On board the SS Graigaur a young sailor begins to pen his first novel. Assisted by his muse, a portrait of his mother come to life, and supported by his friend, an illiterate ship's mechanic, he struggles to balance romance and reality. This most personal of Athol Fugard's works is strictly autobiographical; at twenty he abandoned his university education, hitch hiked up Africa and ended up on a tramp steamer in Port Sudan. This play reflects his attempts to come to terms with the conflicting emotions evoked by memories of his courageous mother and flawed father.
The Captain's Tiger received its New York City premiere at Manhattan Theatre Club's City Center Stage in 1999, under the direction of Athol Fugard and Susan Hilferty.