After the dance

In April 1994 South Africa danced its first bold dance with constitutional democracy. Millions of people entered into a state of euphoria and rejoicing. Even after the jubilation of the dance had subsided, the broad optimism remained, but mingled with cynicism from some quarters and an expectation of rich rewards in others. This title sets out to capture some of the flavour of what has happened since that first wild dance took place. In the early 1980s The 29th Parallel described a journey across the country from east to west at a time when South Africans were beginning to be embroiled in great social and political change. In the early 1990s driving South dealt with a second journey, this time from the Limpopo to Cape Agulhas, when people were bracing themselves for the inevitable political climax to come. After the dance probes beneath the surface of the country once again, and David Robbins has allowed South Africans in various parts of the country to speak for themselves within the framework of their individual circumstances.