Sicelo Buthelezi opens up about his Skeem Saam character.
SKEEM Saam actor Sicelo “Seekay” Buthelezi is not worried about people’s perceptions of him.
He’s more focused on his character development than the storyline.
Sicelo, who joined the popular SABC1 telenovela earlier this year, made his debut on 2 April playing Tobias (Toby) Maswahla, a bad boy university student.
His journey on the show begins after he’s expelled from school in Joburg for misbehaviour, forcing him to relocate to Turfloop.
Recently, Sicelo’s character was involved in a sensitive plot addressing rape and consent, alongside Lethabo Mekoa, who plays Ntswaki Rathoka.
In the storyline, Toby is sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment for raping his girlfriend, Ntswaki and the whole storyline divided TV viewers across Mzansi.
Speaking to Daily Sun, the 25-year-old Thembisa-born actor said since he landed the role at the beginning of the year, he made it clear to himself that his focus would be on building the character.
“Creating this character and making it different from what I’m known for is my main focus. While I understood the gravity and intensity of the storyline, my attention, as an actor, was solely on shaping the character,” Sicelo said.
He said his training at the Market Theatre taught him how to separate himself from the characters he portrays.
“I graduated from the Market Theatre, and they did an excellent job in teaching us how to put on a character and take it off when needed. Thanks to that training, I don’t have to worry about bringing a character home with me. When I’m at work, I know what I need to do, and when I’m home, I leave the character behind,” he said.
He further explained that without any training, he felt actors should know how to distinguish their real selves from the characters they portray.
“It doesn’t have to be so deep that you carry the character’s burden beyond the set. At the end of the day, it’s just acting.”
In addition to his acting career, Sicelo revealed that he’s also working on new music, and fans can expect new releases from him soon.