CurtainCall SA

"BODY LANGUAGE" - Sensational & Sensical.

2012-01-21T06:09:00.000-08:00

Don't expect crass Anglo American stand-up comedy when you start your year with laughter as the wacky Belgian Gaëtan Schmid (The Dog’s Bollocks and Rumpsteak) finally makes his bow on a Johannesburg stage with his solo show BODY LANGUAGE. This presentation is given in the greatest European and intellectual tradition where the double entendre en the subtle sting at the end of the phrase is what should tickle the funny bone.At the preview we went along to see, less than half the audience got the humour. In fact, there were quite a number of puzzled looks around and, if you burst out in a fit of laughter, you invariably had someone look around at you with a question mark on the face. Most definitely not run-of-the-mill comedy and Daphne Kuhn, once again, must be congratulated for her courage in bringing new innovative and informative works to the stage. What a lady, what a theatre!

BODY LANGUAGE sold out in Cape Town, sold out at the National Arts Festival and sold out at the Hilton Festival and the production opened at the Old Mutual Theatre on the Square teh past week and will run until 4th February (see showtimes below).

BODY LANGUAGE is a brand new, hilarious and informative comedy by South Africa’s leading edutainment comedian and physical theatre expert, Gaetan Schmid. Gaëtan, in his very own peculiar and particular way, will entertain you on a fascinating subject - the secret language of the human body. Fascinating because, even if you don’t want it, your body talks and talks and talks and talks … and it won’t ever shut up! Who ever thought that the human body could be so funny? Even the lowly goose bump gets a laugh in his masterful hands!

Anthropologically, sociologically, biologically, psychologically, neurologically but not so logically; Gaëtan will analyse the provenance of everyday gestures. Aside from its intellectual and stimulating subject matter, audiences who attend a performance of BODY LANGUAGE might also pick up a trick or two on how to “read” others - a boss, a spouse or even that ‘interesting’ person at the bar!

Underneath its irreverent and comedic narrative, BODY LANGUAGE’s social message is of ever increasing importance: human interaction and communication. Our entire societal system is based on communication. If we can improve the quality of our communication we will improve the quality of our society.

The media has raved:
"... a solo tour de force ..." Sunday Times
"... visually feasting ..." Sunday Independent
"... manic ... crazy ..." Your Soapbox
"... hilarious rollercoaster ride ..." the writing studio
"... not for the faint-hearted ..." Encore Entertainment
"... make sure your cheeks are ready to be stretched into a smile for about an hour." Bizcommunity.com
"… Gaëtan Schmid ... an ... inimitable ..." Artslink
"... immaculate ..." Cue2011
"... and extremely humorous ..." WhatsoninCapeTown.com
"... fascinating performer." Thee Next 48hours
" ... and … big balls." Megan's Head

There are special group bookings discounts
- and on Tuesdays nights tickets are two for the price of one!

Fundraisers and dinner show packages as well as school group outings and can also be arranged.
Performances will take place from Tuesdays – Friday at 8.15 and Saturdays at 6pm and 8.30 pm

Bookings can be made by calling the theatre on tel. 011-883-8606
or the Call Centre on 0861 22 5598
or book online – www.strictlytickets.com or www.theatreonthesquare.co.za

For further media info call Daphne Kuhn or Mika Stefano on tel. 011-883-8606

Mzansi Fela 2011 Festival

2011-11-26T06:01:00.000-08:00

The Annual Mzansi Fela Festival will once again take place at the SA State Theatre.
This fun, exciting and entertaining arts extravaganza event of the year is getting bigger and better. Since its inception in 2007, the festival is regarded as the training ground for upcoming artists as well as a platform for established artists. Mzansi Fela Festival is getting stronger every year and is testimony to the festive spirit of Tshwane. The festival features music, dance, theatre, poetry and comedy performed only by local artists.

The two week long festival will kick off on 1 December with a march from the Union Buildings to the State Theatre where the official opening will take place with various free performances at Lillian Ngoyi Square. DJ Cleo will be spin the discs until late.

The Parlotones will take on the Opera stage on 2 December, followed by Thandiswa Mazwai on 3 December and Lira on 9 and 10 December.

Comedians such as Kedibone Molaudzi, Donovan Goliath, Roni Modimola, Justice Kubheka, Jacques Barrett (Australia) and Carl Joshua Ncube (Zimbabwe) will take on the Drama stage on 1 December, followed by Judith Sephuma and Mathapelo on Jazz on Sunday, 4 December.

Theatre lovers will be able to watch productions such as Money Maker, by Julian Seleke-Mokoto, Love at First Fight presented by Follow Spot Productions, Lime Lights on Rites, presented by Ntsoana Contemporary Dance and Rhetorical, directed by The State Theatre’s Resident Director, Mpumelelo Paul Grootboom. Theate performances will take place between 2 and 12 December.

Moving Into Dance Mophatong will present a four dance piece on Inception, Silent Departure, Inside and Fractured 2 from 9 to 11 December.

Rock bands will include the likes of Outside The New, Son of 1000, The Christian Heath Band, NeVaMe and Chiba Fly, on 9 December.

On 8 December, Kgafela Oa Magogodi, Lefifi Tladi, Natalia Molebatsi and Afurukan will present poetry.

Hip Hop lovers will be entertained by Black Coffee on 9 December.

Community Theatre groups will also showcase their works during the day from 2 to 9 December.

The festival ends on 12 December, 2011.

Tickets are available at Computicket from R10 to R220

For more information, photographs and interviews please call:

Anton van Rensburg on 072 192 8311
Mixael de Kock on 083 651 4424
Lia Church on 011 646 8501
e-mail: ops.mavhold@mweb.co.za

Sleeping Beauty at the State Theatre

2011-11-24T05:25:00.000-08:00

This very special 10th Anniversary production of teh SA Ballet Theatre's Sleeping Beauty is absolutely a must. Now on at the State Theatre. See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDOPu1NJxLQ&feature=youtu.be

Godfrey Johnson's Season in the Sun

2011-11-24T05:13:00.000-08:00

Fleur du Cap winner, Godfrey Johnson will be presenting Season in the Sun,
a musical celebration with a healthy dose of comedy and pathos.
The show will include songs by Jacques Brel, Noel Coward, Cole Porter, Madonna, Kurt Weill
and new material by Godfrey Johnson.
In 2007, Johnson won The Fleur du Cap Award for best performance in a cabaret and has been nominated twice for his one man shows, "Flirting with Coward" and "The Shadow of Brel",
both directed by Sanjin Muftic in Cape Town.
In 2010 he performed with Pieter-Dirk Uys in the award-winning "Bambi Sings the FAK and other struggle Anthems" at The Fugard Theatre and was also responsible for the musical arrangements.

Johnson has performed over 20 one-man shows and has appeared at every arts festival in South Africa as well as performing in Montreal, Amsterdam and recently performed at The Jermyn Street Theatre in London with Claire Watling in "Kissed by Brel".
He has starred in numerous films, television programmes and musicals; as Riff Raff in “The Rocky Horror Show" and as Noel Coward in "Noel and Marlene" opposite Pieter-Dirk Uys.
Most recent film credits include the lead in David Moore's, "Once Upon a Road Trip" and Robert Silke's "The Satyr of Springbok Heights". He also directed the musical "The Cape Town Show"
in 2010 and 2011.

What the press have said about Johnson.

"His interpretations are from the heart, with deep understanding." - Meganshead
"Casts a spell that you never want broken." - Zane Henry - Argus Tonight

There are special group bookings discounts
- and on Tuesdays nights tickets are two for the price of one!

Fundraisers and dinner show packages as well as school group outings and can also be arranged.
Performances will take place from Tuesdays – Friday at 8.15 and Saturdays at 6pm and 8.30 pm

Bookings can be made by calling the theatre on tel. 011-883-8606
or the Call Centre on 0861 22 5598
or book online – www.strictlytickets.com or www.theatreonthesquare.co.za

The MOUSETRAP - 60th anniversary!

2011-11-24T04:51:00.000-08:00

Official celebrations for the 60th anniversary of The Mousetrap are well underway in London’s West End. To celebrate they are licensing 60 professional productions of the play all over the world during the anniversary period (1st September 2011 to 31st December 2013) to mark this historic milestone, and our South African production is one of their Diamond 60!

Starring Clare Marshall, Ashley Dowds, Mark Rayment, Robert Fridjhon, Bronwyn-Leigh Gottwald, Matthew Lotter, Clyde Berning, and Sarah Richard, The South African production is Directed by Award-Winning Director Alan Swerdlow.

Please find attached pics of the cast in rehearsals.

Pieter Toerien presents
Agatha Christie’s
THE MOUSETRAP
From 18 Jan 2012
At Pieter Toerien’s Montecasino Theatre
Performances: Wed – Fri @ 8pm, Sat @ 5pm & 8pm, Sun @ 3pm
Tickets: R150, R100, R75
All bookings at the theatre and Computicket (011) 511 1818

SECUNDA GROUP IS THE BEST OF THE BEST

2011-11-21T06:30:00.000-08:00

Two days of nail-biting theatre productions came to a thrilling end on Sunday when Zase Laduma Arts Projects from Secunda walked away with the R8 000 first place prize and the “Best of the Best” title for their play ‘The Perfect Problem’.
“Zase Laduma Arts Projects are making a name for themselves among community theatre groups and won numerous 2011 SANCTA Festival prizes for ‘The Perfect Problem’. The judges were really impressed by the standard they set with The Perfect Problem,” said manager of the Best of the Best festival, Tonderai Chiyindiko.

Second Prize of R5 000 went to Cape Town-based group Africa Jam with the play ‘Uhlazo’ who are also 2011 Zabalaza Festival Winners and the Hillbrow Theatre Project earned R3000 for their performance of ‘Ga Sepatala’ which won the 2011 Inner City Schools’ Drama Festival. B & T Productions came all the way from Port Elizabeth, but their play ‘My Bra Se Tjirrie’ walked off with R1 000.

“Many of the participants are non-profit organisations and put on productions dealing with issues that affect their communities and the country,” said Chiyindiko. “A festival like Best of the Best doesn't just acknowledge the work these groups do by awarding them prize money. These community festivals give them a platform to showcase their talented community members, and also give them a platform to ensure that their voices are heard and their stories are told.”

The festival, which was hosted by Sibikwa Arts Centre in Benoni, attracted a wide variety of theatre groups from around South Africa as well as within the SADC region. Regional participants expected included groups from Malawi, Zambia, Lesotho but they could not make it for various reasons. In the end we had one group from Botswana and two from Zimbabwe.

The judges included Dr Robert Malcolm Mclaren co-founder of South African theatre organisation, Workshop ’71, and Zimbabwean arts education trust, CHIPAWO; award-winning and accomplished artist and acclaimed playwright, director, actor and cultural activist Gamakhulu Diniso; and award-winning actress Motshabi Tyelele.

“The festival gave us a powerful and challenging view of the Rainbow nation - and its neighbours - from the grassroots,” said Mclaren. “For two days we were taken on nearly 30 short but compelling journeys through themes and stories from all over the country and in seven different languages. Theatre is vibrant and alive, if disturbing - the question is, is society?”

His sentiments were echoed by Tyelele, who commented that all but one play was on violence – “it was a bit disturbing to see that the common themes of all the shows was violence in society. But rather than feel upset about the content of the plays, people should be motivated by the content to make a difference in their own lives.

“It was a really wonderful experience. It's a good initiative by Sibikwa. The festival made me realise how important theatre is in these communities and there is a need for professionals to get involved in mentoring these young artists. There is a lot of talent in these communities and they could thrive with some professional guidance.”

ENDS

Media Queries
Bridget van Oerle/ Christabel Zulu
BUZ Publicity
011 482 3467/3489
083 263 6991/084 5522 417
FAX 086 694 4054
christabel@buz.co.za

Ice Dance Sensation returns to SA for Xmas Spectacular

2011-11-19T07:09:00.001-08:00

The international ice dance sensation The Imperial Ice Stars make a triumphant return to South Africa this summer with the World Premiere of their dazzling new production of The Nutcracker on Ice. The Nutcracker on Ice will open at the Teatro at Montecasino in Johannesburg on 8 December 2011 for a limited season (till 15 Jan only), before moving to Cape Town’s Artscape Theatre (19 Jan to 11 Feb). Over the last seven years, The Imperial Ice Stars have performed to more than three million people across five continents, at some of the world’s most prestigious venues – London’s Royal Albert Hall and Sadler’s Wells, Singapore’s Esplanade Theatre, Montreal’s Place des Arts and Moscow’s Red Square.

This award-winning troupe has built up a worldwide following and established an unrivalled reputation for their sophisticated portrayals of classic works, and for executing the most complex and daring manoeuvres on the ice. Their previous world tours (Sleeping Beauty on Ice, Swan Lake on Ice and Cinderella on Ice) have been greeted with nightly standing ovations and five-star reviews.

In the summer of 2009/2010 more than 125,000 South Africans saw The Imperial Ice Stars’ production of Cinderella on Ice.

For their latest production, The Nutcracker on Ice, acclaimed Artistic Director Tony Mercer – the world’s leading creator of contemporary theatre-on-ice - has once again teamed with four-time figure skating World Champion and dual Olympic gold medallist Evgeny Platov, and dual World Champion Maxim Staviski to create choreography that further raises the bar, with ever more breathtaking high-speed leaps and throws, and awe-inspiring acrobatics, coupled with the most graceful and sublime ice dancing.

To Tchaikovsky’s memorable score, the 25-strong cast of World, European and National Championship skaters will astound and mesmerise audiences with their adrenaline-rich, dramatic performance, in the intimate setting of a frozen theatre stage.

Set in early 1900s St Petersburg, The Nutcracker on Ice boasts sumptuous sets by leading Australian scenic designer Eamon D’Arcy in this his fourth Imperial Ice Stars show, opulent and stylish costumes from renowned Russian designer Albina Gabueva who created the sophisticated costuming seen in Cinderella on Ice and Swan Lake on Ice, and magical special effects.

This brand new production follows the classic Russian tale of Maria, the little girl whose love brings to life her cherished Nutcracker doll - a magical Christmas gift from her mysterious godfather - leading to adventures with the Mouse King, the enchanted Prince, and the Sugar Plum Fairy.

The story was originally penned nearly two centuries ago, in 1816, by the German author E T A Hoffman, and was later adapted by the French writer Alexandre Dumas in 1847. From this adaptation, the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and choreographer Lev Ivanov created their ballet, The Nutcracker, which was first performed in St Petersburg in 1892 and has since become a perennial Christmas favourite the world over.

The Imperial Ice Stars’ Artistic Director, Tony Mercer, explains “The art form of ice dance lends itself beautifully to this well-loved tale. Not only does the story entail some graceful romantic ‘adagios’ with lifts and jumps, but the exotic ‘divertissments’ from Spain, China, Arabia, Russia and Egypt allow us to introduce gymnastic elements, human flying sequences, stunning ‘on ice’ acrobatics and interwoven special theatrical effects.”

Pieter Toerien, presenter of The Nutcracker on Ice, says, “I am absolutely delighted that The Imperial Ice Stars have chosen South Africa for the world premiere of their latest outstanding production. The Nutcracker on Ice marks their fourth ice show in this country, and with each tour the audience numbers have grown significantly, as South Africans have embraced and appreciated the quality, exceptional talent and theatricality of these world class skaters. The Imperial Ice Stars can be assured of a very warm welcome when they return here in December!”

The Nutcracker on Ice will thrill and enchant all ages. Tickets go on sale from 28 June and are available at all Computicket outlets, online at www.computicket.com or through the Call Centre on (011) 340 8000.

Performances: Tuesday – Friday @ 7:30pm, Saturday @ 2:30pm & 7:30pm, Sunday @ 2:30pm & 6pm. (Please note that the performance schedule changes slightly over the Christmas and New Year dates with extra holiday matinees added. Please check Computicket for a complete list of all the performances available).

So, you think your family is crazy….

2011-11-17T05:14:00.000-08:00

My mother is Italian, my father is Jewish and I am in therapy! Oi, Mamma Mia, Vot a Family!
Start the Festive season season on a side-splitting note with the New York comedy hit My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish, and I’m in Therapy!, at the Studio Theatre at Montecasino - Commencing 14th November 2011.
Created onstage in the Big Apple by comedian Steve Solomon, this uproariously funny one-man play tells the story of an Italian-Jewish family and the crazy characters that surround it… and drive our hapless hero straight into the therapist’s chair.

This hilarious comedy stars versatile and accomplished local actor Michael Richard, who has his work cut out for him in a one man tour de force- navigating his way through a tricky minefield of voices, dialects and sound effects, conjuring an array of wacky family relationships.

Richard has been directed by the multi award-winning Charmaine Weir-Smith, with whom he recently teamed up for two successful seasons of the Sylvaine Strike comedy Pregnant Pause. The top-flight production team is completed by Wilhelm Disbergen , who will undertake the set design, and Jane Gosnell, who is taking care of lighting.

My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish, and I’m in Therapy! won the Broadway.com audience award for favourite new off-Broadway play of 2007, and has earned rave reviews, in New York and in South Africa.

You don’t need to be Jewish or Italian to appreciate this off-the-wall comedy – you just need to know what it feels like to leave a family dinner with heartburn and a headache…

Described as “one part lasagne, one part kreplach and two parts Prozac”, this play promises to be just the tonic needed to get the year end off to an upbeat start – and tickets are a lot cheaper than a visit to the shrink!

A PERSONAL NOTE FROM STEVE SOLOMON
A friend once told me “Steve, going out for dinner with you is like crashing your family reunion.”
I’ll explain.
I’ve always loved making people laugh this way and for as long as I can remember, I’ve always had a knack for imitating the voices of those around me. A native of Brooklyn, I grew up in the multi-ethnic neighborhood of Sheepshead Bay. This was the perfect training ground for me, a budding dialectician and the class clown. (I did a very authentic-sounding Chinese restaurant delivery boy)

I loved to write jokes but I wasn’t a performer. I mean, in college, I dabbled in entertaining by emceeing events, but I wasn’t a performer. As an adult, I was a physics teacher and a school administrator. I had a head for business. Sure, I used humor, dialects and sound effects when teaching my students, but that’s the closest I ever got to a stage. I was like the real-life version of Gabe Kaplan’s “Welcome Back Kotter.” So I submitted my jokes and stories to periodicals. Friends and professional stand-up comics that I knew in the business. With the coming of the internet and e-mail, I had an outlet for my comedy writings.

But writing jokes for others to read and perform? This wasn’t where my heart was.
Blinded by the glitz of show biz, I decided to live the world of academia and business behind and turn my attention to my true love, making people laugh. I was sick and tired of the regular paychecks, the prestige and the educational glamour of an administrator’s life. I was ready to hit the road with my jokes and voicebox full of funny voices and make 20 bucks a show.

For years I have toured the United States and Canada with my show My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m In Therapy! And now it’s landed “me” right back where I started, in New York. From Sheepshead Bay to the Great White Way. And now with Michael Richard playing me in South Africa!

The story you’re about to see is true. Well…most of it. The Characters portrayed are real-exaggerated, but real; except for my mother, sister and Grandma They’re exaggerated in real life. In fact, I play them down on stage- artistic license if you will, since nobody would believe that characters like them could be real, After my family saw the show, they filed a petition in the courts to have my “artistic license” revoked.

My Dad used to say “some of us are blessed with the ability to work for as long as they WANT to” My addendum: “some of us are blessed with the ability to work in the field they love for as long as they want to.” I have been blessed.

Steve Solomon , New York City

MICHAEL RICHARD- BIOGRAPHY
Leading South African actor Michael Richard was schooled in Zimbabwe before studying drama at UCT. In 1974 he joined PACT as a member of Ken Leach’s famed Arena Company.After playing Hamlet for PACT in 1978, Michael left the company to become a freelance performer, although he was enticed back as an associate actor for four years in the mid-1980s.
In the 37 years that Michael has been on stage, he has been blessed to have worked with directors who challenged him in a huge variety of roles from Shakespeare to rock-opera; from comedy, tragedy, farce and musicals to several pantomime dames!
Other productions include Othello A Midsummer Night’s Dream “Fangs”, “Laughing Matters” “Wild Honey”, “Fiddler On The Roof”, “Amadeus”, “Educating Rita” “Full Circle” and “ Ying Tongl”. He also worked with Richard E Grant in his latest movie” Wah Wah” and John Malkovich in Betrayal

In addition to his radio and television work, Michael has won many awards, most notably for “Children of A Lesser God”, “Keen”, “Othello”, “Death Defying Acts” and “Decadence”. He was also nominated for best actor as King Arthur in “Camelot” and as Tevye in” Fiddler on the Roof” and Martin in God of Carnage. Other memorable plays include PREGNANT PAUSE with Charmaine Weir–Smith directed by Sylvaine Strike; Pterodactyls in which he acted with his wife and daughter, The God of Carnage , Duet for One and most recently The History Boys with his wife and son.

Show Details:

MY MOTHER’S ITALIAN, MY FATHER’S JEWISH, AND I’M IN THERAPY
Studio Theatre, Montecasino
From Wed 16 November
Performances: Wed – Fri @ 8:15pm, Sat @ 5:15pm & 8:15pm, Sun @ 3:15pm
Tickets cost R150
All bookings at the Theatre & Computicket (011) 511 1818

Pas de Quatre avec Force Deserving of Awards

2011-11-17T03:48:00.000-08:00

The worldwide hit, Menopause The Musical® opened to a standing ovation at Pieter Toerien’s Montecasino Theatre last weekend. The star of the show is no doubt Brenda Radloff in the role of the “Earth Mother” – what a performance and what a fine singer and comedy actress! But, the other members of the four-woman cast also delivers brilliant performances.

They are all well-known faces in a variety of roles in several television series and many theatre productions for which they received a number of well-deserved Awards: Kate Normington plays the role of an ageing “Soap Star”; Ntambo Rapatla is the “Power Woman” and Judy Ditchfield portraying the “Iowa Housewife” to the finest degree of character observation.

Four older actresses giving us some of the most superb singing, acting and dancing that we have experienced in a long time - a "Pas de Quatre avec Force" and deserving of being considered for many an award! The show will run for a ten week season. Menopause The Musical® is a joint venture produced by leading South African theatre & entertainment producers HAZEL FELDMAN and PIETER TOERIEN.

“Menopause The Musical® turns every woman’s dreaded lifetime experience into an incredibly funny and light hearted comedy which will obviously be enjoyed by women of all ages but also their male counterparts, families and friends.” says Hazel Feldman. It all started with four women at a Bloomingdale’s lingerie sale with nothing in common but a black lace bra and hot flashes, night sweats, memory loss, chocolate binges, not enough sex, too much sex and more.

A joyful parody of 25 relyricised classic baby boomer hits, the 90-minute show features chart-toppers as "I Heard It Thru the Grapevine; You No Longer See 39" and the disco favourite "Stayin‘ Awake! Stayin‘ Awake!"

Inspired by a hot flash and a bottle of wine, American writer/producer Jeanie Linders created the show as a celebration of women who are on the brink of, in the middle of, or have survived The Change. Since its first performance, the show has evolved as a "grassroots" movement of women who deal with life after 40 and all the challenges that result in the mental, physical and spiritual freedom of the post WW2 baby boomer generation.

"Most women know intuitively that every other woman is experiencing hot flashes or night sweats. There is always a close friend or two who can sympathize or identify with her," says Linders. "But when they are sitting in a theatre with 400 women, all laughing and shouting‚ 'That’s me! That’s me on stage!' they know what they are experiencing is normal. They aren’t alone…or crazy. It becomes a sisterhood."

According to The New York Times, “[Menopause The Musical] has no trouble winning over its audience…because elsewhere the subject is almost never treated with humour from the woman’s point of view.” The Miami Daily Herald wrote “Menopause The Musical is the little revue that set the world on fire – at least that portion of the world that knows the term ‘hot flash’ as reality, not a news bulletin or punch line.” And the positive reviews and audience testimonials continue to arrive daily. Joy Behar from The View said, “You’ll love it. It’s hilarious. Go see it.”

Menopause The Musical®
Pieter Toerien’s Montecasino Theatre
From 11 November to 8 JanuaryPerformances:
Tues – Fri @ 8pm, Sat @ 4pm & 8pm, Sun @ 4pm
Tickets: R250, R200, R150, R75
All bookings at Theatre & Computicket
(011) 511 1818
http://www.montecasinotheatre.co.za/

Festive and Stately Beauty at the SA State Theatre in Pretoria

2011-11-15T11:46:00.001-08:00

CELEBRATE THE FESTIVE SEASON WITH ‘THE SLEEPING BEAUTY’AT THE SOUTH AFRICAN STATE THEATRE
This must be the best bargain of the year! The SABT at the SA State Theatre and the Royal Ballet at Covent Garden are opening within days of each other with the same Sleeping Beauty. The only difference is the ticket price! At SABT you can expect to pay in the range R55 to R250 but, at Covent Garden you will be payuing R 165 BP sterling - taht is almost R 2000 per seat!

The South African Ballet Theatre (SABT) will once again present the magical fairytale ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ at the South African State Theatre from Thursday, November 17th to Sunday December 18th 2011. SABT traditionally celebrates the end of the year with a season at the South African State Theatre and ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ makes for ideal family entertainment.

‘The Sleeping Beauty’ has not been staged in Pretoria since 1997.
Based on the original choreography by Marius Petipa, and set to Pytor Tchaikovsky’s sweeping score, this season will feature SABT stars such as Principal dancer Burnise Silvius, and recently promoted Principal dancer Shannon Glover.Also appearing in ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ are a host of well – known characters such as Princess Aurora, the evil fairy Carabosse, the Lilac Fairy, Puss in Boots and Little Red Riding Hood.

The season is performed to a recorded score performed by the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Sonja Bass. The production is suitable for ages three and up.
SABT is the country’s foremost professional ballet company and has established itself as a major player in the performing arts with impressive productions of classical ballets, new works by South African choreographers and collaborations across international boundaries. 2011 marks the Company’s tenth anniversary.

Bookings for ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ are through the Computicket on 0861 915 8000 or http://www.computicket.com/

SABT management has endeavored to keep ticket prices for the twenty performances as low as possible with prices ranging from just R55 to R250. Opening night is a half-price night while SABT Friends, Pensioners and block bookings are eligible for discounts throughout the season.

See CCSA's reviews at:

http://curtaincallsa.blogspot.com/2011/10/perfect-season-sa-ballet-theatre-star.html

http://curtaincallsa.blogspot.com/2011/09/sleeping-beauty.html

http://www.facebook.com/barend.craven#!/media/set/?set=a.10150296554872127.333234.617932126&type=1

Beautiful and a little beastly!

2011-11-07T03:33:00.001-08:00

This festive season a little holiday magic will dazzle on stage, pantomime
style, with The People’s Theatre production of Beauty and the Beast.
It will run from 7 November to 24 December.

Following the successes of Alice in Wonderland and Fun, Magic and Tales from
Africa, directors Jill Girard and Keith Smith have now brought this all-time
favourite fairytale to life. With a cast of delightful actors starring Gavin
Gomes (Beast) and Alexandra Snyman (Belle) as well as a spectacular set,
innovative, funky musical treatments and new songs that will make a
traditional favourite delightfully contemporary, this is Beauty and the
Beast in wonderful style.

The play tells the story of Beauty’s father, who picks a rose from the Beast’s
garden and gets caught. To save himself, he makes a promise to send his
daughter to the Beast when she is older. He does so unwillingly but in the
end, Beauty and the Beast fall in love…

To add humour and great antics, traditional pantomime-style spoilt-rotten
ugly sisters Cynthia and Prudence played by Nomsa Makhubu and Mary-Anne
Wright, a wicked fairy (Davina, played by Lebogang Mphahlele) and a good
fairy Koisanni (played by Noni Mkonto ) and an apprentice Fairy Dewdrop,
played on alternate days by Jaydene Marais, Skye Proctor and Miguel Da Silva
will keep the action going with compelling variety. A dictatorial
housekeeper (Mrs Bollocks, also played by Lebogang) has been added to the
script to keep audiences in stitches.

Sir Sid (Noni Mkhonto) and Sir Thomas Twit (Gavin Gomes) are the bumbling
suitors who try impressing King Ben (Gomes), while his younger daughter
Belle (Alexandra Snyman) treats a rather ineffectual father, Mr Brown (Adam
Pelkowitz) with great affection.

A delightful, colourful set by Grant Knottenbelt and beautiful costumes by
Linda Wilson make Beauty and the Beast a guaranteed winner for children,
teachers, mother and fathers. It is indeed, perfect family entertainment.

“CrashDance” explodes on UJ Arts Centre Stage

2011-10-22T03:49:00.000-07:00

The audience at the world premiere of internationally-acclaimed French choreographer extraordinaire Redha’s ‘CrashDance’ jumped to their feet as the lights faded on the huge circular cage in which the dancers hung suspended and lifeless in mid-air at the end of the performance. The applause just went on and on and on until, eventually the great master took a rare bow on stage. It was also his birthday! See video extracts at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6_VOMaBpHw

It is when an audience lingers in a foyer after a performance, chatting excitedly, that one knows instinctively that the experience will loiter in the collective memory for many years to come. It has happened in South Africa’s dance world before: When I was 13 years old in 1967, the ballet ‘Raka’ premiered at the Civic Theatre, now renamed the Joburg Theatre. Based on the epic 1939 poem by the genial N.P. van Louw and set to 12 tone music by Graham Newcater and the unforgettable choreography of the great Frank Staff, the audience simply could not leave the theatre afterwards. The premier of ‘CrashDance” was very similar and one can only hope that this work also will be filmed and distributed worldwide. At the time, Raka was commissioned by the Performing Arts Council of the Transvaal (PACT) and the ballet proved such a success that it was soon made into an international hit film by 20th Century Fox. There is no reason why ‘CrashDance’ cannot be South Africa’s next international high art sensation.
The opening indeed was a triumphant event and the Tshwane Dance Theatre – seven boys and six girls – after 6 weeks of daily toil, non-stop learning and total devotion, emerged a leaner meaner and world-class company. Esther Nasser, the TDT’s Artistic Director has shown, despite great difficulties and the constant need to trim the budgets, that she still has the flair and impeccable taste to bring to our audiences works that can compete on any stage abroad. Tonight’s offering was right up there with the very best one could wish for.

In this work the dancers are taxed beyond all limits and at times one feels as if all of reality becomes suspended. Over and above a myriad of dancing skills required for the intricate and demanding choreography of this work, the members of the TDT also had to become gymnasts and acrobats!

It is hard to single out any one dancer but, I will be forgiven if I make mention of Mari-Louise Basson. On opening night she also entered her 6th month of pregnancy, while dancing like never before! Of all the dancers she was the one who performed most of the acrobatic work but, then that is not quite so unusual in that she had received master classes directly from her hubby who is one of the world’s greatest trapeze artistes and teaches at the circus school in Toulouse.

