised as Daniel Le Roux in Isidingo. His film career has blossomed and has taken him all over the continent and world. He has even made his Hollywood debut as a featured extra in the film Femme Fatal starring Antonio Banderas.

His love for live performance drew him back to the stage and has seen him in shows like Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”, and  Terrence McNally’s award winning “Love Valour and Compassion”. Most recently he played the role of Berger in the timeless classic “HAIR”.

Business Role Player, Actor, Voice Over Artist

Ashley is a regular Role Player for Performance Role Play Training. Business Role Play work has involved ‘Real Play’ sessions for Duke, Barclays and for Vodacom. Ashley was also involved in BRP facilitated training in Tanzania and Mozambique. He offers an engaging and warm personality that encourages participation and instils trust, while being very versed in business speak.

Ashley also presents various learning modules, and instructional videos for corporates, along with eLearning and commercial voice over work for clients that include: Nissan, BMW, VW, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Liberty, Sasfin, PPS, Investec, Endangered Wildlife Trust, and Supersport.

His coordination and facilitation work has included an array of Cultural Exchanges, such as the Norwegian N.G.O, TENSING NORWAY visit that focused on community youth workshops, a SA tour and youth exchange. He was also the founder of the Amanzimtoti Arts Festival (1999-2002) – financed by the Durban Municipality.

His major focus during his Educational studies at U.N.D. (KZN University) was narrative function across various media.  This was especially useful for the teaching of English in the 1990s, and in particular, the deconstruction of media formats.  The notion of learners as co-creators and critical thinkers, rather than media consumers was instructive. 

His acting career began on stage at The Natal Playhouse in Durban, and transitioned to television in Johannesburg, initially as an anchor for SABC3.  As a film and TV actor, he has appeared as leads and supporting roles in shows such as: ‘Scandal!’, ‘Isidingo’ and ‘Scout’s Safari’. His international work – subsequent to his move to Cape Town – includes the recent filming of ‘Warrior’ for HBO, and ‘Deep State’ for UK-based Endor productions. 

Business Role Player, Actor, Facilitator

Nqobile Sipamla has been a strong member of the Performance Role Play Training Senior team for many years. She has developed a sound business knowledge and great facilitation skills. This has made her a sought-after Role Player for PRPT. She has done extensive Real Play, Immersions, Role Play and improvisation for a variety of PRPT clients including Vodacom, Barclays, SARS, VIP Travel, and Standard Bank C-Suite for DukeCE.

Nqobile is an Actor, Singer, Voice-Over Artist and Facilitator who was born in Pimville, Soweto – currently residing between Johannesburg and Durban, KZN. She is Co- founder of Refhuge (Pty) Ltd which include songwriting, scriptwriting, and production co-ordination. Nqobile prides herself on her range and versatility, as she aspires to be a positive contributor in the realm of the arts and development.

Upon completing her studies,  Nqobile’s debut in the Market Theatre production The Suitcase (2006/ 2009) included tours to The Civic Theatre – Witbank, Pretoria State Theatre – Gauteng and the Stockholm StadsTeatern). This role earned her the Naledi Theatre Award for Best Newcomer/Breakthrough 2006 as well as a nomination for Best Actress in a Lead Role for the same  production. To date, Nqobile has built up an impressive body of theatre work.In the screen acting discipline Nqobile has appeared in various roles on a number of television and film productions, these highlights include: Amandla – as Maria (Feature Film (2016) and Ashes to Ashesas Dt. Zungu onEtv (2016).  

Business Role Player, Actor, CEO Elliebellie Kids Acting Agency

Eloise is a regular Business Role Player for Performance Role Play Training. She has worked extensively for the company for the past 7 years. Clients have included Vodacom, Sun International and DukeCE, with a focus on customer service and challenging conversations.

Eloise is able to play a wide range of characters and is especially skilled in Improvisation.

Her specialities are customer service, unconscious bias and leadership training to upskill employees and give feedback on necessary behavioral challenges.

Facilitation is also an area Eloise has been working in. She believes that coaching comes as a prerequisite and therefore has worked hard in upskilling herself in this regard.

Eloise has a warm, inclusive, and professional style that helps her clients to confidently develop their impact and understand their audiences, in order to work towards desired outcomes. She focuses on awareness, behaviours and communication styles. She is a brilliant team player and the go-to person when a role player is needed at short notice. She is quick and able to perform well under pressure and has been known to flourish when thrown into the deep end.

Beyond Role Play, Eloise has been acting and singing for the past 12 years. She attained her NDIP in Musical Theatre in 2006 from the Tshwane University of Technology where she went on to partake in shows such as Hairspray and Mamma Mia! The musical. Eloise has always been entrepreneurial and created many works including her one woman show: [k]not. She also starred in various TV programmes, the latest being: Spoorloos, an Afrikaans Drama series.

Other areas of speciality: teaching; lecturing, choreography, directing, production management and personal training (physical).  She has recently started her own business as a Kids’ Talent Agency in Johannesburg.

Business Role Player, Actor, Writer, Director, Facilitator

José has been working with Performance Role Play Training for over five years, working with the company throughout Africa, and has contributed his insight and corporate skills on every occasion. He is skilled in Business Role Play and Feedback; Real Play, Forum Theatre and Boardroom Theatre. Clients he has worked with extensively through PRPT include Vodacom, Sun International and VM SA, where his fluency in Portuguese was an added skill which he brought to the table.  Through his work with corporate writing and performing, José has developed a broad knowledge of business and leadership.

In the twenty years since completing his studies, José has worked on stage, in film, television and radio; as a writer, an actor, director and voiceover artist. As a writer, he’s worked extensively in the industrial sector, using theatre and video as effective tools for cultural change. Since his return from a four-year sojourn in the UK, he’s pursued the challenges of screenwriting, given its range of medium, genre, and structural nuance, having gained particular experience in sitcom writing. He has been nominated on a number of occasions for Scriptwriting and Best Film Awards locally and internationally.

José is an attribute to the company because of his understanding of business and the corporate world. He is highly experienced in Industrial Theatre as an actor, writer and director. José is well-known for his improvisational skills and comedy. 

Credentials: University of Witwatersrand – Bachelor of Dramatic Arts, 1997

Business Role Player, Actress

Ziyanda Yako is a Senior Role Player for Performance Role Play Training.  She has over 5 years of Role Playing experience. She has trained as a Business Role Player in South Africa with Performance Role Play Training and has done their course with international Role Play specialist, Collin Hunter. Ziyanda has worked with some of South Africa’s biggest corporate and business entities including, Vodacom, Sun International, Umgeni Water and DukeCE, to name a few.

Born in the culturally rich town of Makanda in the Eastern Cape, here Ziyanda fell in love with the arts and first discovered her talents when, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, invited her onstage at the age of nine at the Grahamstown Arts Festival. She studied Musical Theatre at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) and has since performed in numerous theatre shows both locally and internationally. Ziyanda has also appeared in numerous soaps and on film. This mother and wife, is also no stranger to the business world and is a Director and Business Development/Events Manager at Zenande Leadership Consulting.  Ziyanda has a passion for people, life and is big on family values…