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The Road to Mecca is a 1987 play by South African playwright Athol Fugard. It first premiered at The National Theatre in London, and went on to win the 1988 New York Drama Critics' Circle award for Best Foreign Play. The play was inspired by the life of sculptor Helen Martins, who lived in Nieu-Bethesda, Eastern Cape, South Africa and created The Owl House, which is now a provincial heritage site.

Act I
The Road to Mecca begins with Elsa Barlow, a schoolteacher from Cape Town in her twenties, arriving at the home of her eccentric elderly friend, Helen Martins, in New Bethesda. Elsa is exhausted from her long drive, and even more frustrated to discover that Helen appears to be doing fine, despite sending a desperate, suicidal letter to Elsa a few weeks earlier. Helen is ostracized from the community of New Bethesda, as she is dedicated to creating gruesome sculptures in her yard, which she refers to as a "Mecca." It becomes clear that the only people that Helen is in contact with are Elsa, the local preacher Marius Byleveld, and a local young woman, Katrina. However, it emerges that Elsa has not been in contact with Helen for months, as she was overwhelmed with personal crises such as being called to face disciplinary action by the school board for having her students write letters about racial discrimination to the State President, and being unexpectedly left by her married lover, Stephen. Elsa learns that Marius has made arrangements for Helen to be placed in a retirement community, and has given her a paper to sign so that the move can be confirmed.

Act II
Elsa is furious, believing that Marius is only trying to placate the New Bethesda community, and when he stops by the house to deliver vegetables to Helen, she confronts him about it. Elsa and Marius argue about Helen's well-being and mental state, and it is revealed that Helen recently knocked over a candle, setting fire to her curtains and burning her hands, which is, in Marius' mind, a sign of Helen's incapacity to live on her own. Elsa insists that although Helen has difficulties, the only reason Marius and the townspeople want Helen to leave is because they are afraid of her "free spirit." Meanwhile, Helen becomes more agitated and confused as she listens to the argument. Helen finally bursts out with a story about the inspiration she found following her husbands death, in which she realized how trapped she had felt by religion, married life, and New Bethesda. She had a vision of "a city of light and color," which she determined to be her personal Mecca, and was thus inspired to create her extraordinary sculptures. At the end of her monologue, Helen decides that she will be staying in her house, and no longer needs Marius' condescending and fear-driven advice. Marius leaves, after telling Helen that "there is more light in you than all your candles put together."

Once Marius is gone, Elsa remarks that Marius is clearly in love with Helen, but Helen insists that she does not love him in return, though Elsa is doubtful of the truth of this statement. Elsa admits how jealous she is of the love between Helen and Marius, even if it is not expressed. She reveals that after Stephen left her, she realized that she was pregnant, but decided to have an abortion. As Elsa breaks down and cries, Helen comforts her, and the two women reconcile.

Characters

 * Miss Helen--an eccentric, elderly sculptress who resides in New Bethesda
 * Elsa Barlow--a young schoolteacher from Cape Town
 * Marius Bylevard--the middle-aged preacher of New Bethesda

Production History
The Road to Mecca was first produced at the National Theatre in London, starring Athol Fugard as the Rev. Marius Byleveld, Charlotte Cornwell as Elsa Barlow, and Yvonne Bryceland as Miss Helen. The play then moved to the Spoleto Festival USA in 1987. . In 1988, the play won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Foreign Play. . A 2011 revival of The Road to Mecca ran from December 16, 2011, to March 4, 2012, at Roundabout Theatre Company's American Airlines Theatre, and starred Rosemary Harris, Jim Dale and Carla Gugino. .

There was also a 1992 film adaptation of The Road to Mecca, written by ]Peter Goldsmid, who co-directed it with Athol Fugard, starred Athol Fugard as the Rev. Marius Byleveld, Kathy Bates as Elsa Barlow, and Yvonne Bryceland as Miss Helen.