Set in a huge circular cage - symbolic of the human cranium - the dancers represent the memories, the experiences, the ideas and the aspirations of both the individual and society. New ideas enter the cage and engage in combat with old ideas; some ideas and thoughts merge to create fresh insights and other ideas again climb out of the cage to enter the collective conscious.

Redha collaborated with South Africa’s multi-award winning Sbonakaliso Ndaba in molding TDT Artistic Director Esther Nasser’s very edgy and sexy conceptualization of a dance work which incorporates both the terse movements of the martial arts and the weightless motion of dancers flying through the air. Pascal Angelier, acclaimed French trapeze teacher, came to South Africa to guide the TDT dancers in exploring movement in, over and around the cage.

Designs by Wilhelm Disbergen reflect current fashion’s pre-occupation with urban elements incorporated into the rigid framing of the human body. This exciting production teeters on the very edges of the mirror which has become humanity’s daily playground and will appeal to young an old but, for very different reasons!

This production of the Tshwane Dance Theatre (TCT) is generously supported by the South African National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund. “CrashDance” will be on the stage of the UJ Arts Centre for a short season until 29th October – thereafter transferring to the stage of the State Theatre Arena in Pretoria from 2nd to 6th November.

1. UJAC Theatre, Johannesburg

Sat 22 Oct 15:00
Tue 25 Oct 20:00
Wed 26 Oct 20:00
Thu 27 Oct 20:00
Fri 28 Oct 20:00
Sat 29 Oct 15:00

2. State Theatre Arena

Thu 3 Nov 20:00
Fri 4 Nov 20:00
Sat 5 Nov 15:00
Sat 5 Nov 20:00
Sun 6 Nov 15:00

Ticket Prices:

R 100.00 per person

R 50.00 per person for students and pensioners

Block Booking R 50.00 per person for 8 or more persons

Tickets-R100 per person
Tickets-R50 for students and pensioners
Block booking -R50- for more than 8 people

The Perfect Season! SA Ballet Theatre Star Shining Bright!

2011-10-17T02:24:00.001-07:00

It is not for nothing that our family motto reads: Le Coq à chanté de bon matin! There I was - this holy Sunday morning - attending yet another performance of the SABT’s Sleeping Beauty at the Joburg Theatre which, for all intents and purposes, has become my church. And, believe me: It was worth the earlier rise!

In today’s cast we saw the exquisite principal, Burnise Silvius, dancing an Aurora as she had never danced the role before! Arms, hands, feet – every elegant extension – were absolutely flawless. Coupled to her beautiful technique, Silvius is also intensely musical and well on her way to earning the title of prima ballerina assoluta. She is, without any doubt in my mind, the company’s star.
Today was the third time during this season that I saw young Humberto Montero dancing. This boy’s Prince Florimund had just become better and better during the course of this season. He is a really competent dancer and any ballerina, I am sure, would love to dance with a partner that shows off the very best of her!

ChloéGrové as the Lilac Fairy is so beautiful and so delicious and so very very good! What more can I say Chloé?

In the pit was Sonja Bass, making a small JPO sound HUGE! Yes, girl, you now work that Tchaikovsky like a seasoned ballet conductor! This Madam had evolved from a very fast-paced and, at times, hectic opening night (it was a first ballet night for her!) to a remarkably sensitive and supportive Maestra, never taking her eyes off the dancers while controlling simultaneously the musicians with an iron baton! Had it not been for the sumptuous and scrumptious Sleeping Beauty that the SABT so magnificently unfolded on that stage this morning I could happily have sat with my eyes closed just listening to the exquisite tones of that JPO Big Band Sound!

To Trish Downing and Iain MacDonald: Good Stuff!

To the Company: Thank you for all the pleasures you gave me this season!

SABT Babies Shine Like Stars!

2011-10-13T07:47:00.000-07:00

I went to the Joburg Theatre this morning just to see if those babies of the SA Ballet Theatre still were as wonderful as they were on opening night when, because of unexpected injuries - and with 15 minutes’ notice - they took over from the star cast and danced themselves into star cast. Well, at this morning’s 11:00 performance, they did it again and even better!
No doubt Shannon Glover is a star. When a dancer has all the technique and poise they become stars if they also has great musical sense. Glover has really got it - every time she beautifully anticipates a note and pulls it from the orchestra pit. All the great ones seem to have this in common.

Sonja Glass, the conductor of the JPO, has become a really fine ballet conductor since opening night. She has gained sensitivity to both the dancers and understands the music so much better. It was pure Tchaikovsky that flowed from that pit today! Congratulations Sonja!

Humberto Montero gave a solid but cautious performance on opening night but, today, excelled himself in the Grand Pas de Deux which really is the Prince’s only big moment in the ballet. And, what a wonderfully supportive dancer he is!

I never mentioned the Lilac Fairy on opening night. That was for no particular reason other than my being overwhelmed by the other young stars. Today I have to mention Nicole Ferreira. Great performance! Brava girl, bravissima!

The Bluebirds were even more a spectacular than on opening night when I thought their performance amazing. Jessica Overton and James Fraser, from Corps de Ballet, once again repeated their flawless performance and young Fraser even bettered his opening night score to 12 /10! Nice lean and strong body he has and that is going to be a real asset to the company in years to come.

All of these babies from the SABT makes one confident for the future.

The SABT company is in the best form it has been for many years. I would have been proud to show any of my international friends this production. It sparkles with excellence, enthusiasm and dedication. Don’t miss it. Quiet a number of performances for the remainder of the week and including coming Sunday. Bookings may be made through the Joburg Theatre on 0861 670 670 or www.joburgtheatre.com and for more information contact Edgar at SABT on 011 877 6893 or email edgar@saballettheatre.co.za

‘Reading Gay’ set to sizzle at UJ’s Con Cowan Theatre

2011-10-11T11:00:00.000-07:00

In celebration of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) History Month, the month-long annual observance of LGBT history, gay rights and related civil rights movements, UJ Arts and Culture in collaboration with the Artscape New Writing Programme proudly presents READING GAY, presents a season of staged readings of multi-award winning new South African gay plays from 26 to 30 October 2011.

The plays in the season all feature in “SA Gay Plays 1” compiled by Robin Malan and published by through his independent press, Junkets Publisher. “The social issues addressed in the collection include more than just LGBT themes,” says Grace Meadows who is the Manager of Performing Arts at UJ and the producer of the season of readings. “Sexual awakening, issues of identity and abandonment are interlaced with the added grit of revenge, passion and sex. Most important of all is that the work is young, fresh and compelling,” she adds.

The Season Director of READING GAY is Alby Michaels who has pulled together a formidable team of new young directors, UJ students, UJ alumni and professional guest performers to tackle the five plays:

• Wednesday 26 October at 19:30: Capetownian Jade Bowers directs "The Boy Who Fell from the Roof" (2007) by Juliet Jenkin leads the line-up. A heartfelt story about a boy, Simon, who, with his best friend, Georgina, falls into the cold bath waters of homosexuality, race, love, death and growing up in contemporary Cape Town.

• Thursday 27 at 19:30: UJ Arts Academy alumnus Motlatji Ditodi directs Gideon van Eeden’s "Myth of Andrew & Jo" (2010) which is the last of the plays in the collection which toured to Dublin. A contemporary tale of a gay couple, a lesbian couple and a pregnancy – how will the live, how will they love and how will they laugh?

• Friday 28 October at 19:30: Musical Theatre star Neels Clasen directs Ashraf Johaardien’s “Happy Endings Are Extra,” (2006) which was the first of the plays in the collection to be invited to Dublin. A provocative story of love and betrayal unravels as one man comes to terms with the life he’s leading and the one he’s left behind.

• Saturday 29 October at 19:30: Alby Micheals, who is the resident Director of the UJ Arts Academy, takes on "Dalliances" (2008) by Pieter Jacobs. Leo and Janet are friends. Ken is involved with Andy. When Ken meets Leo and make out in a lift, the lives of these four characters intersect with extraordinary results. Jacobs scooped the KKNK Nagtegaal Debut Prize for his Afikaans play “Plofstof” earlier this year.

• Sunday 30 October at 16:00: television personality, Jacques Bessenger who plays Renier in Erfsondes 2 on SABC2 directs the lesbian themed "Careful" (2009) by the late Fiona Coyne. "Careful" was her last play. “(It is) about woman and lesbianism, about friendship and fear, or fear and friendship, and being willing to take the risk to care, both about oneself and others.” (Fiona Coyne) “This season is a precursor to the PLAYING GAY Festival we are planning for next year; a multi-layered and textured smorgasbord of performing and visual arts aimed at social interchange,” says playwright Johaardien who is also the new Head of Arts and Culture at UJ.
READING GAY is supported by LIBERATI, UJ’s LGBT student society and Babylon Bar, Gauteng’s premier gay clubbing experience. Readings are each on for one night only at the Con Cowan Theatre located at UJ’s Bunting Road Campus (adjacent to the SABC in Auckland Park). Tickets are available at R30 for public audiences and R20 for valid student card holders through Computicket. Season Tickets at R100 for all five plays are available from the UJ Arts Centre on the Kingsway campus. For further details contact 011 559 3058 or visit www.uj.ac.za/artscentre.

Alby Michaels

Alby has been performing from a young age- whether with or without an audience. In 1998 he graduated at the University of Pretoria, cum laude, and made his professional debut that same year in Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s The Little Prince, according to him – a good omen.
Highlights of his stage career include Vonke Uit die Vuurklip, in which his portrayal of Stefanus earned him a Vita award nomination in 1999, Amy’s View (Toby) directed by Alan Swerdlow in 1999, Adamas (Adam) directed by Louw Verwey in 2001, Skilpoppe (Ching Kung) directed by Lizz Meiring in 2001, Jo’burg Zoo Storie (Albie) directed by Christo Compion in 2000, Vlerkdans (Anton) directed by Lizz Meiring in 2001, Macbeth (Malcolm) directed by Janice Honeyman in 2000, The Artful Dodger (Oliver Twist) 2002 and Alan Strang in Equus, directed by Thorsten Wedekind in 2011. The small screen beckoned in 1998, when Alby made his television debut as Eugene in Die Netwerk. His credits include Jozi Streets (2004), Binnelanders (2005) and 7de Laan (2006) as well as Luke Taylor in One Way in 2006/2007.

In 2003, Alby joined the Business Against Crime campaign as co-creator and artistic director of the educational theatre project, No Time for Crime. Not only where the learners exposed to groundbreaking edutainment, but also took part in several Youth Against Crime Festivals across South Africa. He received a School Enrichment Award in 2006 for his efforts and contribution.
Although his portfolio reflects a range of diverse projects, it is directing that offers the greatest career satisfaction. South African theatre audiences have experienced Alby’s disciplined attention to detail and abundance of creativity in shows such as Jozi (2002), You Cant Keep a Good Love Down (2003), SING with Tobie Cronje, Lizz Meiring and Terrence Bridget (2008/2010), Vrou in die Maan for Lizz Meiring (2009), Youth Oratorio composed by Jeanine Zaidel-Rudolf (2009), It Takes Two for Rocco De Villiers (2009), The Crucible for Promusica (2011) and [K]not for Eloise Clasen (2011).

Alby sites his involvement with the University of Johannesburg Arts Academy as the most rewarding experience of his career thus far. He joined the Academy in 2004 as Resident Director, describing it as the perfect environment in which to live and express his passion for directing as well as education and training. Highlights from the 27 productions he has directed for the academy include; Die Keiser (2004), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (2004), Metamorphoses (2006), We Shall Sing for the Fatherland (2006), Cabaret (2007), Our Town (2007), African Dust (2008), Jozi Ma Sweetie! (2009), The Far Off Off Broadway (FOOB) Festival (2011) and Flash – a musical blog (2011).

Neels Clasen

Neels Clasen has been an active member of the South African entertainment business for the past twelve years. During this time, he has made his marks as actor, singer, director, writer and lecturer. His most notable theatrical acting credits include leading roles in musicals like FAME (2003), WE WILL ROCK YOU (2006 – 2008 both locally and abroad) and MAMMA MIA (2010). In the musical theatre genre, Neels has also been seen in numerous Barnyard Theatre productions as well as three Janice Honeyman pantomimes at the Joburg Theatre.
Between 2006 and 2008, Neels was co-writer and actor on the comedy series KOMPLEKS I & II, nominated for four SAFTA awards including best writing and best comedy series. Other television credits include CINEMAGIC (presented with Barry Ronge), DIE CASPER RASPER SHOW, SOUL BUDDYZ (2005 – 2007), ZERO TOLERANCE, ISISDINGO and currently BINNELAND. Feature films include SLASH, SECRET OF THE WHALES and PLATTELAND, due to be released later this year.

Neels Clasen has directed numerous theatrical plays, musicals and corporate entertainment events. During his time as lecturer at the Tshwane University of Technology, he directed HELLO AND GOODBYE, NAG VAN LEGIO, WAITING FOR GODOT, ROOIKEPPIE AND THE SEVEN BERGIES as well as his acclaimed production of RENT in 2009. Other Directing highlights include Bruce J. Little’s THE LITTLE POOF I & II, FRIDA KAHLO’S EYES and numerous musical revue shows written and directed, for the Barnyard Theatre, Peermont Casino group and uShaka Marine World.

“I’m incredibly excited about HAPPY ENDINGS ARE EXTRA. I think it’s a brilliant play dealing with so many levels of the human condition. I’m truly looking forward to the reaction this play will evoke”.

Jacques Bessenger

Jacques Bessenger, a drama graduate from TUT, is a well-known face in the South African performing industry. He is best known for his roles in Song vir Katryn (Mossie) and Erfsondes 2,3&4 (Renier) SABC 2. He has also acted supporting roles in local TV series and soaps like Binnelanders, 7de Laan, Getroud met rugby, Villa Rosa, Justice for All, Jozi Streets and Thisa. He is also known for his part as Matthew Dekker in the SABC mini series House of love. Earlier this year he worked on a feature film, ‘Ordinary People’ which will be released world wide in April 2012. His passion for stage has seen him in productions like The Crucible (playing both minister Paris and Hale), The quiet violence of dreams (Grahamstown), The Zoo Story (Grahamstown), Die Afrikaner with Guys de Villiers, Varkdop (KKNK), The Picture of Dorian Gray (Lead), Die Kabaret with Amanda Strydom (Aardklop), Loving Apollo and For whom the Southern Bell Tolls. His educational theatre experience includes productions such as Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra, Kringe in ‘n bos, Die keiser and various productions for the ATKV Children’s Theatre Company.

He is well experienced in the industrial and corporate theatre industry having worked for companies such as Eskom, The Nelson Mandela Foundation 46664, Hewlett Packard, Olthaver and List in Namibia, Department of Economics and productions for Bluemoon productions. As a director he directed the ACT/DALRO/Nedbank Scholarship Final programme for 2010 and 2011, Ligte Uit- a cabaret and educational programs.

Motlatji Ditodi

Motlatji Ditodi has been performing since the age of 3 throughout primary- and high-school. While completing her BA (Audiovisual Production Management) degree at the University of Johannesburg, she became a member of the (then) RAU Song and Dance, RAU Dramatic, and RAU Contemporary Dance companies. As a student, she played various lead roles in the productions Anything Goes, Jump for Joy (written and directed by Ian Von Memerty), West Side Story, and Cabaret. As a singer she performed with Rocco de Villiers, Antoinette Kellerman (Spier Arts Festival) and with jazz diva, Abigail Khubeka, in Black Street Jazz. She’s taken part in various projects under the WITS Drama For Life programme, notably being a current member of the DFL Playback Theatre Company. Television credits include playing Nombulelo in the SABC 2 sitcom Askies, as well as soon to be aired Thembi in the SABC 1 drama Zone 14.
She’s had some directing exposure from being Assistant Director to Alby Michaels (Resident Director at UJ – APK Campus). She assisted the UJ Drama and UJ Song and Dance company productions of The Far Off-Off Broadway Play Festival, and Flash – A Musical Blog respectively in 2011. Myth of Andrew and Jo will be her directing debut.

Jade Bowers

Jade Bowers graduated from the University of Cape Town with a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Drama and Sociology, she is currently doing her Honours degree at the University of the Witwatersrand with a focus on directing and design for the stage.
She has worked as a production manager, stage manager, festival director for WALE 4.0, director and designer.

Bowers has worked with the likes of Jay Pather, Mwenya Kabwe, Daniel Galloway, Ashraf Johaardien and Janni Younge.
She currently has her own production company, Jade Bowers Design and Management.

UJ ARTS & CULTURE is a world-class professional receiving house and performing arts training facility offering a diverse range of vocational programmes, hands-on practical training and community outreach programmes on all four UJ campuses. Facilities include the UJ Arts Centre including the Main Theatre, Gallery and Studios as well as the Experimental Theatre on UJ's Kingsway Campus and the Con Cowan Theatre and studios on the Bunting Road Campus.

The Sound of Heavenly Music

2011-10-08T06:04:00.000-07:00

This week the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra (JPO) performed as I have never heard those musicians perform before! While having dinner before the concert I said to my companion "Oh well, it is Schubert and Beethoven again but, at least, we have the world premiere of Phelelani Mnomiya’s Afroverture that will be new.” It is at the very moment when life and its pleasures seem to have become jaded that one is about to be surprised. And, not only was I in for a most satisfying surprise but, also for an experience of intense awe and majesty! By the end of the evening one had become acutely aware that the sound that came from that stage had filled one’s being with a rare wonder and a sense of godliness.

But, before I tell you about the entirely “new” Schubert and Beethoven that came to fill my senses during the course of the evening, it may be good rather to “start at the very beginning, a very good place to start!”

This unforgettable concert opened with Mnomiya’s Afroverture – an absolutely beautiful work with incredibly complex rhythms and melody lines super-imposed one upon the other like onion skins. I was so proud of being South African and being able to listen to such genius.
This is the first stand-alone overture that Mnomiya has written and the composer describes it as a piece of “absolute” music. While the title can lead one to assume that the work comprises a fusion of styles the composer says: “Afroverture has more to do with where I am as a composer, than being a stylistic tag.” That may be so and I agree that the work has way more in common with Bernstein than the African continent. But there is present in the composition an undeniable suggestion of African singing styles and rhythmic patterns which are skillfully woven throughout the dense orchestration.

This overture was written and orchestrated earlier this year on a commission from the South African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO). Congratulations to the JPO for performing new home-woven works! Now it remains for the work to receive the exposure it merits from being available on CD and of being cast on our radio waves.

Let us now talk about Simon Wright.
Firstly, I am saddened by the fact that Maestro Wright is in the country only to conduct this week’s three concerts of the same programme. Wright is a musician in every sense of the word and he managed to tease from that orchestra sensitivity rarely heard on any concert stage anywhere in the world.

Respected by all as a musician of the utmost integrity, Wright has stood in front of many orchestras greater than the JPO but, he managed to elicit from one of a handful of African orchestras the kind of sound you would expect from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra on one of their best nights.

After the performance I went to talk to him he towered above my 1.88 metres!
Simon Wright is both a physical and intellectual giant. He does not use a podium – he does not need one as he towers above even the harp and double bases! Despite his bodily bulk, he is sensitive in the extreme and conducts the orchestra in an unusually controlled fashion, giving the audience access to the full range of nuance and colour that a performance of Schubert should contain.

My blasé attitude of “I had heard it all before”, very soon dissipated as Maestro Wright, delicately, lead the listener into the first movement of the Schubert Symphony No. 3. I soon realised that I had in fact never heard or understood Schubert before. Wright made all four the movements sound like world premiere experiences.

And, it was only on hearing the Beethoven 5th Piano Concerto (The Emperor) - after the interval - that then I fully understood why there was this break with the convention of the symphony being the last offering of the evening. Like the Schubert, Beethoven became a heavenly rendition and very much indicative of a collaboration of the gods: Conductor, orchestra and pianist cooperated in a musical conspiracy that resulted in a “godly first time” experience for most of the audience. There was no way that one could have listened to any other music once the thunderous applause following the piano concerto had died down.

The Beethoven 5th Piano Concerto is a warhorse of many notes and played to death everywhere that one goes, but, the Du Toit/ Wright/ JPO alliance in this instance gave the Johannesburg audience a rare “virgin” moment.
Francois du Toit is one of the finest pianists that I have ever heard. For him it is more than sheer technique and fireworks: It is also about soul, sincerity and the utmost respect for music. His playing is reflected in his admirabel sense of occasion, his impeccable style of dress and his neat, lean and fit body. When he walked, confidently, onto that stage dressed in his tails, white tie, crisp white shirt and off-white cumber band, you already knew that the offering on hand wiould be the best that that anyone could ever give.

I can continue many hours discussing the gracious way in which piano and orchestra fused into one entity; how this performance transcended to be piano concerto and symphony all at the same time; how Du Toit didn’t smudge a single note; how the arpeggios sparkled like ice cold champagne bubbles; how the huge chords sunk into a bed of warm orchestral sound. All I need say is that if a true music lover missed this concert it can only be regarded as a tragedy for him or her.

The first concert of the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra’s Fourth Season for 2011 was an once-in-a-lifetime experience and, unless I can have my Schubert and Beethoven stirred up this way in future, I really am not interested.

In conclusion, I bow to conductor, pianist and orchestra and I say: “Your Majesties, for the first time in my life Beethoven did not only march through my brain – his music also danced on in the most pleasant of music-induced dreams for the remainder of the night! Even now, as I write, I continue to hear the heavenly ring of divine sound! Thank you.”

A Star is Born! SABT Triumphs!

2011-10-02T15:08:00.000-07:00

Soloist, Shannon Glover, catapulted to the status of Principal Dancer in an opening night in which she suddenly was thrust into the role of Princess Aurora in this superb production of the SA Ballet Theatre’s Sleeping Beauty at the Joburg Theatre’s Mandela Auditorium.
It was an opening night of great excitements as Glover and Humberto Montero - with 15 minutes’ notice - took over the leads from the company’s opening night stars, Burnise Silvius and the visiting Australian guest star who injured his calve just before the curtain went up.

And, it was an absolutely beautiful performance! The SABT hasn’t been in such great form for many many years! It was a total delight to see the company dance in the spectacular costumes and absolutely charming sets by the late Anthony Farmer who was in his late eighties when he designed this breathtaking production many many years ago! It is a feather in the cap for all concerned that the original masterpiece has been so beautifully preserved!

But, the star of the night was no doubt Ms Glover who had worked her way through the ranks since 2004 she was accepted onto The South African Ballet Theatre’s Graduate Programme and during her Graduate year performed the solo in ‘Kopano’ and the role of Clara (including the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy) in ‘The Nutcracker’. In 2005 she was accepted into SABT as a member of the corps de ballet. And, she has shone brightly ever since.

Shannon was promoted from Senior Solist to Principal after the performance. Good move SABT!
As he stepped onto the stage in Act III as Prince Florimund, Humberto Montero appeared to be cautious but he gave a solid performance and truly showed off the beaming Aurora in the plethora of fish dives – beautifully executed and to thunderous applause! And, the audience roared with delight quiet often – from the Blue Bird Pas de Deux through to the Cats and Little Red Riding Hood with her Wolf – we had endless fun and delight on an evening of rare ballet de leux

Here I need to make mention of two of the company's baby-members - two dancers from the Corps de Ballet who gave an absolutely flawless performance as the Bluebirds. This is one of the most demanding Pas de Deux in the entire ballet repertoire and no gala night is without it. Jessica Overton and James Fraser were absolutely flawless when they danced this very difficult show stopper - and they did stop the show! What an achievement! Here are two future stars!
During the current season of this fairytale ballet, The Sleeping Beauty, the delight will be more than before as three well-known theatre couples add their own slight and charm to the performances with a number of guest appearances during the run.

From 30 September to 16 October 2011, theatrical star couples such as Des and Dawn Lindberg; Michael De Pinna and Carolyn Steyn (nee Barkhuizen); and Lena Ferugia and Robert Davies will grace the stage (as the royal king and queen in respective performances) along with the dancers from the SABT.

The SABT company includes stars such as principal dancer Burnise Silvius and international guest artist Adam Thurlow, his second time performing with The SABT, who will dance in the principal roles, and local guest artists Yolandi Olckers and Turiso Magongwa performing the Bluebird couple.

Based on the original Marius Petipa choreography, The Sleeping Beauty promises is a memorable family entertainment experience.

Des and Dawn Lindberg are well known throughout South Africa for their work as entertainers, singers and theatre producers over the past four decades. Dawn studied ballet with Sheila Wartzki, and has a teacher’s diploma in the Cecchetti method. She also studied contemporary dance in Detroit USA and danced with Bluma Rubin and Rhoda Orlin.

Dawn, together with Artistic Director Iain MacDonald, looked regal and enjoyed this rather unusual stage appearance thoroughly!

Michael de Pinna and Carolyn Steyn co-present the radio show Whispers on Radio Today where they regularly interview celebrities and Film-making couple Lena Ferugia and Robert Davies is indeed fit for their roles as on stage royals.

The Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra will accompany for this very special ballet season, except for performances on 6, 7 and 13 October, when it will be danced to recorded music. The conductor for the JPO for this production is Sonja Bass, her first time conducting for the ballet.

Ticket prices for The Sleeping Beauty range from R50 to R320, except for the Sunday morning (11am) performances, when all tickets are just R110 - an affordable and family treat that cannot be missed - be it by a balletomane or just someone who loves the beautiful!

Bookings may be made through the Joburg Theatre on 0861 670 670 or www.joburgtheatre.com and for more information contact Edgar at SABT on 011 877 6893 or email edgar@saballettheatre.co.za

"THE CHILLI BOY" ROMPS BACK TO JOZI

2011-09-21T12:10:00.001-07:00

"The Chilli Boy" – one of the most successful shows in South African history – is back in Johannesburg. Geraldine Naidoo’s surreal and groundbreaking play has come a long way since it premiered nine years ago at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown. This theatrical phenomenon has kept South African audiences flocking to theatres over the past few years and also had a successful run as one of the shows selected as part of the "West End Festival of Performance" in London in 2007.

"The Chilli Boy" is the hilarious portrayal of an old Indian woman reincarnated as a white gangster from Boksburg. At the age of 30, the gangster starts suffering flashbacks from his previous life as an Indian woman. These visions prompt him to don a sari while cooking delicious Indian curries and biryanis. He no longer wants to brawl his way around the streets of Boksburg as his newly discovered maternal instincts start to determine his behaviour. His tough reputation is threatened by the resultant turmoil.

Naidoo has created a play that tackles issues of cultural identity, racial difference and masculinity in an extraordinary and highly entertaining way.

“The play continues to attract huge audiences from across the vast racial and cultural spectrum that constitutes contemporary South African society,” Naidoo said.

While Naidoo's conception, writing and direction have been lauded as brilliant, it is the masterful performance of multi-award winning actor Matthew Ribnick that has had audiences gasping for breath.

“Many audience members describe Ribnick as a “cultural chameleon”. In just over an hour, he skilfully snaps back and forth between characters ranging from the ordinary to the bizarre,” Naidoo said.

Bouts of raucous laughter are punctuated with poignant moments of absolute sincerity as the audience comes to grips with a remarkable story told by a “madman” with a few hats.

"The Chilli Boy" is on at the Fringe at the Joburg Theatre from October 5 until November 6.

Shows run weekly at 20:00 from Wednesdays to Saturdays, with a 15:00 matinee on Sundays. Ticket prices are R130 for all shows. Group discounts are available by contacting the Joburg Theatre on 011 877 6854. The show is not suitable for persons under the age of 12.

Bookings can be made through www.joburgtheatre.com or by calling the Joburg Theatre’s ticketing call centre 0861 670 670.

Media Queires:
Bridget van Oerle/ Christabel Zulu
BUZ Publicity
011 482 3467/3489
083 263 6991/084 5522 417
FAX 086 694 4054
christabel@buz.co.za

PO BOX 1149 Auckland Park 2006
Arts and Culture Trust Publicist of the Year 1999/2004
Nominated in 2008 as one of SA top 10 PR Agencies by the advertising industry publication The Annual
Finalist in the category Sponsorship by a small Business for an Arts Project in the 2009 Business and Arts South Africa Awards

Meet Simba at African Tales

2011-09-19T13:02:00.000-07:00

Hey moms, your kids will have the opportunity to meet Simba the Lion during selected performances of Fun, Magic and Tales of Africa at the Peoples Theatre during September. The production directed by Jill Girard and Keith Smith is a great African adventure.

The iconic friendly Lion will make his guest appearance during this delightful family show on Saturday, the 24th of September 2011 at 10:30am and 2:30pm, to celebrate the launch of the new Twistees BBQ flavour and dazzling new packaging for their entire range.

The Peoples Theatre is located at the Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein. To secure your ticket for Fun, Magic and Tales of Africa and enjoy seeing Simba the Lion and many more of the continent’s wonderful creatures “in the fur”, book at Computicket or call the theatre at 011 403 2340/1563.

To find out more about Simba Baked and win great prizes, visit www.simba.co.za/whatsnew or visit the Simba Baked page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/simbabaked .

To find out more about Fun, Magic and Tales of Africa or to book tickets call 011 403 1563 / www.peoplestheatre.co.za .

Bridget van Oerle/ Christabel Zulu
BUZ Publicity
011 482 3467/3489
083 263 6991/084 5522 417
FAX 086 694 4054
christabel@buz.co.za

PO BOX 1149 Auckland Park 2006
Arts and Culture Trust Publicist of the Year 1999/2004
Nominated in 2008 as one of SA top 10 PR Agencies by the advertising industry publication The Annual
Finalist in the category Sponsorship by a small Business for an Arts Project in the 2009 Business and Arts South Africa Awards

New Mnomiya work debuts during JPO season

2011-09-19T12:31:00.000-07:00

The JPO’s fourth symphony season will see the premiere of a new South African orchestral work, in addition to lively renderings of classical favourites.

From 5 October to 10 November, the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra will conclude its 2011 programme of symphony concerts with a summery flourish, accompanied by top international and local soloists and a trio of eminent conductors. This season sees musicians from Venezuela and Germany taking centre stage, in addition to several of South Africa’s leading lights.

Concerts take place on Wednesday and Thursday evenings at the Linder Auditorium in Parktown, with selected programmes repeated on Friday evenings and Sunday afternoons at Unisa’s ZK Matthews Hall in Pretoria.

Among the season’s highlights is the debut of the work Afroverture by leading choral composer and conductor Simon Bhekathini Phelelani Mnomiya, affectionately known as “SBP”. Commissioned by SAMRO, the Southern African Music Rights Organisation, it takes the form of an overture with mainly Western instrumentation, apart from congas and bongos.

This new composition will be performed at the Linder Auditorium on 5 and 6 October – and at Unisa on Friday 7 October at 8pm – by the JPO under the baton of English conductor Simon Wright, who has earned widespread acclaim for his interpretations of challenging orchestral and choral repertoire.

Also on the menu is Schubert’s Symphony No. 3 , D.200, D major, and the orchestra will be joined by soloist Francois du Toit, one of South Africa’s leading concert pianists, for Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5, Op. 73, E-flat major (Emperor).

The JPO’s resident guest conductor, Bernhard Gueller, takes over the reins for the next three weeks of the season. German musician Antje Weithaas, described by FonoForum as “one of the great violinists of our time”, makes the trip to SA to perform Berg’s Violin Concerto with the JPO on 12 and 13 October. Completing the week’s programme is Haydn’s Symphony No. 101, D major (The Clock/Die Uhr), as well as Beethoven’s Symphony No.1, Op. 21, C major.

Fellow German Maria Kliegel, a cellist and Grammy-nominated recording artist fondly known as La Cellissima, is the featured soloist on 19 and 20 October, as well as on Sunday, 23 October at Unisa at 3pm. The JPO, conducted by Gueller, will accompany Kliegel in performing Elgar’s Cello Concerto, Op. 85, E minor. Audiences will also be treated to renditions of Britten’s Suite on English Folk Tunes, Op. 90 (A Time There Was...) and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 9, Op. 70, E-flat major.

Glorious voices will ring out through the Linder Auditorium on 26 and 27 October, when Opera Africa soloists Kelebogile Boikanyo, Teresa de Wit, Chris Mostert and Otto Maidi and the Opera Africa Chorus will sing Mozart’s Mass, K. 427 (417a), C minor (Robbins Landon), accompanied by the JPO and led by Gueller. The orchestra will also perform contemporary composer Luciano Berio’s Rendering.

Rising young Venezuelan conductor Christian Vásquez, currently music director of that country’s Teresa Carreno Youth Orchestra, steps into the hot seat on 2 and 3 November at the Linder, as well as on Friday the 4th of November at Unisa at 8pm. He will be joined by the JPO and fellow countryman Edicson Ruiz on double bass, for Dittersdorf’s Double Bass Concerto, E-flat major. At 26, Ruiz is only a year younger than Vásquez, with both musicians symbolising the exciting new talent currently emanating from South America.

The programme for the three concerts on 2, 3 and 4 November also features Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Cinderella): Overture, Hoffmeister’s Violone Concerto, D major, Danzon No. 2 by Marquez and Estancia: Four Dances, Op. 8a by Ginastera.

The JPO’s final symphony concerts for the year, on 9 and 10 November, once again feature Vásquez wielding the baton and Peter Bruns, who has made a name for himself on the international stage as one of Germany’s foremost cellists, working his magic with Lalo’s Cello Concerto, D minor. The JPO will also perform Elgar’s Serenade, Op. 20, E minor and Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5, Op. 100, B-flat major.

The Wednesday and Thursday night concerts at the Linder Auditorium start at 8pm, with the periodic Unisa Sunday-afternoon concerts starting at 3pm and Friday-night concerts starting at 8pm. Tickets are available at Computicket or at the door. For more information, call 011 789 2733, e-mail info@jpo.co.za or visit www.jpo.co.za .

Media Queries:
Bridget van Oerle/ Christabel Zulu
BUZ Publicity
011 482 3467/3489
083 263 6991/084 5522 417
FAX 086 694 4054
christabel@buz.co.za

PO BOX 1149 Auckland Park 2006
Arts and Culture Trust Publicist of the Year 1999/2004
Nominated in 2008 as one of SA top 10 PR Agencies by the advertising industry publication The Annual
Finalist in the category Sponsorship by a small Business for an Arts Project in the 2009 Business and Arts South Africa Awards

Alice Who? This ain’t Wonderland

2011-09-19T12:13:00.000-07:00

Alice follows her drug addiction down the rabbit hole and meets the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter and the Queen of Tarts. Alice thinks she is in a happy place but what does the White Rabbit grow in his garden and why does the Mad Hatter want Alice at his tea party?

The UJ Dance Company presents a new look at Alice in Alice Who? An all dance theatre production that is exciting, fresh and more than a little crazy featuring music from all genres in a thought provoking piece that will make you understand that This ain`t Wonderland.
Alice Who? is not children’s theatre but a dance production in the style of “theatre of the absurd”.

It is the brainchild of director and choreographer Owen Lonzar, who hasworked on many productions for Pieter Toerien Productions and Janice Honeyman. He also works extensively abroad.

Tickets cost R50, with discounts for Pensioners, UJ Staff, students and groups of 10 or more. Book at Computicket.

Visit our Facebook page or our website for information on other upcoming productions at the UJ Arts Centre on https://www.facebook.com/pages/University-of-Johannesburg-Arts-Centre/162815443178 and www.uj.ac.za/artscentre.

The run ends on 15 October 2011.

Dates: 8 & 12 - 15 October 2011
Time: Various starting times
Ticket prices: R50 [R30 for pensioners, students and groups of 10 or more]
Venue: University of Johannesburg Arts Centre
Kingsway Campus, Kingsway Avenue, Auckland Park
Contact: Ehllené or Precious on 0115593058

The Sleeping Beauty

2011-09-19T08:58:00.000-07:00

The South African Ballet Theatre (SABT) presents the magical fairytale ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ at the Joburg Theatre from Friday September 30th to Sunday October 16th 2011.
Based on the original choreography by Marius Petipa, and set to Pytor Tchaikovsky’s sweeping score, this season will feature SABT stars such as Principal dancer Burnise Silvius, international guest artists Lily-Ann Bones, Daniel Convery and Australian Adam Thurlow who returns to SABT for his second guest appearance.

Also appearing in ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ are a host of surprise local celebrities in the roles of the King and Queen as well as members of the SABT Academy and SABT Development Schools.

The well – known fairy tale of the spell placed on Princess Aurora by the evil fairy Carabosse, is told in four acts with appearances by the Lilac Fairy, Puss in Boots, the Bluebird couple and of course, Little Red Riding Hood.

The season is accompanied by the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra (except for performances on October 6th, 7th and 13th which are performed to a recorded score) under the baton of Sonja Bass. This season marks the first time that SABT works with a female conductor.

The production is suitable for ages three and up.

SABT is the country’s foremost professional ballet company and has established itself as a major player in the performing arts with impressive productions of classical ballets, new works by South African choreographers and collaborations across international boundaries. 2011 marks the Company’s tenth anniversary.
Bookings for ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ are through the Joburg Theatre on 0861 670 670 or www.joburgtheatre.com.

SABT management has endeavoured to keep ticket prices for the 18 performances as low as possible with prices ranging from just R50 to R320. All tickets for the Sunday morning performances at 11h00 are R110.

For additional information please visit www.saballettheatre.co.za

PRINCIPAL CASTING:
Please note that this cast list is subject to change
PRINCESS AURORA PRINCE FLORIMUND LILAC FAIRY
Friday 30 September @ 8pm Burnise Silvius Adam Thurlow Sanmarie Kreuzhuber
Saturday 1 October @ 3pm Shannon Glover Humberto Montero Nicole Ferreira
Saturday 1 October @ 8pm Lilly-Ann Bones Daniel Convery Chloé Grové
Sunday 2 October @ 3pm Burnise Silvius Adam Thurlow Sanmarie Kreuzhuber
Thursday 6 October @ 11:00am Sanmarie Kreuzhuber Jonathan Rodrigues Chloé Grové
Thursday 6 October @ 7.30pm Shannon Glover Humberto Montero Nicole Ferreira
Friday 7 October @ 8pm Lilly-Ann Bones Daniel Convery Chloé Grové
Saturday 8 October @ 3pm Burnise Silvius Adam Thurlow Sanmarie Kreuzhuber
Saturday 8 October@ 8pm Sanmarie Kreuzhuber Jonathan Rodrigues Chloé Grové
Sunday 9 October @ 11am Lilly-Ann Bones Daniel Convery Nicole Ferreira
Sunday 9 October @ 3pm Lauryn Summerley Jonathan Rodrigues Sanmarie Kreuzhuber
Thursday 13 October @ 11.00am Shannon Glover Humberto Montero Nicole Ferreira
Thursday 13 October @ 19:30 Lauryn Summerley Jonathan Rodrigues Sanmarie Kreuzhuber
Friday 14 October @ 8pm Burnise Silvius Adam Thurlow Sanmarie Kreuzhuber
Saturday 15 October @ 3pm Shannon Glover Humberto Montero Nicole Ferreira
Saturday 15 October @ 8pm Sanmarie Kreuzhuber Jonathan Rodrigues Chloé Grové
Sunday 16 October @ 11am Burnise Silvius Adam Thurlow Sanmarie Kreuzhuber
Sunday 16 October @ 3pm Lilly-Ann Bones Daniel Convery Nicole Ferreira
ENDS
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
PHOTO: BURNISE SILVUS AS AURORA Photographer: John Hogg.

SABT Fans SABTZA

“What is this thing called Swing?”

2011-09-19T05:09:00.001-07:00

Louis Armstrong once asked the question “What is this thing called Swing?” in a song penned in 1939.

On Friday, 7th October at 8pm at the Theatre of Marcellus, Emperors Palace, audiences will have that question answered for them. Two of Mzanzi’s brightest musical stars, GARTH TAYLOR and WINNIE KHUMALO, are set to get audiences swinging at a wonderful evening of Big Band, brassy sounds.

SWING WITH GARTH TAYLOR features special guest star WINNIE KHUMALO in a celebration of one of the most-loved musical styles, adored over decades and influenced by greats like Frank Sinatra to Louis Armstrong. Along with songs from these two icons of Big Band are renditions of South African originals by both Taylor and Khumalo, like you have never heard them before – in big band splendour!

Taylor and Khumalo will be accompanied by a ten-piece big band led by Andrew Baird.

SWING promises to deliver cool, rhythm-filled, finger snapping, toe tapping, sky-reaching entertainment. The repertoire includes hits such as Fly Me To the Moon, I’ve Got You Under My Skin, What A Wonderful World, These Boots are Made for Walking, My Girl, My Way and many more.

The second part of the evening is a pure celebration of the hits of these two great local artistes’ hits, given new life with live big band sounds and dancers.

Both artistes are loved for their big radio hits: Taylor with his recently-released songs My Girl and Pillow and Khumalo for the beautiful I Just Want to Live my Life.

The Theatre of Marcellus is the perfect setting for this show with big names and big sounds.

There is only ONE show on the 7th October at 8pm. Tickets range from R95.00 to R150 and are available at Computicket.

ABOUT GARTH TAYLOR

Garth Taylor believes that music is a universal language that knows no boundaries and the opportunity to combine his unique style with that of Winnie Khumalo is a thrilling new challenge. Multi-talented is the word that best describes this exciting artist.

He co-produced his 2009 album Stripped Down Soul’d Out which saw Taylor going back to his roots with good results: the album spawned the huge hit If I gave you my soul.

His latest August 2011 release, My Girl, masterminded by Unie Moller (the UK promoter who created the smash hit all-girl group La Vuvuzela) is set to take the international market by storm with the new sound of Garth Taylor.

Garth Taylor is no newcomer, with a career that spans almost two decades. His hits range from Why which remained at number 1 for five consecutive weeks and is now a classic. Only With You remained at number one on Cape Town charts for six consecutive weeks.

Garth has shared the stage with industry greats, both local and international, such as Simply Red, Shaggy, Jonathan Butler and the late Brenda Fassie.

In June 2011 he was a headline artist in Bangkok Thailand at the Thailand International Festival and his journey into the world of Swing gives an added dynamic to his well-established career.

Garth always finds the time to help raise funds and awareness for foundations that care for abused women and children. He works for numerous charities and takes pride in being a Shout ambassador. He is a lover of the outdoors, plays golf and is a keen fisherman.

Website: http://www.garthtaylor.com

ABOUT WINNIE KHUMALO

Winnie Khumalo is a Soweto-born singer, much-loved actress and a popstar with a string of hits to her name.

She was introduced to the music industry at the tender age of 15 when she released the albums Hey Laitie, Tshina Tshina (Produced by Sello Chicco Twala) and an album entitled Dlamini in the 1980s. Winnie Khumalo also recorded a gospel album titled Izono Zami in the 1990s produced by Pastor Langa Dube.

A highlight of Winnie Khumalo’s music career was working with the late Brenda Fassie (as a backing and lead vocalist). She has also had the pleasure of working with Pure Magic, Sipho Mbele, Brothers of Peace (B.O.P), Bongo Maffin, Zonke Dikana and DJ Cleo.

Versatile Winnie Khumalo acting credits include her role one of the biggest TV series in South Africa, Muvhango, Mponeng (in which she played the role of a sangoma) and the stage play The Journey.

After a break from live performance and recording, Winnie returned with a mature album simply titled I just wanna live my life produced and distributed by Kalawa Jazzmee Records’ Oscar “Oskido” Mdlongwa.

This album, which sold over 25 000 copies (Gold) and more than 50 000 mobile downloads, became one of the best selling albums within the SA Music Market. Its title song I just wanna live my life is a house tune that still dominates the charts and on high rotation on all major radio
stations in the country.

The video for I Just wanna live my life was nominated for Best Dance video and Best Afro Pop video in the Channel O Music Awards but was also nominated in the South African Music Awards (SAMA), alongside DJ Oskido, Liquid-Deep, Big Nuz and Rhythmic Element in the category Record of the Year.

Winnie was selected to take part in the Shoprite Checkers Women of the Year competition as well as the Museke online Africa Music Awards.
Along with Sello Chicco Twala, she composed the hit song Mina Ngiyohlala Nginje which topped the charts.

Winnie also performed alongside South African president Jacob Zuma during the 2009 ANC election campaigns. In 2010 she made a return to the stage playing Brenda Fassie in Jerry Mofokeng’s musical The Brenda Fassie Story.

Her soon-to-be-released album is entitled Woman and she is delighted to be sharing the stage with Garth Taylor, exploring the wonderful world of Swing.

Watch YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvksCEJMjrU

Listen YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT4qaZGrdi0

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Winnie-Khumalo-fans-n-family/322445994498

ALL PRESS AND MEDIA ENQUIRIES

Bridget van Oerle/ Christabel Zulu
BUZ Publicity
011 482 3467/3489
083 263 6991/084 5522 417
FAX 086 694 4054
christabel@buz.co.za

PO BOX 1149 Auckland Park 2006
Arts and Culture Trust Publicist of the Year 1999/2004
Nominated in 2008 as one of SA top 10 PR Agencies by the advertising industry publication The Annual
Finalist in the category Sponsorship by a small Business for an Arts Project in the 2009 Business and Arts South Africa Awards

THE SOUTH AFRICAN BALLET THEATRE’S ‘BALLETOMANIA!’

2011-09-05T06:15:00.000-07:00

THE SOUTH AFRICAN BALLET THEATRE’S ‘BALLETOMANIA!’
AT ARTS ALIVE 2011

This year’s Joburg Arts Alive International Festival includes the return of classical ballet to the bill as The South African Ballet Theatre (SABT) presents Balletomania! - a Celebration of The South African Ballet Theatre’s 10th anniversary.

This season forms part of the on-going celebrations to commemorate SABT’s 10th anniversary and runs from September 9th to September 11th at the Joburg Theatre.

The programme will feature highlights from SABT’s glittering repertoire, new works as well as appearances by the SABT Academy and Development programme dancers.
Established in 2001 after the closure of The State Theatre Ballet in 2000, SABT has forged a central niche in the local dance sector and this anniversary is indeed a proud moment, not only for the dance community, but for all Joburg residents and Arts Alive patrons.

SABT is the country’s most prestigious professional ballet company and has established itself as a major player in the performing arts with impressive productions of classical ballets, new works by South African choreographers and collaborations across international boundaries.
Bookings are through the Joburg Theatre on 0861 670 670 or www.joburgtheatre.com for the following performances:

• Saturday, September 10th 15h00
• Saturday September 10th 20h00
• Sunday, September 11th at 11h00
• Sunday September 11th at 15h00

Tickets prices range from R110 to R220 (Except for Sunday, 11th September at 11am – all tickets for just R110).
For more information please visit www.saballettheatre.co.za or www.artsalive.co.za.

Patrons are also advised that, due to the Balletomania! Season, the Open Day at SABT studios for The Sleeping Beauty has been re-scheduled to take place on Saturday, September 17th from 10h00 to 13h00. Bookings may be made through Mr Moagi on 011 877 6898.

The Wizard of Fu : Fun and laughs for children, by children

2011-04-30T11:46:00.001-07:00

Dorothy’s crazy mission

The Wizard Of Fu is a fun, updated version of the well-known show ‘The Wizard Of Oz’. After landing in the Land Of Fu after a storm, Dorothy from the small town of Kroonstad, goes on a journey to find the Wizard, to help her get home. All is not well in the land, however. People are missing things. The Lion is missing his courage, Mr Tin has lost his heart, and The Scarecrow has lost his dancing skills. And, worse yet, Miley Cyrus has lost Hannah Montana and Justin Beiber has lost his voice! Dorothy kindly takes it upon herself to put everything right and, in the process, finds herself caught up in a wacky adventure of song, dance and wild antics!

Who is Fu?

The story is linked together by an upcoming new band called Sergeant Fu. Sergeant Fu burst onto the music scene in 2010 with their internationally successful World Cup song “Vuvuzela”. Their eagerly awaited album will hit the stores in April, and their music also appears in the soundtrack selection of the upcoming new movie ‘Superhelde’. Sergeant Fu has introduced a new genre of music to the world called ‘Feel Good’. As this would suggest, their aim is to bring light and happiness into people’s lives. Their music provides the ideal accompaniment to this colourful, funky and upbeat show.

Our children – our pride and joy

The show is produced by StageWorx performing arts and Journey School of Arts, in association with The Joburg Promusica Theatre.

All show profits will be going to Journey, a fulltime arts school for children with special needs, to raise funds for much-needed equipment. The two schools have collaborated to produce a professional quality production that is suitable for the whole family, and is sure to warm your heart and leave a broad smile on your face.

There is a tendency to separate children with special needs into their own schools, and this makes sense in terms of the kind of attention and teaching methods they require. StageWorx recognises, however, that children are children, no matter what their specific needs, and youngsters from special needs schools need to mix with other children their age, as there is so much that they can learn from each other.

Families are asked to come and support this wonderful initiative, and group bookings are currently being taken for schools and churches.

For more information on the Journey School of Arts, or to book your tickets, please contact Gemma on gemmalouisedonnelly@gmail.com

Please visit our websites:
www.journeyschool.co.za
and
www.stageworxperformingarts.co.za

***

VENUE: Joburg Promusica Main Auditorium

DATE & TIME: Sunday, July 8th and 9th at 11am

TICKETS: Adults: R60
Children: R50
Bookings of 10 and more: R40 per person

Bridget van Oerle/ Christabel Zulu
BUZ Publicity
011 482 3467/3489
083 263 6991/084 5522 417
FAX 086 694 4054
christabel@buz.co.za

PO BOX 1149 Auckland Park 2006
Arts and Culture Trust Publicist of the Year 1999/2004
Nominated in 2008 as one of SA top 10 PR Agencies by the advertising industry publication The Annual
Finalist in the category Sponsorship by a small Business for an Arts Project in the 2009 Business and Arts South Africa Awards

Evita Bezuidenhout and Ouma Ossewania

2011-04-30T11:31:00.000-07:00

“DIE POGGENPOELS PRAAT” - Pieter-Dirk Uys presents Evita Bezuidenhout (born Evangelie Poggenpoel) and her mother Ouma Ossewania Kakebenia Poggenpoel in a rousing tribute to our recent history.

It is 50 years since the apartheid Republic of South Africa was born. Today Tannie Evita tries to find the truth among all the spin, shock and awe, while her ma is furious that she wasted her life believing the lie that apartheid was a gift from God.

She is now over 100 and it's too late to sleep with the garden boy! Or is it too much to accept him to kiss that boer?

DIE POGGENPOELS PRAAT - is mainly in Afrikaans but also hilariously in some English.

Evita Bezuidenhout en haar ma vertel dit soos dit is by die Carnival City Casino

Daar is drie Poggenpoels in Pieter-Dirk Uys se lewe: Evita Bezuidenhout, gebore Evangelie Poggenpoel in 1935, haar suster Bambi Kellermann gebore Sarie ‘Baby’ Poggenpoel in 1938, en Ouma Ossewania Kakebenia Poggenpoel gebore tydens die Boere Oorlog en moeder van die twee legendes.

1961 het die geboorte van die Republiek van Suid-Afrika gesien op 31 Mei.2011 is vyftig jaar later en alles het verander. Of het dit? In DIE POGGENPOELS PRAAT bied Pieter-Dirk Uys twee aspekte van ons geskiedenis.

In TANNIE EVITA PRAAT KAKTUS neem die bekendste wit vrou in Suid-Afrika ons deur die offsieële geskiedenis van die Afrikaner soos dit agter ‘n lessenaar in Pretoria in 1949 geskep is deur een of ander politikus. Wat was waar? Waar kom ons vandaan? Watter lesse kan ons uit ons verlede leer? En alles nogal met humor!

‘Laat ons onthou waar ons vandaan kom, sodat ons die hede en toekoms kan vier!’ sê Tannie Evita. Die Kaktus van Afsonderlike Ontwikkeling is saam met haar op die verhoog en is skokkend ook deel van die storie van 1652 deur 1994 tot vandag.

OUMA OSSEWANIA PRAAT VUIL is weer ‘n ander soort storie. Die ou tannie, Ouma
Ossewania, nou oor die 100 jaar oud, sit en wag vir haar beroemde dogter Evita.

Sy kyk terug op haar lewe met woede. Sy het geglo apartheid was ‘n gawe van die Allerhoogste and nou vind sy uit dat dit nie so was nie. Sy’t haar lewe gemors op ‘n leuen. Nou is dit te laat om met die tuinjong te slaap. Of is dit? Die tuinjong is nou burgermeester!

Ouma Ossewania gebruik haar geliefde Afrikaanse taal met passie en sonder verskonings. ‘Ek vloek nooit as ek praat nie. Net as ek dink. Soos nou!’ is haar verduideliking.

‘Kom sien my voor ek vrek!’

May 2/3/4/5/6 @ 20:00
May 1 / 8 @ 18:00
May 2 / 7 @ 16:00
Ticket prices are R120 and for groups of 20 and more R95 available at Computicket

Please note this production is mainly in Afrikaans with some English

Age Restriction 14 years

DEFENDING THE CAVEMAN - Starring Alan Committie

2011-04-30T11:23:00.000-07:00

“Hysterically funny! As someone who has covered the theatre off and on for a couple of decades, I'm as jaded as the next journalist, but I have to say that Caveman made me laugh until tears rolled down my cheeks. People were holding their sides. The woman sitting next to me laughed until she choked.
Caveman proceeds, with compassion as well as humour, to outline the idea that there are real reasons for our differences, possibly even genetic reasons whose origins are buried in the millennia of human evolution; and instead of judging the opposite sex according to one's own gender based standards, it is possible to recognize the differences and accept them without hostile judgment.

Caveman sends you out of the theatre with a smile on your face. You feel less alone. Couples who were arguing before the performance stroll out into the night afterward holding hands. You know there's going to be some serious snuggling going on when they get home. Seems to me that's well worth the price of admission.”

Pieter Toerien’s Montecasino Theatre
11 May – 12 June 2011
Wed – Fri @ 8pm, Sat @ 5pm & 8pm, Sun @ 3pm
Tickets cost R150 from Theatre Box Office (011) 511 1818 or at Computicket

Search is on for SA’s best young instrumentalists

2011-04-30T11:01:00.000-07:00

Young instrumentalists are invited to apply to take part in the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra’s 2011 Youth Concerto Festival in August.

Entries for this vibrant annual showcase of up-and-coming musical excellence close on 6 May 2011, with live auditions taking place on 28 May 2011. Should applicants be out of town or unavailable on 28 May, the JPO audition panel will accept a live DVD (not an audio CD) recording of their audition performance.

Only a handful of the country’s most exceptional young instrumentalists will subsequently be selected to participate in the prestigious Youth Concerto Festival, alongside the JPO.

Applicants must be aged 25 or younger, and the orchestral parts must be available, or easily obtainable, in South Africa. The repertoire can include short pieces written for soloist and orchestra, and does not necessarily have to be part of a concerto. Each musician’s chosen work should be no longer than 11 minutes in duration.

This year, the JPO’s sixth annual Youth Concerto Festival will be held at 8pm on 31 August at the Linder Auditorium in Parktown, Johannesburg. The event is headed up by Sonja Bass, who oversees the JPO’s development and education programme.

education@jpo.co.za.

Media Queries

Bridget van Oerle/ Christabel Zulu

BUZ Publicity

011 482 3467/3489

083 263 6991/084 5522 417

FAX 086 694 4054

christabel@buz.co.za

PO BOX 1149 Auckland Park 2006

Arts and Culture Trust Publicist of the Year 1999/2004

Nominated in 2008 as one of SA top 10 PR Agencies by the advertising industry publication The Annual

Finalist in the category Sponsorship by a small Business for an Arts Project in the 2009 Business and Arts South Africa Awards

Ben Voss in Bend it Like Beauty

2011-04-30T10:42:00.000-07:00

After the success of Beauty and the B.E.E., radio personality, writer and comic sensation BEN VOSS is back with his razor-sharp, motor mouth alter-ego Beauty Ramapelepele in Bend It Like Beauty!
The new production is a whirlwind of character standup comedy. Ramapelepele who is fast becoming a recognized socialite and self made woman amongst South Africa's business and political elite. Funny, fiery and fresh, Bend It Like Beauty has played in London for a three week season as well as in Durban and The National Arts Festival in Grahamstown where it won an Ovation Award for Best Comedy. It will now be open at the Old Mutual Theatre on the Square in Sandton from the 3rd May for a three-week season.

As the gap between Africa and the West widens, Beauty is torn between the capitalist trappings of western society and the familiar traditions of her home, South Africa. To keep her options open she has strengthened her ANC ties and simultaneously taken an all expenses first class trip with the department of tourism to showcase South Africa to the rest of the world. That's what her itinerary says anyway. But is she just looking to fast track her own immigration to a country of her choice?

In Bend it Like Beauty, South Africa's loudmouth seers the colonizers she is trying to impress and skewers the ailing colony she is tired of living in. With vitriolic candor she dishes out her verdict on what it is like being a South African in a global community. Are we still the worlds pariahs or have we squeaky-cleaned our image?

From an anal probe at Heathrow airport (the British were convinced she was smuggling cocaine) to her final speech to the South African cabinet she gives us a fly on the wall account of being a Black Beauty let loose on an unsuspecting world.

Beauty can be heard live on both East Coast Radio’s BIG BREAKFAST and Jacaranda FM’s JUST PLAIN shows.
Also follow Beauty on Twitter @beautyblurts.

Miss Beauty and this comedy at the Old Mutual Theatre on the Square at your peril!

Bookings can be made by calling the theatre on tel. 011-883-8606 or Tel. 083 377 4969
or book on-line – www.strictlytickets.com or www.theatreonthesquare.co.za There are no bookings fees.
Bring your friends, family, colleagues or clients. There are special group bookings discounts
and dinner show packages can be arranged.

E N D S
For further info. call Daphne Kuhn or Mika Stefano on tel. 011-883-8606

DANCE OF DESIRE

2011-04-28T10:33:00.000-07:00

IF YOU LOVED RIVERDANCE
LORD OF THE DANCE
AND
SPIRIT OF THE DANCE
YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS
DANCE OF DESIRE

For the first time in South Africa, Joburg Theatre is proud to present the exclusive visit of DANCE OF DESIRE on the Mandela stage from May 3rd until May 22nd 2011.

Complete with entirely original music and choreography DANCE of DESIRE is undoubtedly unique in its imaginative design. This ground breaking Irish production challenges the boundaries of other Irish dance productions and has uniquely elevated the world of Irish dance to a new level. DANCE of DESIRE is also one of a select few Irish resident and touring dance productions which was actually produced in Ireland and has received critical acclaim not just abroad but also at home in Ireland where creative distinction is reserved for only those who excel amongst their peers within the Irish music and dance traditions.

The show has a cast of 25 performers and comprises world and Irish champion dancers and a selection of Ireland’s finest musical and vocal virtuosos. It has already played to sell out audiences from Beijing to Berlin, Chicago to the Czech Republic, Kuala Lumpur to Paris and just finished a nine-month residency in Jupiter’s Casino, Gold Coast Australia.

The accumulative skills and talents of the costume, set and lighting designers has insured too that the power and passion of the shows story-line devised by Sean Quinlan is conveyed to the audience in a realistic and all encapsulating manner. While the choreography described as “outstanding and extremely innovative” speaks for itself in terms of the heights it reaches and the boundaries that it crosses.

DANCE OF DESIRE has birthed and lives in a post-Riverdance world. What is important is that it is not a sonic mirror of the now world famous Bill Whelan musical score, but brings a fresh spirit to bear on the story. In doing so, DANCE OF DESIRE is opening further doors for the continuation of the new professionalism of Irish dance… DANCE OF DESIRE brings an upbeat joy to the lives of so many through his professionalism and musical inventiveness.

DANCE OF DESIRE is the national dance company in Ireland where Riverdance was born. “We supply them with their dancers and many of the Riverdance current dancers came from us,” says Michael Carr, Executive Producer. We are the parent company who trains the dancers.”

Tickets are priced from R171 and are on sale now exclusively by visiting www.joburgtheatre.com and purchasing your print-at-home ticket on the internet, or by calling the theatre’s new direct ticketing line on 0861 670 670.

Tickets for Joburg Theatre’s shows no longer add the traditional ticketing agency booking fee, so the price you see advertised is the price you pay. Subsequently, the theatre’s tickets are no longer available at Computicket.

For further information, please contact:
COLLETT DAWSON
082 653 1338 / collett.dawson@absamail.co.za

Daring, Dashing, Divine DECADENCE at the Square Theatre

2011-04-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

If the Naledi judges, during this time of irritating public holidays, managed to see this amazing piece of choreographed comedy I am sure the winners of best actor and actress are already decided. Split-second timing, beautifully coordinated movement and mid-air changes into two alternative characters elevates multiple Fleur du Cap nominee, Scott Sparrow and Fleur Du Cap nominee and winner Emily Child to the firmament of the stars!

This naughty little number is a feast for all the senses…sex, temptation, indulgence, glorious extravagance, desire… and a touch of murder! Performed with no props whatsoever other than a settee, the actors rhyme and mime the night away! My favourite moments in the play is when they light imaginary cigarettes with imaginary lighters – and, I have never laughed as much as I did with the bit about the Fox Hunt with Emily Child astride her horse (Scott) and then again that absurd scene where they stuff their faces with all manner of gourmet delicacies at a London establishment, seated with hobnobs, minor royalty and the Beckhams, slowly getting stuffed and utterly pissed on all the champagne. A must see.

Wow Daphne, how do you do it? You always get it just right! Never a dull moment at your gem of a theatre!

DECADENCE is theatre at its best – a risqué story of love and obsession, written by infamously mischievous British playwright, Steven Berkoff. The play is running at The Old Mutual Theatre on the Square from the until 30th April in association with The Mechanicals theatre company of Cape Town – and directed by acclaimed comedic expert, Christopher Weare. DECADENCE was presented by the Old Mutual Theatre on the Square nearly a decade ago, starring Michael Richard and Fiona Ramsay.

This biting work delivers cruel comment on British society. It traces the sensual exploration of two couples’ hysterical love affairs and unusual fetishes. DECADENCE observes the complex dynamics of man’s relationships not only with the opposite sex, but with food and copious amounts of money. Helen, Steve, Sybil and Les have seemingly nothing in common, except for their apparent inability to resist temptation…

The new production of DECADENCE played to two previous sold out seasons to critical acclaim in Cape Town. In 2010 DECADENCE was the recipient of the 2009 Fleur Du Cap’s People’s Choice Award. DECADENCE is delicious and not to be missed – early bookings are strongly recommended. There are special discounts for group bookings, student groups, senior citizens – and dinner /show packages can be arranged.

The critics have raved:

“Fearless young performers deliver a breathlessly entertaining and edgy production” 48 hours
“…theatre at its most imaginative and expressive, Decadence is compulsory viewing” Daniel Dercksen
“… brilliantly choreographed by director Christopher Weare” Brent Meersman, M&G
“…miss this production at your peril! Marianne Thamm Sunday Times

For further info: Call Daphne Kuhn or Mika Stefano on tel. 011-883-8606

THE SOPRANOS - LIVE IN CONCERT

2011-04-27T08:44:00.000-07:00

Catch this entertaining show before their last sizzling performance on Sunday 1 May at the Joburg Theatre. From the creative director that brought us THE TWELVE TENORS this sensational show brings a night of superb songs and immensely talented ladies, displaying a brilliant blend of musical styles.

Joburg Theatre is proud to present THE SOPRANOS – Live in Concert from April 19th to May 1st 2011. Direct from the European leg of their 2011 World Tour and for the first time in South Africa, the eight stunning sopranos enthrall the audience with timeless classics from the world of opera to Broadway and popular classics to contemporary rock, paying homage to the greatest divas the world has ever seen.

Audiences will be treated to some of the best-loved and instantly recognisable music of all time performed in THE SOPRANOS own inimitable and evocative style: from hushed, intimate tones to full-throttle rock, the spine-tingling vocals unify with breath-taking harmonies, paying homage to some of the best-loved Divas including amongst others, Shirley Bassey, Barbra Streisand, Celine Dion and Judy Garland.

Their emotion, humour and charisma will dazzle audiences as they sing timeless classics and high opera interwoven with pop and rock.

A must for all ages, THE SOPRANOS will perform their renditions of hits ranging from The Marriage of Figaro to Rogers & Hammerstein’s Gonna Wash That Man; from Puccini’s Nessun Dorma to James Bond’s Goldfinger; Barbra Streisand’s Evergreen to Simon & Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water, Bizet’s Carmen to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s With One Look and all other genres in between.

THE SOPRANOS are: ROIMATA TEMPLETON (Choreographer and Resident Director), RHIANYDD BEAUMONT, HELEN POWER, LISA BRIDGE, ELIZABETH ATKINSON, KATIE MURRAY, REBECCA MOORE and KATHRYN PEMBERTON.

Barry Potts, Creative Director of THE SOPRANOS, is no stranger to South Africa, having performed here on a number of previous occasions and was eager to return to the country, particularly now as producer. Barry comments;
“At last I have an opportunity to return to the country which launched my career in show business. I was so privileged to conduct the Johannesburg Festival Orchestra and the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra in Rock legends, then supervised the launch of the Rat Pack and starred as one of Ireland's 3 tenors in Spirit of the Dance at the Johannesburg Civic theatre. I am so excited to be producing my international hit show 'The Sopranos' among old friends at the Joburg Theatre and give audiences the opportunity to enjoy one of the best nights out this year.

The full symphony sound accompanying the sopranos was created by New Zealand’s Wellington Sinfonia and the show features a seven-piece on-stage band starring the sassy all-girl string quartet, The Glamrocks.

Adding some local flavour to The Glamrocks is the incredibly talented and internationally celebrated violinist from Cape Town, DANIELLE ASHERSON.

Performances of THE SOPRANOS – Live in Concert begin in The Mandela at Joburg Theatre on Tuesday April 19th and the limited season must close on Sunday May 1st 2011, making this the ideal show to see over the Easter and Public Holiday period.

Enjoy a taste of what to expect from THE SOPRANOS - Live in Concert by clicking on the online link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoGNvE7dOFk

Tickets are R181, R212, R242 and R263, and are on sale now exclusively by visiting www.joburgtheatre.com and purchasing your print-at-home ticket on the internet, or by calling the theatre’s new direct ticketing line on 0861 670 670.
Tickets for Joburg Theatre’s shows no longer add the traditional ticketing agency booking fee, so the price you see advertised is the price you pay. Subsequently, the theatre’s tickets are no longer available at Computicket.

A glittering evening of favourites not to be missed.

Additional Information:
BARRY POTTS (DIRECTOR AND EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)

Barry graduated from the Royal Academy of Music after winning a scholarship from the late Sir Michael Tippett with whom he closely worked in the last years of Sir Michael’s life.

Barry has gained an international reputation as a Musical Director and Vocal Coach and to date is the youngest person to conduct The Honolulu Symphony Orchestra in Hawaii.

He has also worked extensively with the Wellington Sinfonia in New Zealand In 2003 Barry worked with The Johannesburg Festival Orchestra, The Cape Philharmonic and The KwaZulu Natal Orchestra. Following an international tour of ‘Rock Legends’ Barry returned to New Zealand to arrange and record the music for the acclaimed ‘Spirit of Christmas’ for America starring Neil Sedaka, Debbie Reynolds and the Osmonds
In 2004 Barry conducted “Frank, Dean and Sammy Live in Concert’ which transferred to Broadway New York after being Musical Supervisor for the original production in South Africa, India and the U.K. He has also been Musical Director for ‘Dancing Queen’. Barry was the Creative Director of the internationally acclaimed ‘Twelve Irish Tenors’, which visited Johannesburg in 2010.

In 2005 Barry performed in Johannesburg with ‘Spirit of the Dance’ as one of the special guest stars ‘The Three Irish Tenors.’

He has just finished the 40th Anniversary Arena production of ‘HAIR’ as Musical Supervisor in The Netherlands.

Barry is very excited to be returning to South Africa the country that launched his career. As Executive Producer of ICON Theatrical he is proud to bring ‘The Sopranos’ to his second home.

DANIELLE ASHERSON (Violinist from Cape Town)
Having graduated from the University of Cape Town (Bmus) and Trinity College of Music, London (Mmus), Danielle has studied with Prof. Jack de Wet, Jurgen Schwietering, Michael Bochmann and Ofer Falk. At UCT, Danielle won numerous awards and played as soloist with the UCT Symphony Orchestra. Whilst in London, Danielle was a member of the highly successful Chimera String Quartet, winners of the Barbirolli competition. She was also a member of the contemporary music project, G+, with whom she performed at the Royal Festival Hall. Danielle has played as an ad hoc member of the English Chamber Orchestra, St. Paul's Sinfonia and the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra. As a versatile musician, Danielle is a member of Anteros, a group specialising in Mediterranean music as well as the VANA Ensemble. Having recently returned from London, Danielle is now a passionate violin teacher with over 50 young students.

15 MINS OF FAME - DREAMS DO COME TRUE!

2011-04-02T08:33:00.000-07:00

When the curtain raised on the Tshwane Dance Theatre’s quartet of 15 minute ballets - based on the 1979 Andy Warhol quote: “In the future everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes” – many a dream became realized as an hour of superb dance unfurled.

Firstly, Esther Nasser, Artistic Director of the TDT, without a doubt, has realized her dream of building a modern dance company that now knocks the spots off every other company in this country – including the Northern and Southern Sacred Ballet Cows. Laura Cameron and Kristin Wilson are two welcome additions to a group of 12 dancers who physically looks great and know how to strut their stuff. It seems that Esther is the only real Artistic Director left in South Africa’s world of dance – and, therefore, we should pray that she is blessed with immortality and loads of energy for the future. Another dream that is coming true is the long-held fantasy that, “one day”, again, we will see good male dancers gracing our stages. From last night I can confidently report, finally, that they are now stepping forward from the jagged chorus line of the past years. And, emerging from this superb group of TDT muscularity is Kyle Rossouw, tall and elegant and any female dancer’s dream partner. I will never forget the night that Iain MacDonald danced the role of the Zebra in PACT Ballet’s production of Still Life at the Penguin Café. The minute the backdrop parted and Iain’s appeared everyone in that audience knew he was going to be a great dancer. While Kyle is not blessed with MacDonald’s long legs and shorter torso, he has the poise and grace, in time, to become a dancer of considerable nobility.

The third dream of last night’s world premiere programme was that of a young dancer who suffers from a terminal disease. Leigh Novis is 14 years old and in remission from Hodgkin’s cancer. Her wish to dance on a public stage has been with her all through her ordeal. The organization, “Reach For a Dream”, seeks to alleviate the strain of a life-threatening illness on children and their families by providing them with the opportunity to realize their dreams. They contacted the TDT to assist in fulfilling Leigh’s dream. Of the four 15-minute ballets it was Marie-Louise Basson’s “Synonyms for Seth” that did it for me. Most of the choreography is coordinated around and atop a specially constructed security boom. The ballet deals with physical and mental barriers and the inherent paralyses brought about by fear. Nasser thought it apt to include Leigh in this ballet and, a special pas de deux was choreographed into the ballet for her. Through Leigh’s courageous struggle with cancer, she fully epitomizes the determination and spirit required to deal with life-threatening events.

I believe that Mari-Louise Basson has been very busy of late, jetting between commissions and commitments in France, and most recently, India. She is with TDT for three months before she leaves to pursue commissions in Denmark and Sweden. But, her real commitment appears to be her French fiancé and their plans to settle in France. And, I should have guessed: It could only be the French erotic ethos that could have inspired this celebrated choreographer to create such an aesthetically pleasing but, physically strenuous work imbued with sexual passion. Ms Basson really pushes the envelope and leaves the dancers, literally, hovering on the knife edge of the boom! This is clockwork precision choreography and involves totally integrated ensemble work that requires the total concentration and commitment of each of the dancers; one false move and everything can come tumbling down. The soundtrack for “Synonyms for Seth” is outstanding, utilizing extracts from Mandela’s inaugural speech - "But this fear cannot be allowed to stand in the way of the only solution which will guarantee racial harmony and freedom for all” – and also snatches from Nicolas Sarkozy’s “A New World Order” all set against Tchaikovsky’s “Sleeping Beauty”, Cia’s “My Love’ and Florence and the Machine’s “Heavy in your Arms”. What I found particularly pleasing was a whole new interpretation of Aurora’s Rose Adage danced with her four princes. More than a century after the original was choreographed, Basson brings us this tongue-in-the cheek but incredible balancing act with dives and jumps in mid-air; similar but yet light years away from Marius Petipa’s “La Belle au bois dormant” created for the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg in 1890. It would be a great pity of Ms Basson’s love and her career eventually moves away from our shores. Hopefully she will remember her Heimat and come back regularly to feed the starving dance public. My only heartfelt criticism of this work relates to the very ugly costumes designed by David Hutt. Really, those pink bubble fabric bathing costumes the boys wore looked more like rose-coloured nappies with big water-filled lesions on the surface. In my opinion, the whole look of this ballet needs to be reconsidered. (Ag sis man Mister Hutt and you made Judy Page look so good in her show – what then went so wrong here?) Timothy le Roux, in his ballet “All the King’s Horses” confronts issues of colonialism and asks, “Who is to blame?” He questions the political mentality of “Let them eat cake”. Le Roux also exploits the dancers’ technical capabilities in full and, in some of the scenes – especially in the Cossack-like legwork for the boys – he achieves moments of sheer brilliance. Backed by a superb soundtrack, which ranged from the Mozart Requiem, though Vivaldi, Bryas, Beethoven and Bach, including Eartha Kit, the dancers move in beautiful patterns across the stage and, from these ensembles arises, unexpectedly, the most beautiful pas de deux I have seen in a long time. The costumes and stage design by Wilhelm Disbergen - for this ballet - was superb to say the least. I don’t normally praise Wilhelm because I have always believed that he has far greater potential as a designer than he has let on up to now. But, my suspicion that there is a helluva lot more to him than we have seen thus far was confirmed last night; exquisite hues of blue costumes mingling with the orange-gold strobe lighting effects and the striking back wall projection. Well done Disbergen! From now on there are no excuses for you dear boy! Celeste Botha’s in her work, “Here and Now”, deals with the defining moments in a life. And, the ballet started off so beautifully. At one point she places three choreo-ordinated pas de deux couples in three pools of light on the stage – exquisite treplicated movements for the eyes to feast on. And then, poof, all of a sudden the beautiful lines and style achieved in the first half collapses into a silly broth of dancing steps – a bit like a Virgin Active body toning class! But, I suppose it really depicts the symbolical theme of this work: “A simple decision taken on the spur of the moment can unleash a series of unexpected events that can change the course of one’s life”. It surely changed the course of this ballet for me! The first ballet of the evening was called “Silken Road” by the multi-awarded and internationally celebrated young Thabo Rapoo. The choreographer sets out to take the onlooker on a journey along a path with an eventual intersection/connection between two worlds. It is about ‘Sangam’, which literally means ‘two rivers meet’. Where the three ballets that followed this work mirrored a great deal of movement (occasionally bringing about a tad of boredom) all I remember about “Silken Road” is that this ballet had a distinct style of its own. But, I am getting old and by the end of the evening could not remember much of it. On the other hand, this ballet may very well have been Rapoo’s 15 Minutes of Fame. 15 Mins of Fame is being staged at the University of Johannesburg Arts Centre until 9th April 2011 for 8 performances only. Bookings can be made through Computicket. Prices are R50 (for the preview on 31 March), and R80 or R120 for all other performances . When the curtain raised on the Tshwane Dance Theatre’s quartet of 15 minute ballets - based on the 1979 Andy Warhol quote: “In the future everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes” – many a dream became realized as an hour of superb dance unfurled. Firstly, Esther Nasser, Artistic Director of the TDT, without a doubt, has realized her dream of building a modern dance company that now knocks the spots off every other company in this country – including the Northern and Southern Sacred Ballet Cows. Laura Cameron and Kristin Wilson are two welcome additions to a group of 12 dancers who physically looks great and know how to strut their stuff. It seems that Esther is the only real Artistic Director left in South Africa’s world of dance – and, therefore, we should pray that she is blessed with immortality and loads of energy for the future. Another dream that is coming true is the long-held fantasy that, “one day”, again, we will see good male dancers gracing our stages. From last night I can confidently report, finally, that they are now stepping forward from the jagged chorus line of the past years. And, emerging from this superb group of TDT muscularity is Kyle Rossouw, tall and elegant and any female dancer’s dream partner. I will never forget the night that Iain MacDonald danced the role of the Zebra in PACT Ballet’s production of Still Life at the Penguin Café. The minute the backdrop parted and Iain’s appeared everyone in that audience knew he was going to be a great dancer. While Kyle is not blessed with MacDonald’s long legs and shorter torso, he has the poise and grace, in time, to become a dancer of considerable nobility. (Rumour has it that one of his nicknames is Petri and that he sometime finds himself stranded in Naboomspruit – but, I am sure that this is simply nasty dance-world bit of gossip!) The third dream of last night’s world premiere programme was that of a young dancer who suffers from a terminal disease. Leigh Novis is 14 years old and in remission from Hodgkin’s cancer. Her wish to dance on a public stage has been with her all through her ordeal. The organization, “Reach For a Dream”, seeks to alleviate the strain of a life-threatening illness on children and their families by providing them with the opportunity to realize their dreams. They contacted the TDT to assist in fulfilling Leigh’s dream. Of the four 15-minute ballets it was Marie-Louise Basson’s “Synonyms for Seth” that did it for me. Most of the choreography is coordinated around and atop a specially constructed security boom. The ballet deals with physical and mental barriers and the inherent paralyses brought about by fear. Nasser thought it apt to include Leigh in this ballet and, a special pas de deux was choreographed into the ballet for her. Through Leigh’s courageous struggle with cancer, she fully epitomizes the determination and spirit required to deal with life-threatening events. I believe that Mari-Louise Basson has been very busy of late, jetting between commissions and commitments in France, and most recently, India. She is with TDT for three months before she leaves to pursue commissions in Denmark and Sweden. But, her real commitment appears to be her French fiancé and their plans to settle in France. And, I should have guessed: It could only be the French erotic ethos that could have inspired this celebrated choreographer to create such an aesthetically pleasing but, physically strenuous work imbued with sexual passion. Ms Basson really pushes the envelope and leaves the dancers, literally, hovering on the knife edge of the boom! This is clockwork precision choreography and involves totally integrated ensemble work that requires the total concentration and commitment of each of the dancers; one false move and everything can come tumbling down. The soundtrack for “Synonyms for Seth” is outstanding, utilizing extracts from Mandela’s inaugural speech - "But this fear cannot be allowed to stand in the way of the only solution which will guarantee racial harmony and freedom for all” – and also snatches from Nicolas Sarkozy’s “A New World Order” all set against Tchaikovsky’s “Sleeping Beauty”, Cia’s “My Love’ and Florence and the Machine’s “Heavy in your Arms”. What I found particularly pleasing was a whole new interpretation of Aurora’s Rose Adage danced with her four princes. More than a century after the original was choreographed, Basson brings us this tongue-in-the cheek but incredible balancing act with dives and jumps in mid-air; similar but yet light years away from Marius Petipa’s “La Belle au bois dormant” created for the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg in 1890. It would be a great pity of Ms Basson’s love and her career eventually moves away from our shores. Hopefully she will remember her Heimat and come back regularly to feed the starving dance public. My only heartfelt criticism of this work relates to the very ugly costumes designed by David Hutt. Really, those pink bubble fabric bathing costumes the boys wore looked more like rose-coloured nappies with big water-filled lesions on the surface. In my opinion, the whole look of this ballet needs to be reconsidered. (Ag sis man Mister Hutt and you made Judy Page look so good in her show – what then went so wrong here?) Timothy le Roux, in his ballet “All the King’s Horses” confronts issues of colonialism and asks, “Who is to blame?” He questions the political mentality of “Let them eat cake”. Le Roux also exploits the dancers’ technical capabilities in full and, in some of the scenes – especially in the Cossack-like legwork for the boys – he achieves moments of sheer brilliance. Backed by a superb soundtrack, which ranged from the Mozart Requiem, though Vivaldi, Bryas, Beethoven and Bach, including Eartha Kit, the dancers move in beautiful patterns across the stage and, from these ensembles arises, unexpectedly, the most beautiful pas de deux I have seen in a long time. The costumes and stage design by Wilhelm Disbergen - for this ballet - was superb to say the least. I don’t normally praise Wilhelm because I have always believed that he has far greater potential as a designer than he has let on up to now. But, my suspicion that there is a helluva lot more to him than we have seen thus far was confirmed last night; exquisite hues of blue costumes mingling with the orange-gold strobe lighting effects and the striking back wall projection. Well done Disbergen! From now on there are no excuses for you dear boy! Celeste Botha’s in her work, “Here and Now”, deals with the defining moments in a life. And, the ballet started off so beautifully. At one point she places three choreo-ordinated pas de deux couples in three pools of light on the stage – exquisite treplicated movements for the eyes to feast on. And then, poof, all of a sudden the beautiful lines and style achieved in the first half collapses into a silly broth of dancing steps – a bit like a Virgin Active body toning class! But, I suppose it really depicts the symbolical theme of this work: “A simple decision taken on the spur of the moment can unleash a series of unexpected events that can change the course of one’s life”. It surely changed the course of this ballet for me! The first ballet of the evening was called “Silken Road” by the multi-awarded and internationally celebrated young Thabo Rapoo. The choreographer sets out to take the onlooker on a journey along a path with an eventual intersection/connection between two worlds. It is about ‘Sangam’, which literally means ‘two rivers meet’. Where the three ballets that followed this work mirrored a great deal of movement (occasionally bringing about a tad of boredom) all I remember about “Silken Road” is that this ballet had a distinct style of its own. But, I am getting old and by the end of the evening could not remember much of it. On the other hand, this ballet may very well have been Rapoo’s 15 Minutes of Fame. 15 Mins of Fame is being staged at the University of Johannesburg Arts Centre until 9th April 2011 for 8 performances only. Bookings can be made through Computicket. Prices are R50 (for the preview on 31 March), and R80 or R120 for all other performances . .

FULL PAGE, FRONT PAGE, JUDY PAGE IN PAGE BY PAGE!

2011-04-01T08:22:00.000-07:00

When the members of the Johannesburg Press Club goes out for a social event they can be very picky. And for their first evening out for 2011, Joburg’s media elite chose Judy Page’s celebration of her more than 50 years in the business in a show, PAGE BY PAGE running at the Old Mutual Theatre on the Square at Sandton Square until 9th April. Even before the spot lights up Judy Page - dressed in a stark David Hutt 1930’s highly tailored man’s suit with an exquisite solitaire brooch - the first notes played by the talented young pianist Clinton Zerf on the shiny black grand piano, already set the stage for an unforgettable night of pure talent and entertainment. The technique, style and professionalism that have placed Judy Page centre stage for more than 5 decades now, still is all there, held together by the most extraordinary talents this country has ever had the pleasure to enjoy. And, nobody, but nobody handles a mike the way in which Judy manipulates that piece of evil electronic equipment! What an artiste does with a mike is always a good indication of the extent of their knowledge of stage craft – and, what Judy does with that mike is nobody’s business! I have only seen one other live performer in this country who could control a mike in such a mistressly way (and, she knew how to skip over a mike lead also) and that was the wonderful Sophia Foster. But, not even Sophia at her best could ever beat The Page at making the mike work so superbly for her! The show is really a musical tapestry of Judy Page’s legendary life. In a lighthearted way she allows us to peak into her career as an interpreter of songs, a chanteuse and, as the star of many of the grand musicals that graced our stages over many years. She chats to the audience about her life, her three husbands, her children and grandchildren – and, she shares anecdotes about her leading men, the impresarios she has worked with and suffered for; all the highlights, spotlights and lowlights are remembered and even though she makes the audience laugh, there are no barbs and no venom, just empathy, gratitude and a great deal of praise for everyone including her audiences. And, she intersperses this really easy narrative style with really difficult songs that spans her long career from her first audition at the Royal Hotel in Bulawayo (a show-topping rendition of Summertime which she admits she didn’t quite sing like now during that first audition!), her prolific career in South Africa as a band vocalist during the 1960’s and her later shining in cabaret and, as a very successful recording artist. Jerry Herman, George Gershwin, Burt Bacharch, Bob Dylan, Jacques Brel - the list goes on and on and then, after a stunningly big rendition of “The Parade Passes Buy” the lights suddenly cut and it is interval. The lady has just given the audience more than an hour of the finest entertainment – something not even the great Dietrich could do at this age! The second half starts and the spot lights up a Judy Page dressed in a long black dress with a beaded Merlin’s overcoat in sparkling black and silver. And, in this second half of the show, our star sparkles even more than the superb outfit she wears! A great surprise comes when Judy lights candles in remembrance of the those great South African stage performers that have passed on and pianist Clinton Zerf then accompanies his own superb singing of Michael Jackson’s “Gone too soon”. This is a really marvelous high tenor voice with beautiful undertones. Judy then sweeps up the sadness and raises the mood with a wonderfully raunchy “Good to Mama” from Chicago. Later she and Clinton get an opportunity to sing together in the very “unromantic” romantic duet “Do you Love me” from Fiddler on the Roof. The penultimate moment is a rousing Judy-ised interpretation of Sondheim’s “I am Still Here” followed, in impeccable Page Style, by the star thanking her audience for that which they had made her up to now by singing the hauntingly beautiful “In a Very Unusual Way” from the musical Nine. The lights dip, and every audience since opening night jumps to their feet while Judy and Clinton take their elegant bows and, very regally, leave the stage. It is then that you look at your watch and realize that The Page was on her feet for more than two hours and no fatigue showing at all! They simply don’t make troopers like her anymore! PAGE BY PAGE is a joyous celebration of unforgettable songs and hilarious anecdotes – if you miss this show you have missed one of the best offerings of its kind available to South African audiences for a long time now. It is a privileged opportunity to see one of South Africa's greatest greats - without any doubt the leading musical theatre personality of the day and doyenne of the musical stage - giving her all in re-telling her adventures coupled to some of the greatest songs from her enormous repertoire. Just a little note to young Clinton Zerf with the No 12 feet: Those shoes. honey, those shoes! Better you donate them to the Lesbian Benevolent Fund at the first possible opportunity. And, it could add to the show if the young Clinton comes dressed in a tuxedo – it is, after all, one of “those” classier shows in town! And, a note to our younger stage performers: You will be well-advised to get your bums over to Judy’s and take a few master classes. What this lady has forgotten most of you have yet to learn! Performances of PAGE BY PAGE take place Tuesday – Friday at 20:15 and Saturdays at 18:00 until 9 April 2011. Tickets are R120 per person and R80 for students and seniors. Bookings can be made by calling the theatre’s box office on tel. 011-883-8606 or 083-377-4969 or online: www.strictlytickets.com There are no booking fees or service charges to patrons! Brief additional synopsis of Judy Page’s career: In 1976 she was cast as the Countess Elsa in The Sound of Music for which she received the first of 5 Dalro nominations. She went on to perform in many musical compilations: Brel, Piaf, Jerome Kern, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Judy Garland and Jerry’s Girls for which she won the Dalro Award for Best Performance in a musical. She has tackled a series of greatly acclaimed major leads: Roxie Hart in Geoffrey Sutherland’s Chicago (1977) and Mama Morton (2002), Anna in Louis Burke’s production of The King and I, Dolly Levi in Hello Dolly and Mame Dennis Burnside in Mame. Judy has reached wider audiences on television, appearing in her own series Hey Jude, many musical programmes and even a soap opera – Westgate. Recent musicals include Deon Opperman’s My Fair Lady (Mrs Higgins) for which she won a Naledi Award for Best Supporting Actress and Fiddler on the Roof (Golde). In 2008, Judy played Jeanette, the eccentric piano player, in The Full Monty, for which she won the Naledi Award for Best Comedy Performance and as one of the vultures in Deon Opperman’s Jock Of The Bushveld. Most recently, she appeared in the pantomime, Robinson Crusoe.

Get under the skin of ‘Animal Farm’

2011-03-31T08:33:00.000-07:00

Divine intervention represents Sibikwa Centre For The Arts in bringing you ANIMAL FARM 2011! Teachers will surely remember the acclaimed productions of Maru and Animal Farm which so successfully managed to entertain and educate over 40 000 school pupils in 2009 and 2010. This year, Animal Farm is back, in an intense, participatory theatre-in-education programme, that will come to your school and be brought to life in your school hall or large classroom. Animal Farm is a hardhitting analysis of human society that is understandably used as a setwork in schools around the world. Of course, it has particular relevance to current events in South Africa, which gives the book a greater depth for local students to savour. Sibikwa Arts Centre has created performances and workshops that explore the context in which this timeless work was written, and what it has to say about our contemporary lives and times. Bring the beloved setwork to life The aim of this innovative and interactive production is to engage Grade 12 students with this literary classic, which they are studying as a setwork. The production is divided into two sessions; the first to be performed in April and the second in August, to allow more material to be covered in an in-depth and relevant way. These sessions will present scenes from the book, offer the perspectives of different characters, and explore the historical events that inspired the book, whilst continuously giving the students opportunities to offer their own opinions, comments and ideas about the action. All too often, setworks are studied from a dispassionate distance, but this programme allows students to really get ‘under the skin’ of the book; to put themselves in the shoes of the characters, and truly ‘live’ the narrative process. Students will emerge from the course with a new perspective – not only on this book, but on the entire process of reading, and identifying with the players that make up any book’s drama. How your school can participate The two performance/workshops, each one hour long, will be performed and facilitated at a venue at your school. The cost per learner is R100, which covers both performance/workshops, and learning materials. Performance/workshop ONE: April 13th – May 13th Performance/workshop TWO: July 26th – August 13th Allow your students to fully explore Animal Farm by taking part in this unique course. To book, or for more information, contact Chantal at Divine Intervention: Telephone: 011 0226785 or e-mail: chantal@divine-intervention.co.za

Aspiring young presenters: Strut your stuff at the Scholarships!

2011-03-31T08:23:00.000-07:00

The Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) invites you to audition to MC at the ACT DALRO Nedbank Performing Arts Scholarships 2011 Final Do you believe that you have what it takes to be a dynamic and exciting MC? Then be sure to audition for the role of MC at this year’s prestigious ACT DALRO Nedbank Performing Arts Scholarships Final. Young presenters, performers and entertainers who are interested in presenting the Scholarships Final will have an opportunity to audition on July 3rd at the space.com venue at the Joburg Theatre Complex. Six finalists will have the opportunity to showcase their acting, dancing and singing abilities to a live audience and an independent panel of judges as they compete for the Scholarships, and their performances will appear within the format of a variety performance, seamlessly knitted together by a dynamic presenter – who could just be you… “What makes the Scholarship Programme so special is that it has numerous development qualities, and this year we are incredibly excited that we can nurture a future presenter through our Scholarship Presenter Search.” says Nomalanga Nkosi, Programmes Manager of ACT. “In keeping with the spirit of the programme, young individuals under the age of 23 are encouraged to audition,” she continues. At the Final, the Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) in partnership with the Dramatic, Artistic and Literary Rights Organisation (DALRO) and Nedbank Arts Affinity awards two performing arts scholarships to the value of R 105,000 each. The ACT Scholarships Programme is funded by DALRO and Nedbank Arts Affinity. The Final, generously hosted by Gold Reef City, will take place at the Globe Theatre on October 4th. The programme is supported by Sleepy Gecko Guesthouse, Talent Etc. and Classicfeel Magazine. Don’t delay Schedule your audition today by sending an e-mail to Deidre Schoeman at deidre@act.org.za or contact 011 712 8403. Then simply turn up on July 3rd, with the sole aim of being impressive! For more information about the ACT DALRO Nedbank Performing Arts Scholarship or to download a registration form and guidelines for participation, please visit the ACT website at www.act.org.za About the Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) The Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) is South Africa’s premier independent arts funding and development agency. The primary aim of ACT is to increase the amount of funding available for arts and culture initiatives, and to apply these funds to innovative, sustainable projects that make a meaningful contribution to society. Structured ACT funding programmes support projects that contribute to improving the quality of life in communities where it is most glaringly needed. In tandem with this, ACT supports innovative projects which renew and advance the arts in South Africa. In all these endeavours, ACT covers the broad spectrum of the arts, ranging from grassroots and community-based projects to professional initiatives. Go to www.act.org.za for more information about ACT, its funding programmes, criteria for assessment, and submission of applications online. About the Dramatic, Artistic and Literary Rights Organisation (DALRO) DALRO is a multi-purpose copyright society administering various aspects of copyright on behalf of authors and publishers. DALRO’s main areas of administration are reprographic reproduction rights (photocopying from published editions), public performance rights (including stage rights for book musicals and dramas) and reproduction rights (whether for publishing or copying) in works of visual art. For more information please visit www.dalro.co.za About Nedbank Nedbank is a Founding Trustee of the Arts & Culture Trust (ACT). The Nedbank Arts Affinity programme was started in 1994, and comprises a suite of banking products including credit cards, savings accounts, current accounts and the recently launched investment accounts. Whenever a client uses an ‘Arts Affinity’ banking product, Nedbank makes a donation to ACT on behalf of, and at no cost to, the client. One of four multi-award winning programmes, the Nedbank Affinity programme has raised over R140 million for arts and culture, sport development, helping needy children, and the environment. Support ACT by opening a Nedbank Arts Affinity current account, credit card account, savings account and/or investment account today and support South African creativity through your everyday banking. Visit any Nedbank branch, call 0860 DO GOOD (0860 36 4663), or for more information, visit www.nedbankarts.co.za

Page by Page - A Grand Choice

2011-03-31T07:00:00.000-07:00

The Johannesburg Press Club has chosen as its first social outing for 2011 tonight, the brilliant one-woman musical show, Page by Page by Judy Page, celebrating her 50 years in show business at the Old Mutual Theatre on the Square in Sandton. This is an incredibly professional and slick musical production that had the opening audience on their feet and calling for more.

.Kasi Funfair to round off with a musical bang

2011-03-30T11:04:00.000-07:00

From Fair to Concert The Kasi Funfair heralds a new era of family fun right into the heart of Soweto, and, on its closing day, revelers in their late teens and upwards will be afforded a concert second to none. “Dorothy Nyembe Park will never be the same again,” smiles organiser, Nomsa Sibeko. She adds “We’ve lined up a star-studded programme of performers that will keep partygoers on the boil from early afternoon until way after the sun’s gone down!” People will be pleased to hear that Sidas Security has been brought in to make sure that antisocial elements aren’t allowed to spoil anyone’s fun. Says a company spokesperson, “It’s the public’s business to enjoy themselves, and it’s our business to see to it that nobody disrupts that enjoyment. We are taking a ‘Zero Tolerance’ approach.” Diarise the Date! Sunday April 3rd is when the action goes down – and, in case you haven’t heard who’s going to be on stage, then listen up! Amongst the headline acts is DJ Euphonik, one of South Africa's most successful young dance DJs, who has a legendary reputation as a crowd-pleaser, both in clubs and on the air. Khuli Chana will be bringing his own flavour of ‘vernacular rap’, or Motswako. Borrowing elements from various musical backgrounds, Motswako uses street-talk to convey important messages to the youth, and it does so in various South African languages. Fans will also get the chance to “Shake Your Bum Bum” with the wildly popular Black Coffee, featuring Zakes Bantwini, who will perform this and other hits. Add to the mix Proffesa, Pro Kid, DJ Zinhle, DJ KG, DJ Tokzen, DJ Toyoter – and others – and you can see that standing still will not be an option! The concert starts at 2pm and runs right the way through to 10pm. Be there! PLEASE NOTE: Guests are reminded that no food or drinks may be brought into the venue. Bars will be available for the purchasing of beer or cooldrinks, and numerous hot food vendors will keep hunger from the door! *** Please note that tickets will not be sold at the gate. They will be available at Spar stores, as well as designated service stations, in the area. For queries, consult www.eqtickets.com, or the call centre at 087 980 3000. VENUE: Dorothy Nyembe Park, Corner Matla and Mnisi Roads, Dobsonville, Soweto DATES: Kasi Funfair: March 31st - April 3rd Concert: April 3rd TIMES: Kasi Funfair: 8am to 8pm daily Concert: 2pm-10pm TICKETS: Kasi Funfair: Children under five: Free Children from 5-10 years of age: R60 10years and up: R100 Concert: Regular tickets, R100 or Golden Circle tickets, R150

Tonight Paging Starts Big Time!

2011-03-23T07:39:00.000-07:00

Tonight the long-awaited PAGE BY PAGE - with JUDY PAGE is opening at the The Old Mutual Theatre on the Square in Sandton where this musical tapestry of Judy Page’s legendary life will play until 9th April.

Don't miss this rare opportunity to see one of South Africa's greatest performers - without any doubt the leading musical theatre personality doyenne of the musical stage - giving audiences a light-hearted peek into her life and adventures, told in song and words. Judy will be accompanied on the piano by CLINTON ZERF.

Judy began her prolific career in South Africa as a band vocalist during the 1960’s, later shining in cabaret. In the mid 1970’s, Judy broke into musical theatre in the production of From Berlin to Broadway.

In 1976 she was cast as the Countess Elsa in The Sound of Music for which she received the first of 5 Dalro nominations. She went on to perform in many musical compilations: Brel, Piaf, Jerome Kern, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Judy Garland and Jerry’s Girls for which she won the Dalro Award for Best Performance in a musical.

She has tackled a series of greatly acclaimed major leads: Roxie Hart in Geoffrey Sutherland’s Chicago (1977) and Mama Morton (2002), Anna in Louis Burke’s production of The King and I, Dolly Levi in Hello Dolly and Mame Dennis Burnside in Mame.

Judy has reached wider audiences on television, appearing in her own series Hey Jude, many musical programmes and even a soap opera – Westgate.

Recent musicals include Deon Opperman’s My Fair Lady (Mrs Higgins) for which she won a Naledi Award for Best Supporting Actress and Fiddler on the Roof (Golde).

In 2008, Judy played Jeanette, the eccentric piano player, in The Full Monty, for which she won the Naledi Award for Best Comedy Performance and as one of the vultures in Deon Opperman’s

Jock Of The Bushveld. Most recently, she appeared in the pantomime, Robinson Crusoe.

PAGE BY PAGE is a joyous celebration of unforgettable songs and hilarious anecdotes –
not to be missed!

Performances take place Tuesday – Friday at 20:15 and Saturdays at 18:00 or 20:30
Tickets are R120 per person and R80 for students and seniors Bookings can be made by calling the theatre’s box office on tel. 011-883-8606 or 083-377-4969 or online: www.strictlytickets.com

There are no booking fees or service charges to patrons!

Killer Moves – Flash Republic’s official launch hits The Alex

2011-03-15T07:32:00.000-07:00

Flash Republic, the internationally adored dance outfit with the audacity to bring a post-punk and rock sensibility to the table, has been tearing up the airwaves in the last couple of months with their latest album, Killer Moves.

Not being the types to hide in the shadows, the audacious, boundary-breaking, once-trio/now-quintet have now decided to give this already-celebrated album the launch it truly deserves! Joining forces with their new production partner, Strike Productions, the dance moguls will be showcasing tracks off their new album - backed by the most incredible sound, lighting and visuals that ‘The Alex’ has ever seen.

Add favourite local DJs Ryan Dent, Roger Goode and Craig Massiv, and everyone there is in for a night to remember!

The word from Flash is: “Please join us to celebrate the release of our best work yet. And thank you to all of you for your massive support of the new album. Flash Republic salutes you!

Fans can keep in touch with Flash Republic and their sounds by surfing to:

www.theflashrepublic.com
www.facebook.com - Flash Republic Page
www.twitter.com/flashrepublic
www.justmusic.co.za

Flash Republic would like to thank the following sponsors for their continuos support and generous contribution to the launch: Adidas, Cheap Monday, David Guillson @ Carlton Hair, Patron, Rockit Distribution and AKG, Tiger of Sweden, Safilo Strike Productions and Yamaha.

***

Bookings can be made at any Computicket outlet (at Checkers Hyper and Shoprite), or online at www.computicket.com

VENUE: The Alexander Theatre, 36 Stiemens Street, Braamfontein.

DATES: Saturday March 26th

TICKETS: R100 from Computicket / R120 at the door

TIME: Doors open 21h30 Flash on around 23h30

‘Pinocchio’ - A timeless classic.

2011-03-15T07:11:00.001-07:00

The story of Pinocchio, a wooden puppet who undergoes a moral journey in order to become a real boy, is one of the great classics of children’s literature and Jill Girard and Keith Smith once again got just the right balance to entertain and educate the younger ones while keeping the adults in the audience amused. They are brilliant at this! It is a production awash with fun, adventure and laughs - but also great lessons about love and life, and the perils of making the wrong choices in the company we keep. This People’s Theatre Production is filled with great songs, that audiences will undoubtedly be humming all the way home.

Pinocchio is the first production opening at The People’s Theatre, this year – the smaller theatre situated within the Jo’burg Theatre complex.

Bookings can be made at all Computicket outlets (Checkers Hyper and Shoprite), or online at www.computicket.com

VENUE : The People’s Theatre at Joburg Theatre
DATES : March 7th – April 10th 2011
TIMES : School Term
Monday - Friday 9:00am and 11:00am
Saturday – 10:30am and 2:30pm
Sunday 27 March, 3, 10 April - 10:30am and 2:30pm
School holidays
Monday – Saturday and Public holidays
10:30am and 2:30pm
TICKETS : R99

Special school performances at R50 per pupil.
One complimentary ticket for an accompanying teacher per 20 learners.
Extra teachers’ tickets at R50 each.
Accompanying parents at R70 each.

To make arrangements for school attendances please contact The People’s Theatre at: (011) 403 1563 or peoplestheatre@artslink.co.za

The Cast

Lebogang Mpahlele (Geppetto/Judge)
Lebogang has appeared in various shows such as Charlotte’s Web, The Sheep and Avery, and The Secret Garden. He also landed roles in two television series, SABC2’s Noah’s Ark and Kyknet’s Kruispad. In between these gigs, he also managed to include a number of corporate events and travelling educational theatre, which dealt mostly with the HIV/AIDS epidemic. For The People’s Theatre he’s played the part of Eeyore in Winnie the Pooh and Big Ears in More Adventures of Noddy.

Emmanuelle Girard (Fairy/Tightrope Walker/Frog/Bird/Cricket)
After obtaining her degree in Theatre Arts in France, Emmanuelle performed in various cabarets in Spain and France, before returning to South Africa, where she featured in Beauty and the Beast and Babe–the Sheep Pig for The Peoples’ Theatre. She also won roles in The King and I and Janice Honeyman’s panto, Snow White; both at The Joburg Theatre. Subsequently she was cast in a number of productions for The Peoples’ Theatre: Jack and the Beanstalk, Noddy, Peter Rabbit, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Other Fabulous Tales, and More Adventures of Noddy.

Gopala Chetty (The Fire Eater/Coachman)
This ambitious young man worked with the eastern choreographer Shivani Kara on her Bollywood fusion show called East Meets West, and during his Bachelor of Arts studies he performed in Boys in the Backroom, Three Wall Temple and Like Show Business, at the Grahamstown National Arts Festival. Gopala has also performed in Hats, Grey Matter, Erupt-OO, Papillion, Johan Spies’s production of La Traviata, Willem en die Grys Menere, and Dammed Up.

Stefan Carstens (Fox/Policeman/Circus Master)
Stefan made his musical theatre debut with The Phantom of the Opera in 2004, and featured in the Bollywood extravaganza Bombay Crush and Janice Honeyman’s Joburg Theatre pantomimes Cinderella and Peter Pan. Other productions he’s tucked under his belt include Thoroughly Modern Millie, We Will Rock You, Dance Some More, The Merry Widow, Fiddler on the Roof, Rite of Spring, Giselle and Cats. He has performed for The People’s Theatre in Winnie the Pooh, The Ugly Duckling, Beauty and the Beast, Little Red Riding Hood and Aladdin.

Noni Mkhonto (Cat)
Noni’s first production for The Peoples Theatre was in the 2007 production of Alice in Wonderland, in which she played the title role. She has since appeared in numerous productions at The People’s Theatre: The Little Mermaid, Sleeping Beauty and Other Fabulous Tales’ (in which she played multiple roles), and More Adventures of Noddy. She’s thrilled to be back on board at The People’s Theatre!

***

Bookings can be made at all Computicket outlets (Checkers Hyper and Shoprite), or online at www.computicket.com

VENUE : The People’s Theatre at Joburg Theatre
DATES : March 7th – April 10th 2011
TIMES : School Term
Monday - Friday 9:00am and 11:00am
Saturday – 10:30am and 2:30pm
Sunday 27 March, 3, 10 April - 10:30am and 2:30pm
School holidays
Monday – Saturday and Public holidays
10:30am and 2:30pm
TICKETS : R99

Special school performances at R50 per pupil.
One complimentary ticket for an accompanying teacher per 20 learners.
Extra teachers’ tickets at R50 each.
Accompanying parents at R70 each.

To make arrangements for school attendances please contact The People’s Theatre at: (011) 403 1563 or peoplestheatre@artslink.co.za

The People’s Theatre forms a part of The Joburg Theatre complex in Braamfontein.

CATCH THE SMASH HIT MUSICAL DREAMGIRLS

2011-03-15T03:36:00.000-07:00

Previously on stage at Harlem’s world famous Apollo Theater in New York City and a critically-acclaimed tour of the USA, a brand new, sensational stage production of DREAMGIRLS featuring an all-South African 26-member cast premiered at the Teatro Johannesburg on 11 March 2011. The show runs until 22 May 2011, thereafter moving to Artscape, Cape Town, opening on 8 June 2011 for a limited season.

This is the first time an international show of this scale is showcasing exclusively black South African performers. Dreamgirls is produced by leading South African Producer, Hazel Feldman (Chicago, We Will Rock You, MAMMA MIA!, Beauty & the Beast) of Showtime Management and American Producer, John Breglio, for Vienna Waits Productions. There are some 450 costumes and 180 wigs in this sizzling production – as well as construction of a state-of-the-art, hi-tech stage design and LED screens.

Full of onstage joy and backstage drama, DREAMGIRLS tells the rags-to-riches story of an up and coming, 1960s girl group, and the triumphs and tribulations that come with fame and fortune. With music by Academy® Award nominee Henry Krieger and book and lyrics by Tony® and Grammy®-Award winner Tom Eyen, DREAMGIRLS features the unforgettable hits: "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," "One Night Only" and "Listen." Broadway director and choreographer Robert Longbottom (Bye Bye Birdie) and co-choreographer Shane Sparks (TV's So You Think You Can Dance), along with some of Broadway's top designers, re-envision this Tony® and Academy® Award winning musical so it sparkles like never before!

This revival of Dreamgirls brings back the original show, but acknowledges and embraces the almost 30-year journey since its creation but with fresh, contemporary movement and style.

Dreamgirls has introduced Lindiwe Bungane (winner African continent television reality show - Project Fame, multiple award winning singer) as Effie White and feature, as The Dreams, Cape Town born Tracey Lee Oliver (Motown Magic, Sisters in Song) as Deena Jones; Candida Mosoma (Jesus Christ Superstar, The Lion King, Let There be Rock) as Lorrell Robinson and Hayley Christian (The Best of Girl Talk, Motown, Sisters in Song) as Michelle Morris with Aubrey Poo (Scandal!, Muvhango, All You Need is Love, Rent and upcoming movie, Winnie – a life) as Curtis Taylor. Introducing a brilliant new face in musical theatre, Bjorn Blignaut (Pop star group winner; Idols competition top 6; Barnyard Theatre shows) as the coveted James “Thunder” Early; Lebo Toko (Mamma Mia!, Ragtime the Musical, Boys in the Photograph) as C.C. White, Shane “Duke” Wellington (feature movies - Mr Bones and Surviving Katrina, MC FIFA Confederations Cup 2009) as Marty Madison. At certain performances, Caroline Borole (GirlTalk 005, top 10 SA Idols 2007, Generations) will play the role of Effie White. The show gives these musical theatre performers the opportunity to literally live the Dreamgirls dream.

The visiting American creative team currently in South Africa working with the local cast is headed by Broadway Director and choreographer, Robert Longbottom assisted by Brittney Griffen, co-director and choreographer. The South African creative team is led by Bryan Schimmel, Musical Supervisor and introduces Tshepo Mngoma as Musical Director. Trudy Fredericks is Resident Choreographer and Dance Captain; Philip Godawa is Resident Director; Alistair Kilbee is Technical Director and Jill Somers is Company Manager. The local and global creative teams are working together for seven weeks to present Dreamgirls, featuring an entirely South African company.

“All you got to do is Dream”. Book now at Computicket outlets, by visiting www.computicket.com, or by calling 083 915 8000. Group bookings, contact email sales@showtime.co.za. For all Teatro group hospitality bookings contact Montecasino Hospitality & Corporate Events on 011 510 7905 or montecasino.hospitality@tsogosun.com
For more information, please visit the official DREAMGIRLS website at www.dreamgirls.co.za or Facebook.

SHOW INFORMATION:
J O H A N N E S B U R G
VENUE:
Teatro at Montecasino
DATES:
From Friday, 11 March 2011 for a limited season
SHOW TIMES:
No Monday performances.
Weekdays: Tuesdays – Fridays 20h00
Weekends: Saturdays 15h00, 20h00; Sundays 14h00, 18h00
PRICES:
Terrific Tuesday Specials: One price - R195 inclusive
Wednesday/Thursday/Sunday Evening: From R120 - R350 inclusive
Friday/Saturday (both shows)/Sunday Matinees: From R120 - R380 inclusive
BOOKINGS:
Computicket by calling 083 915 8000, visit www.computicket.com or
visit your nearest Computicket outlet
CORPORATE & GROUP BOOKINGS:
Jeanette Oosthuizen, sales@showtime.co.za
GROUP HOSPITALITY PACKAGES:
Montecasino Hospitality & Corporate Events, 011 510 7905 or montecasino.hospitality@tsogosun.com

C A P E T O W N
VENUE:
Artscape
DATES:
From Wednesday, 08 June 2011 for a limited season
SHOW TIMES:
No Monday performances
Weekdays: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursday, Fridays 20h00.
Weekends: Saturday 16h00, 20h00; Sunday 14h00, 18h00
PRICES:
Terrific Tuesday Specials: One price - R195 inclusive
Wednesday/Thursday/Sunday Evening: From R120 - R350 inclusive
Friday/Saturday (both shows)/Sunday Matinees: From R120 - R380 inclusive
BOOKINGS:
Computicket by calling 083 915 8000, visit www.computicket.com or visit your nearest Computicket outlet or call Artscape Box Office 021 421 7695
CORPORATE & GROUP BOOKINGS:
Jeanette Oosthuizen,sales@showtime.co.za

####
Publicist: Dreamgirls South Africa
Debbi de Souza
(082) 822 9478 (t)
(031) 561 4000 (f)
debranne@icon.co.za (e)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f5Vfvxv9JI - You Tube link to the Dreamgirls Sizzle Reel

This is the first time an international show of this scale will showcase exclusively black South African performers who play the show's African American characters. There are some 450 costumes and 180 wigs in this production, set in the 1960's. Rehearsals are currently underway and the show opens in Johannesburg at the Teatro on 11 March. The show's storyline is similar to that of the movie by the same name but the show itself which includes glamorous, glitzy costumes is a multi-media spectacular presentation.

Herewith some interesting facts about the show - more info on www.dreamgirls.co.za:

1. The story line featured in the movie version of Dreamgirls is based on the stage musical which was first
staged in 1981.
2. This new production of Dreamgirls is a multi-media spectacular with state-of-the-art, hi-tech stage design and LED screens. The cast will wear glamourous, dazzling
colourful costumes - all glitz and glam.
3. There are some 450 costumes and 180 wigs in this production. Costumes are designed by award winning American costume designer, William Ivey Long.
4. Hazel Feldman of Showtime Management, the show's SA Producers will be mentoring cast musicians and crew on the production.
5. The American creative team are spending a total of 7 weeks in rehearsal with the SA company, with a view of not only mounting a world-class SA production but with the vision to ensuring
that many members of this cast will be able to star internationally in other DREAMGIRLS productions around the world.
6. Principal performers Lindiwe Bungane, Tracey Lee Oliver, Caroline Borole, Hayley Christian, Shane Wellington and from the ensemble, Ziyanda Yako will be performing for the first time in a
major international musical theatre production. For principal performer, Bjorn Blignaut and ensemble members, Mmabatho Moepowa, Clint Lesh, Nicholas Nkuna and Sifiso Mazibuko,
Dreamgirls is their second musical theatre production. The show gives these newcomers to musical theatre the opportunity to literally live the Dreamgirls dream.
7. SA Creative Team:
Producer: Hazel Feldman
Musical Director: Tshepo Mngoma (Sibongile Khumalo's son)
Musical Supervisor: Bryan Schimmel
Assistant Musical Director: Rowan Bakker
Company Manager: Jill Somers
Resident Director: Philip Godawa
Technical Director: Alistair Kilbee
8. American Creative Team:
Producer: John Breglio
Director and choreographer: Robert Longbottom
Associate Choreographer: Brittney Griffin
International Music Supervisor: Sam Davis

Biographies - Leads
Lindiwe Bungane (Effie White) Born in Zambia, Lindiwe is the youngest female to receive the highest Zambian music award, ‘Ngoma Award’ for best female performer when she was just 19 years old. This started her journey as a performing artist. She quickly scooped the same title in the ‘Battle of the Band’ held the in the capital Lusaka the following year and this led to her wonderful singing talents being recognised. She has since received a ‘Mukuba music achievement award’ and is the youngest woman to be honoured in a book entitled “100 women celebrated in Zambia”. She has performed at many prestigious events around the world while also as an ambassador of good will for her country. Events include the Live 8 concert held in Johannesburg South Africa, the Sydney Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. She opened the world renowned theater production “House of the Holy Afro” for which her character received rave newspaper reviews in every city across the globe, wherever the show opened including Sydney and Edinburgh. The climax of her career was winning “Project Fame” a television reality show in 2006 which auditioned over 10 million artists from around the continent of Africa to show off their vocal talents for recording contract with Sony BMG South Africa. She unfortunately did not receive this prize amongst other things but this did not deter her from pursuing her dream. She has recorded an album which she hopes to share with the world soon.

Tracey-Lee Oliver (Deena Jones) hails from the beautiful Mother City of Cape Town. This Naledi nominated performer has built a good foundation for herself as the ‘’Diva’’ of Jo’burg’s live entertainment industry. Her accomplishments include performing at Gold Reef City’s The Globe Theatre and The Lyric Theatre where she has performed in Hazel Feldman’s Motown Magic; Richard Loring’s Knights of Music and Motown Magic Christmas. Tracey-Lee has also performed in Karin Cutts’ Sun City Extravaganza ‘’Let There be Rock’’ and she was a top 8 finalist in Kyknet’s 2006 Afrikaans Idols. She is currently seen in her first television commercial as ‘’Regular Jane’’ in the Kellogs All Bran advertisement. Other achievements also include working with SA’s heavyweights such as Harry Sideropolous’ Rand Easter 2008 Bollywood Spectacular, Strictly Come Dancing judge Tyrone Watkins’ Bollywood musical ‘’Fusion’’, Sun City’s ‘’Positive Rocks’ ’AIDS Benefit concert including acts Unathi (Metro fm DJ), Loyiso Bala, Freshly Ground, Wonderboom, Judith Sepuma, Sibongile Ngoma but to name a few. Tracey-Lee’s Naledi nomination this year was earned for her show stopping performance in the Richard Loring musical ‘’Knights of Music’’.

Candida Mosoma (Lorrell Robinson) Since graduating at Tshwane University of Technology's Musical Theatre course in 2005 Candida has graced the South African stages with her diverse talent in an array of musicals from Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar where she played Mary Magdalene, Pinocchio playing the blue fairy, The Lion King laughing her way through performance as the sly hyena Shenzi and understudying lioness Nala. She has stretched her effervescent talents in review shows, cabarets and lounge singing from Let There be Rock, Solouette to Hot Spots.

Hayley Christian (Michelle Morris) Born and raised in Johannesburg, Hayley started singing when she was three years old. Her first musical theatre show performance was in a ‘Happy Go Lucky’. In 1989 Hayley began five years of voice training under Professor Irene Frangs at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Thereafter she achieved a distinction of 86% in the Royal Schools of Music, London examinations. Hayley’s international career began when she teamed up with a band called ‘New Generation” which toured China, Macau and Hong Kong. Hayley went on to join Cape Town band, ‘4 Play’ as lead vocalist and traveled to Egypt for three months followed by a second tour of six months. Then as part of a duo, Hayley performed in Amman-Jordan after which she decided to become a solo artist and returned to Jordan, followed by performances at the Amman Sheraton and the Red Sea Hotels in Egypt. Hayley returned to South Africa, performing at various corporate events for MTN, Coca-Cola, Nedcor, Nederburg Estates and the launch of ‘De Niro’ at Sandton Sun and Towers. She then joined the casts of The Best of Girl Talk directed by Richard Loring, Motown and Sisters in Song directed by Carlo Spettu. Career highlights include singing the American anthem at a boxing heavyweight championship at Caesars, Gauteng; traveling to the Seychelles to perform for Saudi Arabian royalty and performing at a function where ex-President Nelson Mandela was the guest of honour. Other special performances include touring Africa as guest artist with Dr. Victor and the Rasta Rebels; performing at various hotels in Spain and competing at the annual International Budsim competition where she won best vocalist above many other countries, achieving third position for South Africa.

Aubrey Poo (Curtis Taylor) is a South African actor, singer and Creative Director best known for his role as Pelo Mohale in the SABC2 soapie “Muvhango”, and for hosting the SABC1 “emotainment” show “All You Need is Love”. He recently completed two and a half years playing the role of Lefa on ETV’s Scandal! He also played the role of a pastor, Lefa Letswalo on the Etv soapie “Scandal!” Poo completed his National Diploma in drama at the Pretoria Technikon in (now know as Tshwane University of Technology) in 2000.In 2002, he won an award for Best Performance by a New Actor for his role in the critically acclaimed Play@Risk, directed by Megan Wilson. He then landed the lead role of Gabriel in the musical Far From the Madding Crowd at the Durban Playhouse and later traveled to Spain performing in the musical tribute to Motown. He is the Director of his company, Pono Pele Productions and he was a Creative Producer for the unveiling of the FIFA 2010 Emblem presented in Berlin (July 2006), his biggest project to date and he also co-wrote the most successful of the Barnyard Theatre works ever produced: Diamonds and Dust, in which he also performed the leading role. Pono Pele Productions boasts an impressive list of clients including NEF, Magana Carta, Basil Read, Lonmin Mining and Ideahub (to name, but a few). In 2005 and 2006, Poo broke into the TV and film industry with a lead role in the Afrikaans film Ouma se Slim Kind and roles in Gaz'lam, Muvhango, Zero Tolerance, Zone 14 and Nomzamo. His TV work repertoire is extensive…he has been seen on SABC as the male presenter of All You Need is Love; he played the role of documentary maker Themba in the SABC1 drama series Usindiso (Redemption); the role of Tebogo in the SABC2 mini-series Noah's Ark. He went back to musical theatre work in 2007, taking a sabbatical break from television when he played the romantic lead in the stage musical Soweto Story, followed by the lead role of Tom Collins in the musical Rent. Aubrey Poo has just completed shooting a supporting lead role in the upcoming movie “Winnie - a life” along side Jennifer Hudson.

Bjorn Blignaut (James “Thunder” Early) Hailing from Gauteng, Bjorn was born and raised in Johannesburg, Eldorado Park. At the age of 17, Bjorn started a singing group with his friends and called themselves, Boys to Men, adapted from the USA group. At this age he then entered the local television competition called Jam Alley and took the first place position, this was to lead to future successes. This then followed the success of winning the South African Pop stars SABC 1 competition and was part of the winning group called Ghetto Lingo. Bjorn’s career as a performer includes: Shell Road to Fame contestant; Jam Alley Winner; recording Album (Southside) in Europe; performing in various Clubs in Europe; launching album to Royal family in Belgium; promoting Album in Europe; Coca Cola Pop star group winner; M-net Idols competition top 6; Barnyard Theatre show, Hot Chocolate; Barnyard theatre show, Glory Days and Tyrone Watkins Productions: Spotlight)
Lebo Toko (C.C. White) is an actor, singer and dancer born in Bloemfontein. He studied Lebo Toko (CC White) Lebo studied Musical Theatre at Tshwane University of Technology where he took part in productions such as Sweet Charity; I Love You, Your Perfect Now Change and had the opportunity of playing the character role of Coalhouse Walker Jr. in the South African premier of Ragtime the Musical. Since graduating from T.U.T he has done two Children’s Theatre productions under the baton of The People’s Theatre and Promusica Theatre. Touch My Blood marked his debut at the Market Theatre where he had the opportunity to play the role of Fred Khumalo. He has also showed in the Musical Review The Blues Brothers as a Bluet, and played Mushu the Dragon during the run of the Children’s Theatre Stage Musical Mulan Jnr. He recently completed the run of The Boy's in The Photograph directed By Janice Honeyman at the Joburg Theatre! and MAMMA MIA!

Shane "Duke" Wellington (Marty Madison) is an experienced television and radio personality with many talents. Voice Artist, Radio DJ, Television Host, Ring Announcer, and Film Actor are just a few of the hats he has worn in his career. In the early 90’s, Shane began co-producing music for artists like MarcAlex, Hugh Masekela, the Sarafina Girls and Brenda Fassie to name a few, and he produced several jingles for radio. Shane was chosen as a judge for the SA Music Awards for 4 years. Shane's accent and his boundless enthusiasm got him into radio, first doing voice-overs for companies like Coca Cola, Disney Pictures, and SAA, and then working for radio stations like Solid Gold and 5FM. Shane's on-air presence gained him thousands of loyal listeners. Radio then lead to television where Shane hosted, or appeared on shows for SABC1, SABC2, SABC3, and ETV. In between all this, Shane appeared in numerous television commercials including Jik, Nosh, and Shield. He has acted in three feature films including "Mr. Bones" (Leon Schuster), "Styxx" (Brian 'Cocktails' Brown, Peter 'Robocop' Wheller), and "Surviving Katrina". Shane is a natural MC, and the corporate industry has recognized his abilities. He has hosted numerous public promotions, conferences, award shows, and live events for several well-known companies including the financial services industry, and the auto industry. Shane is recognized as one of South Africa’s top ring announcers, and he has announced several National and World Title bouts. FIFA took note, and used Shane during 2006 World Cup Trophy Tour, as well as the opening ceremony for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. With his passion for life and his determination to be the best, Shane "Duke" Wellington is creating an inspiring legacy.

Caroline Borole (alternate Effie White) was first bitten by the “stage bug” at the tender age of 14 when she entered her high school talent show and won the contest. After matriculating in 2001 she enrolled at Tshwane University of Technology where she studied musical Theatre for three years under the wonderful guidance of Vicki Karras. She performed throughout her tertiary career, acting and singing in shows such as Stage Door and as one of the leads in Pippin. After completing her tertiary education Caroline joined Richard Loring’s Girl Talk 005, her first professional performance. She then performed an array of shows for the Barnyard Theatre including the Motown Hot Chocolate, Walking in Memphis and Under African Skies, a first time endorsed “proudly south African” show which saw her touring all over Europe and Turkey with the show before coming back to do yet another successful run throughout the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Caroline has shown her worth as a skilled actress in local television productions including a two-year stint at Generations and she was a supporting actress for Nomzamo and worked on a comedy show called On the Couch for SABC 3. Caroline was in the top 10 of the South African idols 2007.

Previously on stage at Harlem’s world famous Apollo Theater in New York City and a critically-acclaimed tour of the USA, a brand new, sensational stage production of DREAMGIRLS featuring an all-South African 26-member cast premiered at the Teatro Johannesburg on 11 March 2011. The show runs until 22 May 2011, thereafter moving to Artscape, Cape Town, opening on 8 June 2011 for a limited season.

This is the first time an international show of this scale is showcasing exclusively black South African performers. Dreamgirls is produced by leading South African Producer, Hazel Feldman (Chicago, We Will Rock You, MAMMA MIA!, Beauty & the Beast) of Showtime Management and American Producer, John Breglio, for Vienna Waits Productions. There are some 450 costumes and 180 wigs in this sizzling production – as well as construction of a state-of-the-art, hi-tech stage design and LED screens.

Full of onstage joy and backstage drama, DREAMGIRLS tells the rags-to-riches story of an up and coming, 1960s girl group, and the triumphs and tribulations that come with fame and fortune. With music by Academy® Award nominee Henry Krieger and book and lyrics by Tony® and Grammy®-Award winner Tom Eyen, DREAMGIRLS features the unforgettable hits: "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," "One Night Only" and "Listen." Broadway director and choreographer Robert Longbottom (Bye Bye Birdie) and co-choreographer Shane Sparks (TV's So You Think You Can Dance), along with some of Broadway's top designers, re-envision this Tony® and Academy® Award winning musical so it sparkles like never before!

This revival of Dreamgirls brings back the original show, but acknowledges and embraces the almost 30-year journey since its creation but with fresh, contemporary movement and style.

Dreamgirls has introduced Lindiwe Bungane (winner African continent television reality show - Project Fame, multiple award winning singer) as Effie White and feature, as The Dreams, Cape Town born Tracey Lee Oliver (Motown Magic, Sisters in Song) as Deena Jones; Candida Mosoma (Jesus Christ Superstar, The Lion King, Let There be Rock) as Lorrell Robinson and Hayley Christian (The Best of Girl Talk, Motown, Sisters in Song) as Michelle Morris with Aubrey Poo (Scandal!, Muvhango, All You Need is Love, Rent and upcoming movie, Winnie – a life) as Curtis Taylor. Introducing a brilliant new face in musical theatre, Bjorn Blignaut (Pop star group winner; Idols competition top 6; Barnyard Theatre shows) as the coveted James “Thunder” Early; Lebo Toko (Mamma Mia!, Ragtime the Musical, Boys in the Photograph) as C.C. White, Shane “Duke” Wellington (feature movies - Mr Bones and Surviving Katrina, MC FIFA Confederations Cup 2009) as Marty Madison. At certain performances, Caroline Borole (GirlTalk 005, top 10 SA Idols 2007, Generations) will play the role of Effie White. The show gives these musical theatre performers the opportunity to literally live the Dreamgirls dream.

The visiting American creative team currently in South Africa working with the local cast is headed by Broadway Director and choreographer, Robert Longbottom assisted by Brittney Griffen, co-director and choreographer. The South African creative team is led by Bryan Schimmel, Musical Supervisor and introduces Tshepo Mngoma as Musical Director. Trudy Fredericks is Resident Choreographer and Dance Captain; Philip Godawa is Resident Director; Alistair Kilbee is Technical Director and Jill Somers is Company Manager. The local and global creative teams are working together for seven weeks to present Dreamgirls, featuring an entirely South African company.

“All you got to do is Dream”. Book now at Computicket outlets, by visiting www.computicket.com, or by calling 083 915 8000. Group bookings, contact email sales@showtime.co.za. For all Teatro group hospitality bookings contact Montecasino Hospitality & Corporate Events on 011 510 7905 or montecasino.hospitality@tsogosun.com
For more information, please visit the official DREAMGIRLS website at www.dreamgirls.co.za or Facebook.

SHOW INFORMATION:
J O H A N N E S B U R G
VENUE:
Teatro at Montecasino
DATES:
From Friday, 11 March 2011 for a limited season
SHOW TIMES:
No Monday performances.
Weekdays: Tuesdays – Fridays 20h00
Weekends: Saturdays 15h00, 20h00; Sundays 14h00, 18h00
PRICES:
Terrific Tuesday Specials: One price - R195 inclusive
Wednesday/Thursday/Sunday Evening: From R120 - R350 inclusive
Friday/Saturday (both shows)/Sunday Matinees: From R120 - R380 inclusive
BOOKINGS:
Computicket by calling 083 915 8000, visit www.computicket.com or
visit your nearest Computicket outlet
CORPORATE & GROUP BOOKINGS:
Jeanette Oosthuizen, sales@showtime.co.za
GROUP HOSPITALITY PACKAGES:
Montecasino Hospitality & Corporate Events, 011 510 7905 or montecasino.hospitality@tsogosun.com

C A P E T O W N
VENUE:
Artscape
DATES:
From Wednesday, 08 June 2011 for a limited season
SHOW TIMES:
No Monday performances
Weekdays: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursday, Fridays 20h00.
Weekends: Saturday 16h00, 20h00; Sunday 14h00, 18h00
PRICES:
Terrific Tuesday Specials: One price - R195 inclusive
Wednesday/Thursday/Sunday Evening: From R120 - R350 inclusive
Friday/Saturday (both shows)/Sunday Matinees: From R120 - R380 inclusive
BOOKINGS:
Computicket by calling 083 915 8000, visit www.computicket.com or visit your nearest Computicket outlet or call Artscape Box Office 021 421 7695
CORPORATE & GROUP BOOKINGS:
Jeanette Oosthuizen,sales@showtime.co.za

####
Publicist: Dreamgirls South Africa
Debbi de Souza
(082) 822 9478 (t)
(031) 561 4000 (f)
debranne@icon.co.za (e)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f5Vfvxv9JI - You Tube link to the Dreamgirls Sizzle Reel

This is the first time an international show of this scale will showcase exclusively black South African performers who play the show's African American characters. There are some 450 costumes and 180 wigs in this production, set in the 1960's. Rehearsals are currently underway and the show opens in Johannesburg at the Teatro on 11 March. The show's storyline is similar to that of the movie by the same name but the show itself which includes glamorous, glitzy costumes is a multi-media spectacular presentation.

Herewith some interesting facts about the show - more info on www.dreamgirls.co.za:

1. The story line featured in the movie version of Dreamgirls is based on the stage musical which was first
staged in 1981.
2. This new production of Dreamgirls is a multi-media spectacular with state-of-the-art, hi-tech stage design and LED screens. The cast will wear glamourous, dazzling
colourful costumes - all glitz and glam.
3. There are some 450 costumes and 180 wigs in this production. Costumes are designed by award winning American costume designer, William Ivey Long.
4. Hazel Feldman of Showtime Management, the show's SA Producers will be mentoring cast musicians and crew on the production.
5. The American creative team are spending a total of 7 weeks in rehearsal with the SA company, with a view of not only mounting a world-class SA production but with the vision to ensuring
that many members of this cast will be able to star internationally in other DREAMGIRLS productions around the world.
6. Principal performers Lindiwe Bungane, Tracey Lee Oliver, Caroline Borole, Hayley Christian, Shane Wellington and from the ensemble, Ziyanda Yako will be performing for the first time in a
major international musical theatre production. For principal performer, Bjorn Blignaut and ensemble members, Mmabatho Moepowa, Clint Lesh, Nicholas Nkuna and Sifiso Mazibuko,
Dreamgirls is their second musical theatre production. The show gives these newcomers to musical theatre the opportunity to literally live the Dreamgirls dream.
7. SA Creative Team:
Producer: Hazel Feldman
Musical Director: Tshepo Mngoma (Sibongile Khumalo's son)
Musical Supervisor: Bryan Schimmel
Assistant Musical Director: Rowan Bakker
Company Manager: Jill Somers
Resident Director: Philip Godawa
Technical Director: Alistair Kilbee
8. American Creative Team:
Producer: John Breglio
Director and choreographer: Robert Longbottom
Associate Choreographer: Brittney Griffin
International Music Supervisor: Sam Davis

Biographies - Leads
Lindiwe Bungane (Effie White) Born in Zambia, Lindiwe is the youngest female to receive the highest Zambian music award, ‘Ngoma Award’ for best female performer when she was just 19 years old. This started her journey as a performing artist. She quickly scooped the same title in the ‘Battle of the Band’ held the in the capital Lusaka the following year and this led to her wonderful singing talents being recognised. She has since received a ‘Mukuba music achievement award’ and is the youngest woman to be honoured in a book entitled “100 women celebrated in Zambia”. She has performed at many prestigious events around the world while also as an ambassador of good will for her country. Events include the Live 8 concert held in Johannesburg South Africa, the Sydney Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. She opened the world renowned theater production “House of the Holy Afro” for which her character received rave newspaper reviews in every city across the globe, wherever the show opened including Sydney and Edinburgh. The climax of her career was winning “Project Fame” a television reality show in 2006 which auditioned over 10 million artists from around the continent of Africa to show off their vocal talents for recording contract with Sony BMG South Africa. She unfortunately did not receive this prize amongst other things but this did not deter her from pursuing her dream. She has recorded an album which she hopes to share with the world soon.

Tracey-Lee Oliver (Deena Jones) hails from the beautiful Mother City of Cape Town. This Naledi nominated performer has built a good foundation for herself as the ‘’Diva’’ of Jo’burg’s live entertainment industry. Her accomplishments include performing at Gold Reef City’s The Globe Theatre and The Lyric Theatre where she has performed in Hazel Feldman’s Motown Magic; Richard Loring’s Knights of Music and Motown Magic Christmas. Tracey-Lee has also performed in Karin Cutts’ Sun City Extravaganza ‘’Let There be Rock’’ and she was a top 8 finalist in Kyknet’s 2006 Afrikaans Idols. She is currently seen in her first television commercial as ‘’Regular Jane’’ in the Kellogs All Bran advertisement. Other achievements also include working with SA’s heavyweights such as Harry Sideropolous’ Rand Easter 2008 Bollywood Spectacular, Strictly Come Dancing judge Tyrone Watkins’ Bollywood musical ‘’Fusion’’, Sun City’s ‘’Positive Rocks’ ’AIDS Benefit concert including acts Unathi (Metro fm DJ), Loyiso Bala, Freshly Ground, Wonderboom, Judith Sepuma, Sibongile Ngoma but to name a few. Tracey-Lee’s Naledi nomination this year was earned for her show stopping performance in the Richard Loring musical ‘’Knights of Music’’.

Candida Mosoma (Lorrell Robinson) Since graduating at Tshwane University of Technology's Musical Theatre course in 2005 Candida has graced the South African stages with her diverse talent in an array of musicals from Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar where she played Mary Magdalene, Pinocchio playing the blue fairy, The Lion King laughing her way through performance as the sly hyena Shenzi and understudying lioness Nala. She has stretched her effervescent talents in review shows, cabarets and lounge singing from Let There be Rock, Solouette to Hot Spots.

Hayley Christian (Michelle Morris) Born and raised in Johannesburg, Hayley started singing when she was three years old. Her first musical theatre show performance was in a ‘Happy Go Lucky’. In 1989 Hayley began five years of voice training under Professor Irene Frangs at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Thereafter she achieved a distinction of 86% in the Royal Schools of Music, London examinations. Hayley’s international career began when she teamed up with a band called ‘New Generation” which toured China, Macau and Hong Kong. Hayley went on to join Cape Town band, ‘4 Play’ as lead vocalist and traveled to Egypt for three months followed by a second tour of six months. Then as part of a duo, Hayley performed in Amman-Jordan after which she decided to become a solo artist and returned to Jordan, followed by performances at the Amman Sheraton and the Red Sea Hotels in Egypt. Hayley returned to South Africa, performing at various corporate events for MTN, Coca-Cola, Nedcor, Nederburg Estates and the launch of ‘De Niro’ at Sandton Sun and Towers. She then joined the casts of The Best of Girl Talk directed by Richard Loring, Motown and Sisters in Song directed by Carlo Spettu. Career highlights include singing the American anthem at a boxing heavyweight championship at Caesars, Gauteng; traveling to the Seychelles to perform for Saudi Arabian royalty and performing at a function where ex-President Nelson Mandela was the guest of honour. Other special performances include touring Africa as guest artist with Dr. Victor and the Rasta Rebels; performing at various hotels in Spain and competing at the annual International Budsim competition where she won best vocalist above many other countries, achieving third position for South Africa.

Aubrey Poo (Curtis Taylor) is a South African actor, singer and Creative Director best known for his role as Pelo Mohale in the SABC2 soapie “Muvhango”, and for hosting the SABC1 “emotainment” show “All You Need is Love”. He recently completed two and a half years playing the role of Lefa on ETV’s Scandal! He also played the role of a pastor, Lefa Letswalo on the Etv soapie “Scandal!” Poo completed his National Diploma in drama at the Pretoria Technikon in (now know as Tshwane University of Technology) in 2000.In 2002, he won an award for Best Performance by a New Actor for his role in the critically acclaimed Play@Risk, directed by Megan Wilson. He then landed the lead role of Gabriel in the musical Far From the Madding Crowd at the Durban Playhouse and later traveled to Spain performing in the musical tribute to Motown. He is the Director of his company, Pono Pele Productions and he was a Creative Producer for the unveiling of the FIFA 2010 Emblem presented in Berlin (July 2006), his biggest project to date and he also co-wrote the most successful of the Barnyard Theatre works ever produced: Diamonds and Dust, in which he also performed the leading role. Pono Pele Productions boasts an impressive list of clients including NEF, Magana Carta, Basil Read, Lonmin Mining and Ideahub (to name, but a few). In 2005 and 2006, Poo broke into the TV and film industry with a lead role in the Afrikaans film Ouma se Slim Kind and roles in Gaz'lam, Muvhango, Zero Tolerance, Zone 14 and Nomzamo. His TV work repertoire is extensive…he has been seen on SABC as the male presenter of All You Need is Love; he played the role of documentary maker Themba in the SABC1 drama series Usindiso (Redemption); the role of Tebogo in the SABC2 mini-series Noah's Ark. He went back to musical theatre work in 2007, taking a sabbatical break from television when he played the romantic lead in the stage musical Soweto Story, followed by the lead role of Tom Collins in the musical Rent. Aubrey Poo has just completed shooting a supporting lead role in the upcoming movie “Winnie - a life” along side Jennifer Hudson.

Bjorn Blignaut (James “Thunder” Early) Hailing from Gauteng, Bjorn was born and raised in Johannesburg, Eldorado Park. At the age of 17, Bjorn started a singing group with his friends and called themselves, Boys to Men, adapted from the USA group. At this age he then entered the local television competition called Jam Alley and took the first place position, this was to lead to future successes. This then followed the success of winning the South African Pop stars SABC 1 competition and was part of the winning group called Ghetto Lingo. Bjorn’s career as a performer includes: Shell Road to Fame contestant; Jam Alley Winner; recording Album (Southside) in Europe; performing in various Clubs in Europe; launching album to Royal family in Belgium; promoting Album in Europe; Coca Cola Pop star group winner; M-net Idols competition top 6; Barnyard Theatre show, Hot Chocolate; Barnyard theatre show, Glory Days and Tyrone Watkins Productions: Spotlight)
Lebo Toko (C.C. White) is an actor, singer and dancer born in Bloemfontein. He studied Lebo Toko (CC White) Lebo studied Musical Theatre at Tshwane University of Technology where he took part in productions such as Sweet Charity; I Love You, Your Perfect Now Change and had the opportunity of playing the character role of Coalhouse Walker Jr. in the South African premier of Ragtime the Musical. Since graduating from T.U.T he has done two Children’s Theatre productions under the baton of The People’s Theatre and Promusica Theatre. Touch My Blood marked his debut at the Market Theatre where he had the opportunity to play the role of Fred Khumalo. He has also showed in the Musical Review The Blues Brothers as a Bluet, and played Mushu the Dragon during the run of the Children’s Theatre Stage Musical Mulan Jnr. He recently completed the run of The Boy's in The Photograph directed By Janice Honeyman at the Joburg Theatre! and MAMMA MIA!

Shane "Duke" Wellington (Marty Madison) is an experienced television and radio personality with many talents. Voice Artist, Radio DJ, Television Host, Ring Announcer, and Film Actor are just a few of the hats he has worn in his career. In the early 90’s, Shane began co-producing music for artists like MarcAlex, Hugh Masekela, the Sarafina Girls and Brenda Fassie to name a few, and he produced several jingles for radio. Shane was chosen as a judge for the SA Music Awards for 4 years. Shane's accent and his boundless enthusiasm got him into radio, first doing voice-overs for companies like Coca Cola, Disney Pictures, and SAA, and then working for radio stations like Solid Gold and 5FM. Shane's on-air presence gained him thousands of loyal listeners. Radio then lead to television where Shane hosted, or appeared on shows for SABC1, SABC2, SABC3, and ETV. In between all this, Shane appeared in numerous television commercials including Jik, Nosh, and Shield. He has acted in three feature films including "Mr. Bones" (Leon Schuster), "Styxx" (Brian 'Cocktails' Brown, Peter 'Robocop' Wheller), and "Surviving Katrina". Shane is a natural MC, and the corporate industry has recognized his abilities. He has hosted numerous public promotions, conferences, award shows, and live events for several well-known companies including the financial services industry, and the auto industry. Shane is recognized as one of South Africa’s top ring announcers, and he has announced several National and World Title bouts. FIFA took note, and used Shane during 2006 World Cup Trophy Tour, as well as the opening ceremony for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. With his passion for life and his determination to be the best, Shane "Duke" Wellington is creating an inspiring legacy.

Caroline Borole (alternate Effie White) was first bitten by the “stage bug” at the tender age of 14 when she entered her high school talent show and won the contest. After matriculating in 2001 she enrolled at Tshwane University of Technology where she studied musical Theatre for three years under the wonderful guidance of Vicki Karras. She performed throughout her tertiary career, acting and singing in shows such as Stage Door and as one of the leads in Pippin. After completing her tertiary education Caroline joined Richard Loring’s Girl Talk 005, her first professional performance. She then performed an array of shows for the Barnyard Theatre including the Motown Hot Chocolate, Walking in Memphis and Under African Skies, a first time endorsed “proudly south African” show which saw her touring all over Europe and Turkey with the show before coming back to do yet another successful run throughout the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Caroline has shown her worth as a skilled actress in local television productions including a two-year stint at Generations and she was a supporting actress for Nomzamo and worked on a comedy show called On the Couch for SABC 3. Caroline was in the top 10 of the South African idols 2007.

.

A Grand New Old Home for Olde 'n New Sunday Recitals

2011-03-14T07:53:00.000-07:00

Saul Bamberger has found a new old home for Olde'n'New Recitals! In association with St.John's Priory, the recitals will now be at one o fthe grandest of teh old Rand Lord mansions, Glenshiel, 19 Woolston Rd,Westcliffe. ( S26* 10.28' , E 28* 1.60' )
Situated on the very peak of Westcliffe, Glenshiel is a Herbert Baker heritage home, set on the most exqusite grounds. For a history of Glenshiel go to www.orderofstjohn.org.za.

The venue offers serene surroundings, secure parking, wheelchair access and of course a lovely Piano!

Every month, as per usual, I will be hosting recitals featuring the cream of international and local talent!

There will be parking available on the property and additional parking a stone's throw away at The Ridge School.
Next week the first artists to appear at the new venue will be announced. Please tell your friends. Remember, children are always welcome to the recitals.

FREE WEDNESDAY LUNCH-HOUR CONCERT

2011-03-14T07:26:00.001-07:00

WEDNESDAY LUNCH-HOUR CONCERT: The Wits Choir is unlike any choir you have ever experienced: vibrant, young, and colourful! Membership is open to all, resulting in a fully representative choir drawn from diverse national and international cultures. The Wits Choir has been under the direction of accomplished conductor and trainer, Dalene Hoogenhout, since 1995.
Date: Wed 16:03:2011
Time: 13:15
Venue: Wits Great Hall
Booking: Free Admission

Calling Dancers & Dance Fans!

2011-03-14T07:11:00.001-07:00

DON’T FORGET MARCH 21ST

The dance happening of the year is just around the corner, so if you have an itch in your dancing shoes, brace yourself for a whole bunch of learning, doing and experiencing, in The Dance Explosion.
Both established and new dancers from around Gauteng are invited to participate in, and showcase their work at, the Sibikwa Centre For The Arts in Benoni South on Human Rights Day, March 21st. The event was a rousing success last year with over 20 dance companies participating – and more fireworks are expected this time around.

If you’re into dance, you owe it to yourself to throw your name into the hat. These groups have already committed themselves to the vibrant melting-pot that is The Dance Explosion:

Amagqoza Cultural, from Daveyton; Most wanted B/Boys crew, from Soweto; United Generations, from Thembisa; Phelane Theatre Production, from Daveyton; Linyelo Dance Theatre, from Katlehong; Batsumi Cultural Group, from Thokoza; Etwatwa Performing Arts Productions, from Daveyton; Etwatwa Kempton Rockers, from Kempton Park; Alba Creative Arts Performance, from Etwatwa; Sizwe and his Company, from Johannesburg CBD; 325 Home Boys, from Orange Farm.

STRETCH YOUR HORIZONS

Dancers – like all other artists – can’t work successfully in a vacuum. They need input and stimulation from their peers; in short, someone to ‘bounce off’.

This is where the Dance Explosion comes into its own. It’s a great place to not only show off one’s work, but also to see what other dancers are up to, and share ideas an opinions on where dance is at in South Africa today – and where it’s going.

STILL TIME TO PARTICIPATE!

Dancers and choreographers who are interested in taking part in the Dance Explosion may still apply – just do it now! Contact Sibikwa at 011 422 4359 or sibikwa@iafrica.com

Although registration for this exciting event had officially closed on March 1st, the organisers have extended the deadline in order to accommodate companies and individuals who missed the mark. Their reasoning: the greater the diversity, the better.

To find out more about Sibikwa, visit:
www.sibikwa.co.za

SIMPLY THE BEST – Tribute to the Queen of Rock

2011-03-12T09:40:00.000-08:00

Another “first” for South Africa – SIMPLY THE BEST premiered on The Mandela stage at Joburg Theatre this week and will run until March 20th 2011.

Rebecca O’Connor is simply the best as Tina Turner. Rebecca first came to international attention as the winner of the prestigious European impersonation competition STARS IN THEIR EYES in 2002, in front of thirty-three million television viewers.

The Irish-born star then returned to her home to focus on her new dynamic project, The Tina Turner Tribute Show SIMPLY THE BEST, which subsequently toured Europe to great success. On stage with her full live band, Rebecca O’Connor’s rendition of Tina Turner Classics will leave you breathless. In the words of Tina Turner herself, “Rebecca is so good, she’s scary. If I only had her energy today, I’d still be touring!”

Based on Tina Turner’s live concerts SIMPLY THE BEST features a full band (many of the musicians are South African), a fantastic lighting show and with Rebecca O’Connor bringing to the stage all the excitement and energy of one of the world’s most popular entertainers.

Tickets are priced from R160 and are on sale now exclusively by visiting www.joburgtheatre.com and purchasing your print-at-home ticket on the internet, or by calling the theatre’s new direct ticketing line on 0861 670 670.

Tickets for Joburg Theatre’s shows no longer add the traditional ticketing agency booking fee, so the price you see advertised is the price you pay. Subsequently, the theatre’s tickets are no longer available at Computicket.

SIMPLY THE BEST is brought to South Africa by Showtime Australia in association with Kaya FM.

Naledi award-winning team in JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR!

2011-03-10T07:18:00.001-08:00

Fresh from having won 7 Naledi Awards for EVITA at Monday night’s prestigious theatre awards ceremony, the creative team of Paul Warwick-Griffin (Director), Charl-Johan Lingenfelder (Musical Supervisor) and Louis Zurnamer (Musical Director) are ready to once again set the stage alight with Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musical JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR!

This Pieter Toerien Production is set to star Cito, Nadine, Jonathan Roxmouth, Anton Luitingh and Terence Bridgett, and will play the magnificent Teatro at Montecasino from 3rd June to the 26th June.

JC SUPERSTAR features the popular Lloyd Webber songs “Superstar” and “I Don’t Know How To Love Him” as well as the highly entertaining “King Herod’s Song” (originally performed by Manfred Mann’s Michael d’Abo). Afrikaans music fans will be thrilled to see Nadine play the role of Mary and Soap fans can look forward to seeing Terence Bridgett in full flight as King Herod! Wonderboom frontman Cito returns in the role of Jesus of Nazareth. GREASE and A HANDFUL OF KEYS fans will be able to catch the multi-talented Jonathan Roxmouth rocking the house as Judas. Anton Luitingh (Beauty and the Beast, Joseph, EVITA) once again shows his class as Pilate.

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
The TEATRO at MONTECASINO
Limited Season: 3 June to 26 June only!
Performances: Tue – Fri @ 8pm, Sat @ 3pm & 8pm, Sun @ 3pm
Bookings now open at Computicket

Worldclass Crucible opens at Promusica

2011-03-09T14:35:00.000-08:00

On the first day of Lent the curtain lifted on one of the best non-commercial theatre productions we have seen in this province for a very a long time – and, there were not ONE Naledi judge present to bear witness to a night of thespian genius. Were they sleeping off their hangovers following the Awards night 48 hours ago? Who knows. But, what I know and am grateful for - and what they do not know - is that tonight's audiencve shared the first night thrill of a magnificent staging of this classic work and also the debut of 10 new young serious stars as we haven’t seen young stars shining on our stages in many years.

This Arthur Miller play uses one of the most awful chapters in human history – in 1692 in the United States town of Salem in Massachusetts, this strange piece of history about witch hunts and hangings played itself out and, the story found its echoes again in post- WWII America as American fear of Germans and Japanese was transferred onto the communist Soviet Union. Though the Soviets had been their allies during the war, Americans began to see them as a threat. The Soviets had a nuclear bomb and were aggressively expanding their influence into Europe and Africa. China was soon taken over by communists.

The American Communist Party, other left-wing organizations, and minority groups - including African-Americans, Native Americans, and various immigrant groups - became targets of suspicion, surveillance, and infiltration. Ethel and Julius Rosenberg's trial and execution for conspiring to steal secrets of the atomic bomb convinced many Americans that communist spies were among them. Propaganda films such as "Red Nightmare" and "Duck and Cover" further fueled this anxiety. The Truman Doctrine of 1947 expanded the battle, authorizing financial support for foreign governments fighting communism.

The Rosenbergs stoically maintained their innocence throughout the length of the trial and appeals. They were executed by the electric chair on June 19, 1953. Up to this day nobody really knows If indeed they were innocent but what we do know is that the case was riddled with prosecutorial and judicial misconduct and that Ethel Rosenberg was convicted on the most flimsy of evidence to place leverage on her husband; and neither deserved the death penalty.

It is against this background that Arthur Miller revisited the Salem Witch Trials and delivered to the world a classic allegory in which Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are represented by the character of John Proctor and Elizabeth Proctor. They too, in the end, go their deaths as innocent victims of a public hysteria in which many men and women were sent to the gallows for the alleged and ipso facto crime of being witches. What makes this shameful period off atrocity even more shocking is that these brutal and unfounded punishments for an invisible crime all stemmed from the allegations of a handful of teenage girls.

On the other side of the world and hundreds of years later, in our own beloved country, in the Eastern Cape and the Limpopo province , an epidemic of witchcraft accusations have prevailed since the demise of Apartheid. This has led to mock trials (kangaroo courts) and has seen refugees feeling for their lives – destroying not only families but also crippling society in general.

I am only mentioning Alby Michael's, the director of the – if otherwise, I will have to list dozens of names on whom praise needs to be bestowed. Michael’s conceptualization of the play, having the same actors play different characters using masks as in the classic Greek theatre, is to say the least, breathtaking. The production and lighting design by Kosie House of Theatre are breathtakingly simple an dramatic. Just to mention one of the many moments of genius: The prison bars in the last act becomes glockenspiel, evoking the sounds of church bells – and cleverly one is never quite sure for whom the bells are tolling - for the accusers or the accused?

Music for the production was specially composed and arranged by Dawid Boverhoff – and, the genius of the direction, design and lighting also runs through every bit of the magnificent sound that is created in tandem with the drama. The director/ composer also uses the device of a fiddler on the stage – the fiddler playing little melody lines around the characters as the play evolves, bringing to mind memories of The Devil Went Down to Georgia, The Devil's Fiddler and A Fiddler's Tale among many similar works.

I can continue heaping praise on this tour de force of an entire company but, I need not. It will speak for itself, for in this production the devil is to be found in the exquisite detail and a mighty fine reading of Arthur Miller!

On the first day of Lent the curtain lifted on one of the best non-commercial theatre productions we have seen in this province for a very a long time – and, there were not ONE Naledi judge present to bear witness to a night of thespian genius. Were they sleeping off their hangovers following the Awards night 48 hours ago? Who knows. But, what I know and am grateful for - and what they do not know - is that tonight's audiencve shared the first night thrill of a magnificent staging of this classic work and also the debut of 10 new young serious stars as we haven’t seen young stars shining on our stages in many years.

This Arthur Miller play uses one of the most awful chapters in human history – in 1692 in the United States town of Salem in Massachusetts, this strange piece of history about witch hunts and hangings played itself out and, the story found its echoes again in post- WWII America as American fear of Germans and Japanese was transferred onto the communist Soviet Union. Though the Soviets had been their allies during the war, Americans began to see them as a threat. The Soviets had a nuclear bomb and were aggressively expanding their influence into Europe and Africa. China was soon taken over by communists.

The American Communist Party, other left-wing organizations, and minority groups - including African-Americans, Native Americans, and various immigrant groups - became targets of suspicion, surveillance, and infiltration. Ethel and Julius Rosenberg's trial and execution for conspiring to steal secrets of the atomic bomb convinced many Americans that communist spies were among them. Propaganda films such as "Red Nightmare" and "Duck and Cover" further fueled this anxiety. The Truman Doctrine of 1947 expanded the battle, authorizing financial support for foreign governments fighting communism.

The Rosenbergs stoically maintained their innocence throughout the length of the trial and appeals. They were executed by the electric chair on June 19, 1953. Up to this day nobody really knows If indeed they were innocent but what we do know is that the case was riddled with prosecutorial and judicial misconduct and that Ethel Rosenberg was convicted on the most flimsy of evidence to place leverage on her husband; and neither deserved the death penalty.

It is against this background that Arthur Miller revisited the Salem Witch Trials and delivered to the world a classic allegory in which Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are represented by the character of John Proctor and Elizabeth Proctor. They too, in the end, go their deaths as innocent victims of a public hysteria in which many men and women were sent to the gallows for the alleged and ipso facto crime of being witches. What makes this shameful period off atrocity even more shocking is that these brutal and unfounded punishments for an invisible crime all stemmed from the allegations of a handful of teenage girls.

On the other side of the world and hundreds of years later, in our own beloved country, in the Eastern Cape and the Limpopo province , an epidemic of witchcraft accusations have prevailed since the demise of Apartheid. This has led to mock trials (kangaroo courts) and has seen refugees feeling for their lives – destroying not only families but also crippling society in general.

I am only mentioning Alby Michael's, the director of the – if otherwise, I will have to list dozens of names on whom praise needs to be bestowed. Michael’s conceptualization of the play, having the same actors play different characters using masks as in the classic Greek theatre, is to say the least, breathtaking. The production and lighting design by Kosie House of Theatre are breathtakingly simple an dramatic. Just to mention one of the many moments of genius: The prison bars in the last act becomes glockenspiel, evoking the sounds of church bells – and cleverly one is never quite sure for whom the bells are tolling - for the accusers or the accused?

Music for the production was specially composed and arranged by Dawid Boverhoff – and, the genius of the direction, design and lighting also runs through every bit of the magnificent sound that is created in tandem with the drama. The director/ composer also uses the device of a fiddler on the stage – the fiddler playing little melody lines around the characters as the play evolves, bringing to mind memories of The Devil Went Down to Georgia, The Devil's Fiddler and A Fiddler's Tale among many similar works.

I can continue heaping praise on this tour de force of an entire company but, I need not. It will speak for itself, for in this production the devil is to be found in the exquisite detail and a mighty fine reading of Arthur Miller!

.

Academy Orchestra given platform at JPO concert

2011-03-09T07:09:00.000-08:00

The Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra’s concerts on 16 and 17 March 2011 will feature a special “curtain-raiser” by the JPO Academy Orchestra.

At 8pm on Wednesday and Thursday, just before the start of the JPO’s final symphony concerts for the season at the Linder Auditorium in Parktown, the Academy Orchestra will perform the first movement from Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony.

Thereafter, the JPO will continue with its scheduled programme under the baton of principal guest conductor Bernhard Gueller – performing the Prelude, Liebestod and Nachtesang from Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, as well as Mahler’s Symphony No.4 in G major, featuring soprano Kelebogile Boikanyo.

The JPO Academy is proud to present to the loyal supporters of the JPO the next generation of orchestral musicians who will, in time, become the future members of the JPO.

Many of the young musicians in the Academy Orchestra are part of a four-year accredited training programme offered by the JPO, which arose in response to the lack of a similar programme being offered at South Africa’s tertiary institutions. This initiative is geared towards nurturing and encouraging young musicians to turn professional at the end of their training.

For the last three years, the Academy Orchestra has built its membership from the humble beginnings of around 28 players to its current membership of 52 players, of which 35 are scholarship students in the academy. The remaining players hail from various schools as well as Wits University, and the orchestra also features privately-tutored students from around Gauteng.

The scholarship students receive weekly tuition on their chosen instrument from teachers drawn from the JPO, in addition to intensive music theory training. As the four-year course is designed to train orchestral musicians, they are required to attend weekly rehearsals with the Academy Orchestra in addition to their practical and theoretical lessons.

This year, the JPO has also started weekly scale and technical classes for the strings, and a brass ensemble which meets three mornings a week.

The young musicians have been rehearsing for this performance with the JPO since the beginning of February, putting in many hours of intensive sectionals and tutti work.

For more information on the JPO and the JPO Academy, call 011 789 2733, e-mail info@jpo.co.za or visit www.jpo.co.za.

The Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra’s concerts on 16 and 17 March 2011 will feature a special “curtain-raiser” by the JPO Academy Orchestra.

At 8pm on Wednesday and Thursday, just before the start of the JPO’s final symphony concerts for the season at the Linder Auditorium in Parktown, the Academy Orchestra will perform the first movement from Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony.

Thereafter, the JPO will continue with its scheduled programme under the baton of principal guest conductor Bernhard Gueller – performing the Prelude, Liebestod and Nachtesang from Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, as well as Mahler’s Symphony No.4 in G major, featuring soprano Kelebogile Boikanyo.

The JPO Academy is proud to present to the loyal supporters of the JPO the next generation of orchestral musicians who will, in time, become the future members of the JPO.

Many of the young musicians in the Academy Orchestra are part of a four-year accredited training programme offered by the JPO, which arose in response to the lack of a similar programme being offered at South Africa’s tertiary institutions. This initiative is geared towards nurturing and encouraging young musicians to turn professional at the end of their training.

For the last three years, the Academy Orchestra has built its membership from the humble beginnings of around 28 players to its current membership of 52 players, of which 35 are scholarship students in the academy. The remaining players hail from various schools as well as Wits University, and the orchestra also features privately-tutored students from around Gauteng.

The scholarship students receive weekly tuition on their chosen instrument from teachers drawn from the JPO, in addition to intensive music theory training. As the four-year course is designed to train orchestral musicians, they are required to attend weekly rehearsals with the Academy Orchestra in addition to their practical and theoretical lessons.

This year, the JPO has also started weekly scale and technical classes for the strings, and a brass ensemble which meets three mornings a week.

The young musicians have been rehearsing for this performance with the JPO since the beginning of February, putting in many hours of intensive sectionals and tutti work.

For more information on the JPO and the JPO Academy, call 011 789 2733, e-mail info@jpo.co.za or visit www.jpo.co.za.

.

See Zim’s stone art in all its serene splendour

2011-03-09T06:43:00.000-08:00

Tap into African spirituality at the Stone Angels exhibition of contemporary Zimbabwean stone sculpture, opening at Rwavhi Fine Art on 19 March 2011.

This exhibition of 75 sculptures by 40 Zimbabwean artists celebrates the woman – as object of inspiration, adoration and temptation; as mother, spirit, wife and lover.
These works will be on show in an indigenous garden and private home setting at the Rwavhi Fine Art gallery, located at 44 Mowbray Road in Greenside, Johannesburg, which is owned and run by former BBC World Service journalist Carolyn Dempster.

After 25 years of working as a reporter documenting conflict and poverty in Africa, she decided to switch her focus to celebrating the art and culture of the continent.
“I started with stone sculpture from Zimbabwe because it had become my passion,” she says. “It is a modern art form that on the one hand is so deeply rooted in African spirituality and culture, yet which speaks to you so directly and immediately that you cannot escape its profound impact.

“There is simply nothing like it anywhere else in the world.”

Dempster chose the name Rwavhi, meaning “chameleon” in Shona and Venda, for her art gallery after a life-changing encounter while working on a journalistic assignment in the Sahara Desert led her to adopt the chameleon as her personal sacred totem.

Since the Rwavhi garden gallery opened its doors in 2006, it has focused on raising the profile of African art and promoting the continent’s most exceptional original artists working in stone. The gallery supports fair trade and an ethical approach to art dealing.

Zimbabwe’s name comes from the Shona word “dzimbadzamabwe”, which means “house of stone”. It was so named because of the Great Dyke, a 500km-long, 2.5-billion-year-old volcanic ridge of rock running through the area that is abundant in more than 250 ores and serpentines.

The country has a long and illustrious history of stonemasonry, with its tradition of stone carving dating back to the 13th century. Today, many art critics believe that Zimbabwe’s stone sculptors are the finest carving by hand in stone in the world today.

Every year, Dempster travels to the Nyanga mountains in Manicaland and the rural areas of Mashonaland to seek out talented artists and to personally select the sculptures that Rwavhi imports to South Africa for exhibition, sale and art lease.

She has established close working relationships with some 50 Zimbabwean sculptors, and works with a team of sculptors in Harare to ensure that all the pieces are professionally polished, packed, crated and transported.

With works inspired by contemporary life as well as traditional and spiritual beliefs, Stone Angels will showcase works by a number of Zimbabwe’s most acclaimed sculptors, including Godfrey Matangira (from whose featured work the exhibition takes its name), Author Manyengedzo, Walter Mariga and Peter Makuwise.

The exhibition opens on Saturday, 19 March and runs until Sunday, 10 April. The gallery is open between 10am and 5pm daily, including Saturdays and Sundays. Enquiries may be directed to Carolyn Dempster on rwavhi.fine.art@icon.co.za.

A musical tapestry of Judy Page’s legendary life

2011-03-09T06:27:00.000-08:00

PAGE BY PAGE - with JUDY PAGE! A musical tapestry of Judy Page’s legendary life opens at The Old Mutual Theatre on the Square in Sandton on 22nd March and runs until 9th April. This is a rare and light-hearted peek at the life and adventures of leading musical theatre personality doyenne, JUDY PAGE, told in song and words.

Judy will be accompanied on the piano by CLINTON ZERF.

Judy began her prolific career in South Africa as a band vocalist during the 1960’s, later shining in cabaret. In the mid 1970’s, Judy broke into musical theatre in the production of From Berlin to Broadway.

In 1976 she was cast as the Countess Elsa in The Sound of Music for which she received the first of 5 Dalro nominations. She went on to perform in many musical compilations: Brel, Piaf, Jerome Kern, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Judy Garland and Jerry’s Girls for which she won the Dalro Award for Best Performance in a musical.

She has tackled a series of greatly acclaimed major leads: Roxie Hart in Geoffrey Sutherland’s Chicago (1977) and Mama Morton (2002), Anna in Louis Burke’s production of The King and I, Dolly Levi in Hello Dolly and Mame Dennis Burnside in Mame.

Judy has reached wider audiences on television, appearing in her own series Hey Jude, many musical programmes and even a soap opera – Westgate.

Recent musicals include Deon Opperman’s My Fair Lady (Mrs Higgins) for which she won a Naledi Award for Best Supporting Actress and Fiddler on the Roof (Golde).

In 2008, Judy played Jeanette, the eccentric piano player, in The Full Monty, for which she won the Naledi Award for Best Comedy Performance and as one of the vultures in Deon Opperman’s

Jock Of The Bushveld. Most recently, she appeared in the pantomime, Robinson Crusoe.

PAGE BY PAGE is a joyous celebration of unforgettable songs and hilarious anecdotes –
not to be missed!

Performances take place Tuesday – Friday at 20:15 and Saturdays at 18:00 or 20:30
Tickets are R120 per person and R80 for students and seniors Bookings can be made by calling the theatre’s box office on tel. 011-883-8606 or 083-377-4969 or online: www.strictlytickets.com

There are no booking fees or service charges to patrons!

"15 Min of Fame" opening at UJ Arts Centre

2011-03-08T08:58:00.000-08:00

On Thursday night 31st March 2011, the curtain at the University of Johannesburg Arts Centre will lift on the Tshwane Dance Theatre (TDT) to reveal the four newly choreographed works based on the 1979 quote by Andy Warhol: "In the future everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes." The season will run until 9 April 2011 for 8 performances only.

Titled '15 Mins of Fame' - each choreographer was given only 15 minutes to show their mettle in shaping the movements of some of the most skilled and talented dancers in South Africa. The top South African choreographers invited to work with the company are: Timothy le Roux, Celeste Botha, Mari-Louise Basson and Thabo Rapoo. As with previous TDT seasons the productions will feature innovative and cutting-edge stage and lighting designs by Wilhelm Disbergen.

“All the Kings Horses”, choreographed by Timothy le Roux, deals with the issue of colonialism. Timothy asks: "Who is to blame?" and questions the political mentality of "Let them eat cake". In his exquisite and very stylish "White Mischief" decadence scene, the differences between the haves and extreme have-nots become all too apparent where the current rulers live in glass palaces. For this audacious piece, Le Roux will use the full company of twelve dancers. Audiovisuals of animal trophies against living room walls and Mozart's Requiem further darken this already stark interpretation.

“Synonyms for Seth”, choreographed by the internationally acclaimed Mari-Louise Basson, follows in an adventurous vein by positioning the dancers atop a specially constructed security boom. “Synonyms for Seth” deals with barriers - both physical and mental – and the stupefying fear and inherent paralyses instilled by modern living. Mari-Louise has been very busy of late, jetting between commissions and commitments in France, and most recently, India. She is with TDT for three months before she leaves to pursue commissions in Denmark and Sweden.

On a lighter note, “Here and Now”, choreographed by Celeste Botha, interrogates the defining moments in one's life - a simple and on-the-spur-of-the-moment decision can unleash a series of unexpected events that can change the course of one's life. Celeste was been nominated for a Naledi award for her superb choreography for The Boys in the Photograph, which played at the Joburg Civic theatre in 2010. Celeste has worked with well-known dance and ballet companies in South Africa and abroad. She was a company member of Jazzart Dance Theatre and the Free Flight Dance Company, and has collaborated with overseas companies such as Le Nomades in Switzerland and the Magnet Theatre. She has also performed with the Copenhagen International Ballet in Denmark at the Bellevue Theatre.

The last work on this extraordinary bill is by Thabo Rapoo, the Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year in 2008. His “Silken Road” charts a journey along a path towards the eventual intersection/connection between two worlds. “Silken Road” turns on the term ‘Sangam', which literally means ‘two rivers meet'. Audiences can expect to see a unique synergy of contemporary, eastern, and African dance – and even ballet! Ritualistic music from Kodo and Avishai Cohen comprises the soundtrack.

Thabo's choreography has been seen in South Africa, Europe, and Indonesia, and he has often been commissioned by the Dance Umbrella to create new works. He is one of South Africa's leading choreographers and has lit up the dance stages with his exquisite choreography that is influenced by his internship in Surakarta, Indonesia, to learn and study Javanese classical dance. During this time he collaborated with Eko Supriyanti, one of the best Indonesian choreographers, and created a dance work which they performed at the Jakarta festival, Indonesia. For TDT, most recently he created "Exodus (ex orders)", for its E-Boyz seasons in Johannesburg and Pretoria, and co-choreographed "Peter and the Wolf" with Esther Nasser.

TDT is under the artistic directorship of Esther Nasser, an award winning choreographer and well-known in the dance world for building dance companies such as the State Theatre Dance Company and the Jozi Dance Company.

The TDT dancers are Mari-Louise Basson, Kristin Wilson, Ipeleng Merafe, Liyabuyo Gongo, Tertia Coetzee, Laura Cameron, Kyle Roussow, Andre Regazzoni, Johan Dippenaar, Gregory Magagula, Lance Booysen, and Zenzeli Letsoela.

Video highlights of TDT's previous seasons presenting Redha's Giselle, E-Boyz, and Peter and the Wolf can be viewed on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/wildis2
Critics unanimously praised the standard of these performances:

"... intricately organic choreographic crafting ... a movement vocabulary pulsating with an intrinsic physicality" (Adrienne Sichel, The Star).

"...technically astute and athletic ... fuelled by testorerone chor
eography demands stamina ... it is exciting to see a young company handle such a work" (Tammy Ballantine, Business Day).

"... redefines brilliance in dance. It will leave you sweating, on the verge of tears and on your seat's edge, clamouring for more" (Robyn Sassen, Sunday Times).

"Peter and the Wolf" was been nominated for a Naledi award for the Best Production of a Play or Musical for Children in 2010, the first time that a dance company has been nominated for a Naledi theatre award.

“15 Mins of Fame” will be staged at the University of Johannesburg Arts Centre from 31 March to 9 April 2011 for 8 performances only.
Bookings are already open on Computicket
http://www.computicket.com/web/event/15_mins_of_fame/309492999/0/23775689
Prices are R50 (for the preview on 31 March), and R80 or R120 for all other performances.
TDT is generously funded by the National Lotteries Distribution Trust Fund.
Inquiries:
Wilhelm Disbergen

On Thursday night 31st March 2011, the curtain at the University of Johannesburg Arts Centre will lift on the Tshwane Dance Theatre (TDT) to reveal the four newly choreographed works based on the 1979 quote by Andy Warhol: "In the future everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes." The season will run until 9 April 2011 for 8 performances only.
Titled '15 Mins of Fame' - each choreographer was given only 15 minutes to show their mettle in shaping the movements of some of the most skilled and talented dancers in South Africa. The top South African choreographers invited to work with the company are: Timothy le Roux, Celeste Botha, Mari-Louise Basson and Thabo Rapoo. As with previous TDT seasons the productions will feature innovative and cutting-edge stage and lighting designs by Wilhelm Disbergen.
“All the Kings Horses”, choreographed by Timothy le Roux, deals with the issue of colonialism. Timothy asks: "Who is to blame?" and questions the political mentality of "Let them eat cake". In his exquisite and very stylish "White Mischief" decadence scene, the differences between the haves and extreme have-nots become all too apparent where the current rulers live in glass palaces. For this audacious piece, Le Roux will use the full company of twelve dancers. Audiovisuals of animal trophies against living room walls and Mozart's Requiem further darken this already stark interpretation.
“Synonyms for Seth”, choreographed by the internationally acclaimed Mari-Louise Basson, follows in an adventurous vein by positioning the dancers atop a specially constructed security boom. “Synonyms for Seth” deals with barriers - both physical and mental – and the stupefying fear and inherent paralyses instilled by modern living. Mari-Louise has been very busy of late, jetting between commissions and commitments in France, and most recently, India. She is with TDT for three months before she leaves to pursue commissions in Denmark and Sweden.
On a lighter note, “Here and Now”, choreographed by Celeste Botha, interrogates the defining moments in one's life - a simple and on-the-spur-of-the-moment decision can unleash a series of unexpected events that can change the course of one's life. Celeste was been nominated for a Naledi award for her superb choreography for The Boys in the Photograph, which played at the Joburg Civic theatre in 2010. Celeste has worked with well-known dance and ballet companies in South Africa and abroad. She was a company member of Jazzart Dance Theatre and the Free Flight Dance Company, and has collaborated with overseas companies such as Le Nomades in Switzerland and the Magnet Theatre. She has also performed with the Copenhagen International Ballet in Denmark at the Bellevue Theatre.
The last work on this extraordinary bill is by Thabo Rapoo, the Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year in 2008. His “Silken Road” charts a journey along a path towards the eventual intersection/connection between two worlds. “Silken Road” turns on the term ‘Sangam', which literally means ‘two rivers meet'. Audiences can expect to see a unique synergy of contemporary, eastern, and African dance – and even ballet! Ritualistic music from Kodo and Avishai Cohen comprises the soundtrack.
Thabo's choreography has been seen in South Africa, Europe, and Indonesia, and he has often been commissioned by the Dance Umbrella to create new works. He is one of South Africa's leading choreographers and has lit up the dance stages with his exquisite choreography that is influenced by his internship in Surakarta, Indonesia, to learn and study Javanese classical dance. During this time he collaborated with Eko Supriyanti, one of the best Indonesian choreographers, and created a dance work which they performed at the Jakarta festival, Indonesia. For TDT, most recently he created "Exodus (ex orders)", for its E-Boyz seasons in Johannesburg and Pretoria, and co-choreographed "Peter and the Wolf" with Esther Nasser.
TDT is under the artistic directorship of Esther Nasser, an award winning choreographer and well-known in the dance world for building dance companies such as the State Theatre Dance Company and the Jozi Dance Company.
The TDT dancers are Mari-Louise Basson, Kristin Wilson, Ipeleng Merafe, Liyabuyo Gongo, Tertia Coetzee, Laura Cameron, Kyle Roussow, Andre Regazzoni, Johan Dippenaar, Gregory Magagula, Lance Booysen, and Zenzeli Letsoela.
Video highlights of TDT's previous seasons presenting Redha's Giselle, E-Boyz, and Peter and the Wolf can be viewed on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/wildis2
Critics unanimously praised the standard of these performances:
"... intricately organic choreographic crafting ... a movement vocabulary pulsating with an intrinsic physicality" (Adrienne Sichel, The Star).
"...technically astute and athletic ... fuelled by testorerone choreography demands stamina ... it is exciting to see a young company handle such a work" (Tammy Ballantine, Business Day).
"... redefines brilliance in dance. It will leave you sweating, on the verge of tears and on your seat's edge, clamouring for more" (Robyn Sassen, Sunday Times).
"Peter and the Wolf" was been nominated for a Naledi award for the Best Production of a Play or Musical for Children in 2010, the first time that a dance company has been nominated for a Naledi theatre award.
“15 Mins of Fame” will be staged at the University of Johannesburg Arts Centre from 31 March to 9 April 2011 for 8 performances only.
Bookings are already open on Computicket
http://www.computicket.com/web/event/15_mins_of_fame/309492999/0/23775689
Prices are R50 (for the preview on 31 March), and R80 or R120 for all other performances.
TDT is generously funded by the National Lotteries Distribution Trust Fund.
Inquiries:
Wilhelm Disbergen

.

FRANS SWART's NALEDI ACCEPTANCE SPEECH 2011

2011-03-08T08:27:00.000-08:00

Accepting the Naledi Executive Director's Award, Frans Swart said: Thank you very much Mr Chairman, Board, Executive Director and all members of the Naledis. It is indeed an honour for me to accept this Executive Director’s Award on behalf of Lefra Productions as well as on behalf of all actors, artists, directors, writers, designers, technicians, staff, theatre managements and everybody involved in our productions through the years. Each and every production has been a wonderful experience as well as an exciting journey in what we love most - theatre. It is therefore such an honour for me to be recognised in such a wonderful manner. Lefra is raakgesien. Thank you Naledis! Thank you Dawn!

I would like to thank my wife, Hannelie and kids, Anmari, Phillru and Frans-Hendrik for supporting me all the way. Theatre doesn’t keep time and is a bit of a monster to feed every day. Thanks for your continued support. Then to my management staff – you are the greatest. Charl Senekal, Shaun van Eck, Zena Kannemeyer and Hugo Hewitt. Without you, there is no Lefra!

Dames en Here – dit gaan goed met Afrikaanse Teater. Sekere Afrikaanse Mediagroepe het egter eers begin om kunsblaaie te verminder en later totaal te verwater. Alles draai deesdae net om Hollywood sensasie en ons eie popkultuur, want dit verkoop koerante. Ek het nie ‘n groot probleem daarmee nie (dis nou om koerante te verkoop nie), maar bestuur van hierdie magtige koerant en tydskrif groepe – dink ook net vir ‘n oomblik dat julle ‘n verantwoordelikheid het teenoor die Afrikaanse kultuur, waarvan teater ‘n baie groot tradisie het. Sir Winston Churchill het gesê ‘n land se status word aan sy kultuur geken. Produksiehuise soos Lefra kry nie ‘n sent subsidie van nerens nie – ons moet teaterproduksies totaal op eie stoom finansier en aanbied. As julle nie meer bereid is om spasie af te staan aan die uitvoerende of beeldende kunste nie en selfs ook nie aan die letterkunde nie – wat doen julle vir die bevordering van die Afrikaanse kuns en kultuur in ‘n rugbymal samelewing. Julle het ‘n verantwoordelikheid – kom dit na en help ons om te bou aan ‘n teaterkultuur in Suid-Afrika.

Soos Van Wyk Louw sy Beiteltjie geslyp en geslyp het totdat hy klink en blink – so slyp ons by Lefra aan teater hier in Suid-Afrika. Met die hulp van ons Hemelse Vader is ons in baie opwindende tye en gaan dit goed met teater in Suid-Afrika. And for this, we are very thankful. Thankful towards all our talented performing artists and thankful towards all our audiences. Once again – thank you very much Naledi for this honour! I thank you!
Accepting the Naledi Executive Director's Award, Frans Swart said: Thank you very much Mr Chairman, Board, Executive Director and all members of the Naledis. It is indeed an honour for me to accept this Executive Director’s Award on behalf of Lefra Productions as well as on behalf of all actors, artists, directors, writers, designers, technicians, staff, theatre managements and everybody involved in our productions through the years. Each and every production has been a wonderful experience as well as an exciting journey in what we love most - theatre. It is therefore such an honour for me to be recognised in such a wonderful manner. Lefra is raakgesien. Thank you Naledis! Thank you Dawn!

I would like to thank my wife, Hannelie and kids, Anmari, Phillru and Frans-Hendrik for supporting me all the way. Theatre doesn’t keep time and is a bit of a monster to feed every day. Thanks for your continued support. Then to my management staff – you are the greatest. Charl Senekal, Shaun van Eck, Zena Kannemeyer and Hugo Hewitt. Without you, there is no Lefra!

Dames en Here – dit gaan goed met Afrikaanse Teater. Sekere Afrikaanse Mediagroepe het egter eers begin om kunsblaaie te verminder en later totaal te verwater. Alles draai deesdae net om Hollywood sensasie en ons eie popkultuur, want dit verkoop koerante. Ek het nie ‘n groot probleem daarmee nie (dis nou om koerante te verkoop nie), maar bestuur van hierdie magtige koerant en tydskrif groepe – dink ook net vir ‘n oomblik dat julle ‘n verantwoordelikheid het teenoor die Afrikaanse kultuur, waarvan teater ‘n baie groot tradisie het. Sir Winston Churchill het gesê ‘n land se status word aan sy kultuur geken. Produksiehuise soos Lefra kry nie ‘n sent subsidie van nerens nie – ons moet teaterproduksies totaal op eie stoom finansier en aanbied. As julle nie meer bereid is om spasie af te staan aan die uitvoerende of beeldende kunste nie en selfs ook nie aan die letterkunde nie – wat doen julle vir die bevordering van die Afrikaanse kuns en kultuur in ‘n rugbymal samelewing. Julle het ‘n verantwoordelikheid – kom dit na en help ons om te bou aan ‘n teaterkultuur in Suid-Afrika.

Soos Van Wyk Louw sy Beiteltjie geslyp en geslyp het totdat hy klink en blink – so slyp ons by Lefra aan teater hier in Suid-Afrika. Met die hulp van ons Hemelse Vader is ons in baie opwindende tye en gaan dit goed met teater in Suid-Afrika. And for this, we are very thankful. Thankful towards all our talented performing artists and thankful towards all our audiences. Once again – thank you very much Naledi for this honour! I thank you!
.

Dali Tambo's Welcoming Address at the 8th Naledi Awards 2011

2011-03-08T08:12:00.000-08:00

Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen. On behalf of the board members of the Naledi’s, our executive director and our sponsors – Welcome to the 8th annual Naledi Theatre Awards.

Master of ceremonies, Ladies and Gentlemen I believe that the Naledi’s board members would wish me to say at the outset that the Naledi’s continue to exist in large measure because of the tireless efforts, tenacity and exuberant determination of Dawn Lindberg and Des Lindberg. May we by means of encouragement give them both a round of applause and our heartfelt thanks.

I would like to welcome all present here tonight in particular our nominees who, in each category have over the last year exhibited creative excellence as practitioners of South African theatre in all fields.

From playwrights, producers, directors, choreographers, actors and actresses, to set designers, costume designers as well as lighting and sound designers – congratulations and welcome. We gather here tonight to celebrate your collective and collaborative ingenuity as you continue to enrich our lives and nations culture.

I would also like to welcome our judges, who have attended, assessed and adjudicated so many productions during 2010. They are all lovers of theatre and their informed, unbiased perspective is essential in the Naledi’s desire to highlight and reward those productions and people who make us proud of South African Theatre and proud to be South African.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Athol Fugard in referring to a play called Still Life, written by Emily Mann and produced at the Market in 1983 by the late gentle giant of South African Theatre Barney Simon relays how Barney spoke to him about the play and used the word TESTIMONY several times.
Athol made him check its dictionary definition: It means TO BEAR WITNESS. Athol described the phrase “TO BEAR WITNESS” as “A perfect definition of the challenge South African theatre faces at this moment in our country’s history.”

Barney was right, Athol was right, they did not mean that South African theatre should bear witness to our times as a cold reportage of the facts; rather what Barney and Athol were insinuating is that theatre’s role in society is not to tell us merely what is happening or has happened, the news and newspapers do that well enough. They were saying that the theatres role is to tell us how it felt and what it meant to be ordinary people in extraordinary times. That was in 1983, today in 2011, in post apartheid South Africa, the need to bear witness is still as great. The need to tell the stories of the past, present and future through live theatre is ever-present.

Watching the news and seeing the incredible events taking place in North Africa and the Middle East, one wonders how their playwrights and artists will remould and tell the stories of their times to their people and the world tomorrow. Because with the unleashing of liberty, freedom of speech, freedom to dissent and freedom of assembly, they will soon have the freedom to express themselves and in so doing – they will bear witness to the momentous events taking place in a way only theatre can.

The hard facts of their struggles today will be distilled by their playwrights into their nation’s cultural heritage. I have no doubt that the new season of liberty will inspire in North Africa and the Middle East a cultural Renaissance in which theatre will take its place as one of the best performance tools in a people’s cultural arsenal.

Equally I have no doubt that in their plays they will speak of their agonies and triumphs, about what it meant and what it felt like to be oppressed. With the use of drama, song, satire, laughter and tears, they will take their audiences on journeys that display the best and worst aspects of the human condition. I’m sure you will support me when I say we wish them freedom and we wish them theatre.

In South Africa we are fortunate indeed to have had in the past, the present and in the future, playwrights, producers, directors and performers who in succeeding generations have staged works of national and international repute and acclamation.

As theatre practitioners you are the interpreters of our times, our mass cultures and our most intimate moments. You give us character. You provoke, ridicule, challenge, educate and inspire. You create introspection and deep social observation. You are creators of social text in a way television can never be! And in your testimony, as you bear witness to our times with your individual ingenuity, you define us and our era.

The Naledi’s, Ladies and Gentlemen exists to salute you and recommend your work to public inspection and perusal - to promote theatre as popular entertainment and to promote the social practice of theatre going itself so that more South Africans will understand the emotional fulfilment one experiences as one leaves the theatre, or the lure of live entertainment.

How a great play can provide us with such psychological and physical pleasure and become part of our personal culture and identity.

How Theatre is both social activity for the audience and yet a precious art that lives beyond the run of the play and beyond production and consumption, to take its place in the annals of human endeavour.
Our goal as the Naledi’s is therefore to increase the number and variety of bums on theatre seats by drawing the nation’s attention to the diamonds of our theatre industry – our shining stars. This is made possible because of the power of your prose, the passion of your performances, the wonderful and often hilarious expression of your minds, bodies and souls.

We wish as the Naledi’s Ladies and Gentlemen, to call on both government and the private sector to subsidize, fund and cherish this vital national asset as an essential part of South Africa’s unique cultural legacy and heritage.

Subsidy in theatre is the organic fertilizer essential to its growth since the dawn of film and television. It is only through subsidy that developmental theatre, community theatre and rural theatre can blossom. It is through subsidy and enlightened private sector funding that we will discover across the length and breadth of our country the jewels, the precious stones that will light up the stages of tomorrow.

Master of Ceremonies, Ladies and Gentlemen, if we want the South African Theatre Industry to honour its past, sustain its present and nurture the theatre practitioners of the future, if we want it to be a truly united instrument of our national culture we must as a nation celebrate, support, subsidize and promote South African Theatre as never before, so that it may continue to give testimony – So that you, our theatre practitioners, the flowers of our nation, may continue to bear witness!

Have a very good evening and Welcome to the Naledi’s!
Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen. On behalf of the board members of the Naledi’s, our executive director and our sponsors – Welcome to the 8th annual Naledi Theatre Awards.

Master of ceremonies, Ladies and Gentlemen I believe that the Naledi’s board members would wish me to say at the outset that the Naledi’s continue to exist in large measure because of the tireless efforts, tenacity and exuberant determination of Dawn Lindberg and Des Lindberg. May we by means of encouragement give them both a round of applause and our heartfelt thanks.

I would like to welcome all present here tonight in particular our nominees who, in each category have over the last year exhibited creative excellence as practitioners of South African theatre in all fields.

From playwrights, producers, directors, choreographers, actors and actresses, to set designers, costume designers as well as lighting and sound designers – congratulations and welcome. We gather here tonight to celebrate your collective and collaborative ingenuity as you continue to enrich our lives and nations culture.

I would also like to welcome our judges, who have attended, assessed and adjudicated so many productions during 2010. They are all lovers of theatre and their informed, unbiased perspective is essential in the Naledi’s desire to highlight and reward those productions and people who make us proud of South African Theatre and proud to be South African.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Athol Fugard in referring to a play called Still Life, written by Emily Mann and produced at the Market in 1983 by the late gentle giant of South African Theatre Barney Simon relays how Barney spoke to him about the play and used the word TESTIMONY several times.
Athol made him check its dictionary definition: It means TO BEAR WITNESS. Athol described the phrase “TO BEAR WITNESS” as “A perfect definition of the challenge South African theatre faces at this moment in our country’s history.”

Barney was right, Athol was right, they did not mean that South African theatre should bear witness to our times as a cold reportage of the facts; rather what Barney and Athol were insinuating is that theatre’s role in society is not to tell us merely what is happening or has happened, the news and newspapers do that well enough. They were saying that the theatres role is to tell us how it felt and what it meant to be ordinary people in extraordinary times. That was in 1983, today in 2011, in post apartheid South Africa, the need to bear witness is still as great. The need to tell the stories of the past, present and future through live theatre is ever-present.

Watching the news and seeing the incredible events taking place in North Africa and the Middle East, one wonders how their playwrights and artists will remould and tell the stories of their times to their people and the world tomorrow. Because with the unleashing of liberty, freedom of speech, freedom to dissent and freedom of assembly, they will soon have the freedom to express themselves and in so doing – they will bear witness to the momentous events taking place in a way only theatre can.

The hard facts of their struggles today will be distilled by their playwrights into their nation’s cultural heritage. I have no doubt that the new season of liberty will inspire in North Africa and the Middle East a cultural Renaissance in which theatre will take its place as one of the best performance tools in a people’s cultural arsenal.

Equally I have no doubt that in their plays they will speak of their agonies and triumphs, about what it meant and what it felt like to be oppressed. With the use of drama, song, satire, laughter and tears, they will take their audiences on journeys that display the best and worst aspects of the human condition. I’m sure you will support me when I say we wish them freedom and we wish them theatre.

In South Africa we are fortunate indeed to have had in the past, the present and in the future, playwrights, producers, directors and performers who in succeeding generations have staged works of national and international repute and acclamation.

As theatre practitioners you are the interpreters of our times, our mass cultures and our most intimate moments. You give us character. You provoke, ridicule, challenge, educate and inspire. You create introspection and deep social observation. You are creators of social text in a way television can never be! And in your testimony, as you bear witness to our times with your individual ingenuity, you define us and our era.

The Naledi’s, Ladies and Gentlemen exists to salute you and recommend your work to public inspection and perusal - to promote theatre as popular entertainment and to promote the social practice of theatre going itself so that more South Africans will understand the emotional fulfilment one experiences as one leaves the theatre, or the lure of live entertainment.

How a great play can provide us with such psychological and physical pleasure and become part of our personal culture and identity.

How Theatre is both social activity for the audience and yet a precious art that lives beyond the run of the play and beyond production and consumption, to take its place in the annals of human endeavour.
Our goal as the Naledi’s is therefore to increase the number and variety of bums on theatre seats by drawing the nation’s attention to the diamonds of our theatre industry – our shining stars. This is made possible because of the power of your prose, the passion of your performances, the wonderful and often hilarious expression of your minds, bodies and souls.

We wish as the Naledi’s Ladies and Gentlemen, to call on both government and the private sector to subsidize, fund and cherish this vital national asset as an essential part of South Africa’s unique cultural legacy and heritage.

Subsidy in theatre is the organic fertilizer essential to its growth since the dawn of film and television. It is only through subsidy that developmental theatre, community theatre and rural theatre can blossom. It is through subsidy and enlightened private sector funding that we will discover across the length and breadth of our country the jewels, the precious stones that will light up the stages of tomorrow.

Master of Ceremonies, Ladies and Gentlemen, if we want the South African Theatre Industry to honour its past, sustain its present and nurture the theatre practitioners of the future, if we want it to be a truly united instrument of our national culture we must as a nation celebrate, support, subsidize and promote South African Theatre as never before, so that it may continue to give testimony – So that you, our theatre practitioners, the flowers of our nation, may continue to bear witness!

Have a very good evening and Welcome to the Naledi’s!
.

The Naledi Awards: Winners of a Star-Studded Ceremony!

2011-03-08T07:09:00.000-08:00

The first ever Naledi Awards evening that really was stylish, slick and absolutely entertaining! Dawn Lindbergh herself deserves a Naledi Award for the .of the televised production took place at the gracious Lyric Theatre at Gold Reef City last night. The foyer was awash with excitement and glamour as theatre industry luminaries showed up in their numbers, dressed to the nines – some no doubt at sixes and sevens with others - to either receive accolades or show support to those who were in the awards limelight.

The Naledi’s have had their share of drama and controversy in the past, and this year’s event went off without a hitch or anyone throwing their toys, and, no doubt was the most spectacular and enthusiastic to date. The MC, Nik Rabinowitz, with his cutting and intelligent wit kept the show rolling along and the audience happy. Nic is undoubtedly one of our most talented comedians with an astounding sharpness of both eye and tongue. The presenters roster glittered with slick end really well-dressed celebrities. The Naledi Chairman, Dali Tambo (I am publishing hi welcoming speech as a separate item), and Executive Director, Dawn Lindberg, also lent their presence to the proceedings. The designer label, Stoned Cherry, gave Dawn quite an amazing ethnic look – they must have been stoned while designing this outfit because “The Lindbergh” looked positively supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

There was one really sour moment to the end of the evening when one of the presenters, comedian David Kibuuka, (he started off so brilliantly) remarked that one of the founding sponsors of the awards and, the sponsor of three of the top categories, probably funded the event in the hope of getting some “pussy” after the curtain came down. Well, Mr. Kibuuka, for your information – and over and above the fact the it is doubtful if this benefactor would be interested in “pussy” - Mr. Christopher Seabrooke is one of South Africa’s most respected businessmen and has poured millions of rand into the “quiet “ sponsorship of the performing arts over many years. And, the theatre is not even his real business - it is simply a kind of hobby. And furthermore, arsehole, the reason why you don’t know anything about this amazingly urbane man is exactly because he never seeks any publicity for his altruistic deeds.

So, next time, Funny David, when you are back in your cage, do your homework a bit more astutely. Why not rather get your laugh by mentioning that despite Lebo M’s big outburst two years ago there still is no category carrying his name and sponsorship for one of the development categories or another previously disadvantaged genre of South African theatre? No, instead of putting his money where his mouth so widely opened at the time, he either stayed at home last night or, more probably, was somewhere in the world negotiating the rights to another foreign money-spinning musical.

Kibuuka apart, the presenters were really good and top-drawer entertainment was provided by the multi-Grammy Award-winning Soweto Gospel Choir, the Bala Brothers, PJ Powers, Alan Committie and the quartet Complete (from Songs of Migration). Angela Killian, who’s currently playing the title role in Evita at the Pieter Toerien Theatre, almost brought the house down with her rendition of that musical’s show-stopping number, “Don’t Cry for Me, Angentina”. The same roar of approval met Abba’s “Dancing Queen” performed by Mamma Mia’s Gina Schmukler, Kate Normington and Ilse Klink. The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to “SA’s most famous white woman”, Evita Bezuidenhout, for her witty, refreshing and fearless observations of the social fabric of our country over the past 30 years, whilst the Executive Director’s Award was similarly given for three decades of service - to Frans Swart of Lefra Productions, for their promotion of Afrikaans Theatre. Mr. Swart made significant remarks about the Afrikaans media moguls and their neglect of Afrikaans culture. I will publish his acceptance speech separately.

Thanks to funding from the Lottery Distribution Board (for the first time this year), as well as the participation of regular corporate sponsors, Wharfedale Pro, Matrix Sound, Distell, and Chauvet Lighting, and individual sponsors, Christopher Seabrooke and Percy Tucker, this has been the most lavish and entertaining Naledi Awards evening to date.

The Naledi judges, who comprise theatre and television personalities, arts journalists, and drama teachers and academics, have spent weeks discussing and debating the various nominees, and - as usual - it could not have been the easiest task to come up with one winner in each category. But come up with winners they did, and last night was the turn of the victors to claim their laurels and bask in the fanfare. Last year I criticized the fact that in some categories nominations were made while judges did not bother to attend see competing productions. From where I sat last night I believe that my criticism was heard and that the judging process has been much improved.

I would like to point out that the design of the programmes were absolutely beautiful. It reflected our “South Africanness” and was clean and easy to follow. It is a pity that this crisp new look did not transfer to the audiovisual that linked the evening – it looked “messy” and a number of late cues could easily have spoilt an otherwise an almost flawless evening.

Just as an aside, I would like to thank Bridget van Oerle for her superb and very professional approach to handling the media and the general public relations of this event.. If Dawn Lindbergh was easy to work with she would not have been able to hold the Naledi’s together for all these years – yet, she and Bridget seem to maintain a good working understanding and Bridget brings to the Naledi Awards a charming, flexible, good-natured and patient face. Her very able assistant, Christabel Zulu, not only pulls rabbits out of hats, she also gives the best hugs in town!

The Winners:

BEST PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL (The Joan Brickhill Award) – Sponsored by Christopher Seabrooke

Evita - a Pieter Toerien production directed by Paul Warwick Griffin.

BEST PRODUCTION OF A PLAY

Death of a Colonialist, produced by The Market Theatre, written by Greg Latter and directed by Craig Freimond.

BEST NEW SOUTH AFRICAN PLAY OR MUSICAL PRODUCED

The Girl in the Yellow Dress, produced by The Market Theatre (Johannesburg), Live Theatre (Newcastle) and The Citizen's Theatre (Glasglow). Directed by Malcolm Purkey and written by Craig Higginson.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEAD ROLE (PLAY)

Jamie Barlett, for his portrayal of the veteran teacher Harold Smith in Death of a Colonialist.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEAD ROLE (PLAY)-

Marianne Oldham, as the English coach in The Girl in the Yellow Dress.

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (MALE)
Sponsored by Christopher Seabrooke

James Borthwick, for his portrayal of Juan Peron in Evita.

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (FEMALE)
Sponsored by Christopher Seabrooke

Angela Kilian, for the title role in Evita.

BEST CUTTING-EDGE PRODUCTION

Butcher Brothers - Presented by The Market Theatre, originally produced by Dark Laugh and supported by Wits 969 2010 and a part of Arts Alive 2010. Directed by Sylvaine Strike.

BEST DIRECTOR OF A PLAY OR MUSICAL
Sponsored by Percy Tucker

Craig Freimond - for Death of a Colonialist.

BEST COMEDY PERFORMANCE (PLAY, MUSICAL OR REVUE)

Matthew Ribnick - for his performance in Geraldine Naidoo's Monkey Nuts.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE/CAMEO

Nat Ramabulana - for his contribution to Master Harold and the Boys.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE/CAMEO

Kate Normington - for her contribution to Mamma Mia!

BEST MUSICAL DIRECTOR/SCORE/ARRANGEMENT
Sponsored by Matrix Sound

Charl-Johan Lingenfelder and Louis Zurnamer (MD) - for Evita.

BEST ORIGINAL CHOREOGRAPHY

David Gouldie - for Evita.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A NEWCOMER / BREAKTHROUGH
The Brett Goldin Award

Khaya Maseko - for his contribution to African Tapestries.

BEST PRODUCTION OF A PLAY OR MUSICAL FOR CHILDREN

Beautiful Creatures - Produced by Ed Jordan and Alan Glass, in association with Showtime Management. Directed by Paul Warwick Griffin.

BEST THEATRE LIGHTING DESIGN
Sponsored by Chauvet

Jannie Swanepoel and Gareth Hewitt Williams - for Evita.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Penny Simpson - for Evita.

BEST THEATRE SET DESIGN

Johan Engels - for The Boys in the Photograph.

BEST THEATRE SOUND DESIGN
Sponsored by Wharfedale Pro

Freddy Malesa - for Songs of Migration.

BEST COMMUNITY THEATRE PRODUCTION

The award was shared between:

Awaiting Trial
by Movers Theatre Production; directed by Velaphi Mthimkhulu.

and

We Can, This is our Home
presented by SANCTA One Act Festival in Mpumalanga; directed by Mandla Sibaya.

The first ever Naledi Awards evening that really was stylish, slick and absolutely entertaining! Dawn Lindbergh herself deserves a Naledi Award for the .of the televised production took place at the gracious Lyric Theatre at Gold Reef City last night. The foyer was awash with excitement and glamour as theatre industry luminaries showed up in their numbers, dressed to the nines – some no doubt at sixes and sevens with others - to either receive accolades or show support to those who were in the awards limelight.

The Naledi’s have had their share of drama and controversy in the past, and this year’s event went off without a hitch or anyone throwing their toys, and, no doubt was the most spectacular and enthusiastic to date. The MC, Nik Rabinowitz, with his cutting and intelligent wit kept the show rolling along and the audience happy. Nic is undoubtedly one of our most talented comedians with an astounding sharpness of both eye and tongue. The presenters roster glittered with slick end really well-dressed celebrities. The Naledi Chairman, Dali Tambo (I am publishing hi welcoming speech as a separate item), and Executive Director, Dawn Lindberg, also lent their presence to the proceedings. The designer label, Stoned Cherry, gave Dawn quite an amazing ethnic look – they must have been stoned while designing this outfit because “The Lindbergh” looked positively supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

There was one really sour moment to the end of the evening when one of the presenters, comedian David Kibuuka, (he started off so brilliantly) remarked that one of the founding sponsors of the awards and, the sponsor of three of the top categories, probably funded the event in the hope of getting some “pussy” after the curtain came down. Well, Mr. Kibuuka, for your information – and over and above the fact the it is doubtful if this benefactor would be interested in “pussy” - Mr. Christopher Seabrooke is one of South Africa’s most respected businessmen and has poured millions of rand into the “quiet “ sponsorship of the performing arts over many years. And, the theatre is not even his real business - it is simply a kind of hobby. And furthermore, arsehole, the reason why you don’t know anything about this amazingly urbane man is exactly because he never seeks any publicity for his altruistic deeds.

So, next time, Funny David, when you are back in your cage, do your homework a bit more astutely. Why not rather get your laugh by mentioning that despite Lebo M’s big outburst two years ago there still is no category carrying his name and sponsorship for one of the development categories or another previously disadvantaged genre of South African theatre? No, instead of putting his money where his mouth so widely opened at the time, he either stayed at home last night or, more probably, was somewhere in the world negotiating the rights to another foreign money-spinning musical.

Kibuuka apart, the presenters were really good and top-drawer entertainment was provided by the multi-Grammy Award-winning Soweto Gospel Choir, the Bala Brothers, PJ Powers, Alan Committie and the quartet Complete (from Songs of Migration). Angela Killian, who’s currently playing the title role in Evita at the Pieter Toerien Theatre, almost brought the house down with her rendition of that musical’s show-stopping number, “Don’t Cry for Me, Angentina”. The same roar of approval met Abba’s “Dancing Queen” performed by Mamma Mia’s Gina Schmukler, Kate Normington and Ilse Klink.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to “SA’s most famous white woman”, Evita Bezuidenhout, for her witty, refreshing and fearless observations of the social fabric of our country over the past 30 years, whilst the Executive Director’s Award was similarly given for three decades of service - to Frans Swart of Lefra Productions, for their promotion of Afrikaans Theatre. Mr. Swart made significant remarks about the Afrikaans media moguls and their neglect of Afrikaans culture. I will publish his acceptance speech separately.

Thanks to funding from the Lottery Distribution Board (for the first time this year), as well as the participation of regular corporate sponsors, Wharfedale Pro, Matrix Sound, Distell, and Chauvet Lighting, and individual sponsors, Christopher Seabrooke and Percy Tucker, this has been the most lavish and entertaining Naledi Awards evening to date.

The Naledi judges, who comprise theatre and television personalities, arts journalists, and drama teachers and academics, have spent weeks discussing and debating the various nominees, and - as usual - it could not have been the easiest task to come up with one winner in each category. But come up with winners they did, and last night was the turn of the victors to claim their laurels and bask in the fanfare. Last year I criticized the fact that in some categories nominations were made while judges did not bother to attend see competing productions. From where I sat last night I believe that my criticism was heard and that the judging process has been much improved.

I would like to point out that the design of the programmes were absolutely beautiful. It reflected our “South Africanness” and was clean and easy to follow. It is a pity that this crisp new look did not transfer to the audiovisual that linked the evening – it looked “messy” and a number of late cues could easily have spoilt an otherwise an almost flawless evening.

Just as an aside, I would like to thank Bridget van Oerle for her superb and very professional approach to handling the media and the general public relations of this event.. If Dawn Lindbergh was easy to work with she would not have been able to hold the Naledi’s together for all these years – yet, she and Bridget seem to maintain a good working understanding and Bridget brings to the Naledi Awards a charming, flexible, good-natured and patient face. Her very able assistant, Christabel Zulu, not only pulls rabbits out of hats, she also gives the best hugs in town!

The Winners:

BEST PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL (The Joan Brickhill Award) – Sponsored by Christopher Seabrooke

Evita - a Pieter Toerien production directed by Paul Warwick Griffin.

BEST PRODUCTION OF A PLAY

Death of a Colonialist, produced by The Market Theatre, written by Greg Latter and directed by Craig Freimond.

BEST NEW SOUTH AFRICAN PLAY OR MUSICAL PRODUCED

The Girl in the Yellow Dress, produced by The Market Theatre (Johannesburg), Live Theatre (Newcastle) and The Citizen's Theatre (Glasglow). Directed by Malcolm Purkey and written by Craig Higginson.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEAD ROLE (PLAY)

Jamie Barlett, for his portrayal of the veteran teacher Harold Smith in Death of a Colonialist.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEAD ROLE (PLAY)-

Marianne Oldham, as the English coach in The Girl in the Yellow Dress.

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (MALE)
Sponsored by Christopher Seabrooke

James Borthwick, for his portrayal of Juan Peron in Evita.

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (FEMALE)
Sponsored by Christopher Seabrooke

Angela Kilian, for the title role in Evita.

BEST CUTTING-EDGE PRODUCTION

Butcher Brothers - Presented by The Market Theatre, originally produced by Dark Laugh and supported by Wits 969 2010 and a part of Arts Alive 2010. Directed by Sylvaine Strike.

BEST DIRECTOR OF A PLAY OR MUSICAL
Sponsored by Percy Tucker

Craig Freimond - for Death of a Colonialist.

BEST COMEDY PERFORMANCE (PLAY, MUSICAL OR REVUE)

Matthew Ribnick - for his performance in Geraldine Naidoo's Monkey Nuts.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE/CAMEO

Nat Ramabulana - for his contribution to Master Harold and the Boys.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE/CAMEO

Kate Normington - for her contribution to Mamma Mia!

BEST MUSICAL DIRECTOR/SCORE/ARRANGEMENT
Sponsored by Matrix Sound

Charl-Johan Lingenfelder and Louis Zurnamer (MD) - for Evita.

BEST ORIGINAL CHOREOGRAPHY

David Gouldie - for Evita.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A NEWCOMER / BREAKTHROUGH
The Brett Goldin Award

Khaya Maseko - for his contribution to African Tapestries.

BEST PRODUCTION OF A PLAY OR MUSICAL FOR CHILDREN

Beautiful Creatures - Produced by Ed Jordan and Alan Glass, in association with Showtime Management. Directed by Paul Warwick Griffin.

BEST THEATRE LIGHTING DESIGN
Sponsored by Chauvet

Jannie Swanepoel and Gareth Hewitt Williams - for Evita.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Penny Simpson - for Evita.

BEST THEATRE SET DESIGN

Johan Engels - for The Boys in the Photograph.

BEST THEATRE SOUND DESIGN
Sponsored by Wharfedale Pro

Freddy Malesa - for Songs of Migration.

BEST COMMUNITY THEATRE PRODUCTION

The award was shared between:

Awaiting Trial
by Movers Theatre Production; directed by Velaphi Mthimkhulu.

and

We Can, This is our Home
presented by SANCTA One Act Festival in Mpumalanga; directed by Mandla Sibaya.

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ANDRÉ RIEU: LIVE IN SOUTH AFRICA

2011-03-07T07:07:00.000-08:00

JAMES BHEMGEE: SOUTH AFRICAN TENOR TO SWEEP AUDIENCES OFF THEIR FEET
ADDITIONAL TICKETS NOW ON SALE. Tenor and former street sweeper, James Bhemgee, has been chosen to perform with André Rieu during his upcoming SA Tour. Bhemgee, the winner of a popular local television talent show, caught the world’s attention with his incredible voice and rags to riches story, as well as the ear of the biggest touring classical artist in the world, André Rieu.

A true South African success story, James Bhemgee will have the opportunity to perform on stage with some of the best classical musicians in the world during André Rieu’s nationwide Tour this March.

Bhemgee who hails from Mitchell’s Plain in Cape Town, was invited to Maastricht to rehearse with André Rieu and his Johann Strauss Orchestra and had this to say upon his return: “I am so honoured to have been chosen by André to perform with him and his orchestra. We had such a lovely time rehearsing in Holland and all I can say is that the South African audiences will be blown away by the concerts. All of this is truly a dream come true for me!”

Having topped the tour rankings with his sold out SA Tour last year, the Dutch violinist and conductor’s magnificent grand-scale production will once again feature his Johann Strauss Orchestra, choir and soloists, as well as SA’s nightingale, Kimmy Skota, who stole the hearts of everyone during her incredible performances last year.

With multi-platinum status, André Rieu has over 30 million albums globally, and has broken all classical concert records, packing stadiums with over 700,000 adoring fans each year. He has sold over 300,000 DVD’s in South Africa alone, earning him a special place in South Africans hearts and minds and truly being one of contemporary musical geniuses.

A musical phenomenon, André Rieu is unlike anything else in the entertainment world. His audience members are known to jump to their feet and dance in the aisles at his unparalleled music spectaculars. Now with added South African flavour, this is a concert that is definitely not to be missed.

Artists Seats has just been released so additional tickets are now available to accommodate the overwhelming response from fans.

Book now at Computicket (www.computicket.com or 083 915 8000) to avoid disappointment.
Tickets range from R400 – R1,050.

ANDRÉ RIEU’S SOUTH AFRICA 2011 TOUR DATES:

Grand Arena, Grand West Cape Town:
Fri, 11 March 2011 at 8pm
Sat, 12 March 2011 at 8pm
Sun, 13 March 2011 at 6pm

Superbowl, Sun City:
Friday, 18 March 2011 at 8h30pm
Saturday, 19 March 2011 at 7pm
Sunday, 20 March 2011 at 7pm

ICC, Durban:
Wednesday, 23 March 2011 at 8pm

Olde 'n New Music Recitals: DUO ZAPPA MAINOLFI

2011-03-04T08:08:00.000-08:00

FROM ITALY, A SPECIAL RECITAL SUNDAY 6TH MARCH: THE DUO ZAPPA MAINOLFI

If you haven't booked yet don't delay. Tickets have been flying! Saul Bamberger of Olde ‘n New will be hosting a fantastic recital on Sunday 6th of March. This is going to be very special! So much so that I couldn't pass-up the opportunity.

Mattia Zappa (Cello) and Massimiliano Mainolfi ( Piano) of Italy will be performing.

They will be performing works by Sibelius, a beautiful Brahms Sonata for Cello and Piano, an Intermezzo by Grieg and Le Grand Tango by Piazzola.

The Duo Zappa Mainolfi, who have appeared several times at Carnegie Hall as well as other prestigious international venues, will be performing at Olde'n'New as part of their South African tour. Massi and Matti have played at Olde'n'New before to huge acclaim. Their repertoire is astoundingly varied, vast and accomplished . They also involve themselves in enrichment projects in South Africa and are met with affection by all who know them.

They are two of my most treasured musicians and friends and a perfect choice as the last musicians to play at '' the ol' place"

Their website address is www.duozappamainolfi.com

You simply have to be there!!!!

Here are the details:
DATE: Sunday 6th March.
TIME: 3:30 for 4:00 pm
PRICE: R120 pp. Including refreshments.
VENUE: Olde'n'New,Cnr Stanley (Empire Rd Extension) and Cedar Avenues, Aucklandpark.
R.S.V.P by return of email to saulb@polka.co.za For enquiries call 083 414 0041
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NIGHT DRIVE World Premiere sets scene for SA movie release.

2011-03-04T07:21:00.000-08:00

The World Premiere event of local slasher film, NIGHT DRIVE, held on Thursday 3rd February, had over 600 of the industry’s elite executives, A-list celebrities and cast members abuzz and has become one of the most talked about events of 2011 thus far, ahead of the movie's release this Friday, 4th March 2011.

Guests met at Jo’burg’s hottest nightclub Latinova in Rosebank, they sipped on cocktails while their anticipation grew, knowing any minute they would be whisked away to a secret screening location of the film. Excitement escalated as specially branded Night Drive double-decker busses pulled up, courtesy of the Gauteng Film Commission, and escorted by the metro police the guests traveled like true VIPs to The Zone in Rosebank, where they where greeted with cosmopolitan cocktails created by The Zone’s Liquid Chefs. This set the perfect tone for the uniqueness of Night Drive, a south African film with international distribution, its world wide premiere executed on home soil as unique as the film itself.

Featuring an all-star cast and set against the backdrop of a bushveld game reserve, the new South African slasher film, Night Drive, will open on 4 March.

Released by independent distributor Indigenous Film Distribution, Night Drive was written and directed by AFDA graduate and award-winning short film director, Justin Head. He says: “Night Drive had its genesis when The Film Factory was toying with the idea of a horror film set in the bush, an environment for which I have a great love. Coupled with that, the opportunity to work with such a talented cast and crew made the film a wonderful project.”

The film stars Christopher Beasley, known to South African audiences as bad boy Len Cooper in the popular soap Isidingo, for which he has received three best actor nominations. He is also an accomplished stage actor and stuntman. Corine du Toit starred in Egoli and Getroud Met Rugby. She has also appeared in many commercials, both locally and internationally. Greg Melvill-Smith, one of the country’s most respected actors, has starred in many theatre productions, major television series, as well as numerous feature films, including The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Mr Bones, Drum, The Bang Bang Club, and the international hit, District 9. Yule Masiteng has appeared in drama series Mzansi, and stars as the sly conman Jomo Zungu in Scandal!. He also has several international television series and films to his credit. Brandon Auret is best known for his role as Dup (Leon du Plessis in Isidingo: the Need), but has since moved on into film and has starred in District 9, The Race-ist and Winnie. He has also starred in several local musical productions and is well known in theatre world.

Night Drive is a gritty, nail-biting thriller-slasher set in the unforgiving South African bush. While out on a night safari an eclectic mix of tourists are left stranded when their vehicle breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Local folklore speaks of the Hyena Man, a ruthless criminal mastermind notorious for heading up a well-armed, well-trained group of poachers on the hunt for not only animal’s and animal body parts but also for human being’s, dead or alive! As a series of terrifying events unfold, they realize wild animals are the least of their worries, folk lore becomes reality and their deepest fears unfold as the fight for survival begins.

Night Drive releases around the country on Friday 4th March in the following cinemas:

Gauteng
MonteCasino, Fourways
Festival Mall, Kempton Park
The Zone, Rosebank
Maponya Mall, Soweto
Key West, Krugersdorp
Zambezi Mall, Pretoria
Sterland, Pretoria

Kwa-Zulu Natal
Pavillion, Durban

Western Cape
Canal Walk, Cape Town
Parow, Cape Town

In celebration of Night Drive’s release, the celebrity cast will be attending various screenings of the movie and doing autograph signings: Please keep up to date by visiting the Night Drive facebook page on http://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10150096488336651&id=669536650#!/pages/Nightdrive/65747453472

Friday, 4 March
12h30 - 13h30 Soweto – Soweto Campus Shavathon
Leroy Gopal (Augustino)

Friday, 4 March
18h00 – 19h30 The Zone @ Rosebank
Christopher Beasley (Sean Darwin)
Kenneth Fok (Chang)
Tema Sebopedi (The Refugee)

Saturday, 5 March
12pm – 1pm Westgate Shavathon
Greg Melvill-Smith (Jack Darwin)
Tema Sebopedi (The Refugee)

Saturday 5 March
12h30 – 13h30 Clearwater Mall Shavathon
Brandon Auret (Ian)
Jennifer Steyn (Cynthia Darwin)

Sunday 6 March
15h00 – 16h00 MonteCasino Nu Metro Foyer
Greg Melvill-Smith (Jack Darwin)
Brandon Auret (Ian)
Corine Du Toit (Karen)
Antonio David Lyons (Denzel)

Tuesday, 8 March
18h00 – 19h00 Maponya Mall, Soweto
Antonio David Lyons (Denzel)

The Premiere was made possible thanks to the generous sponsorship of : The Zone, Liquid Chefs, Latinova and Itec Central.

For more information visit the official NIGHT DRIVE website at: http://www.nightdrivemovie.com
The NIGHT DRIVE Trailer can be viewed at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipNEdQfOPuk
To whet your appetite, here are some behind the scenes interviews to enjoy:
Behind the Scenes part 1 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUT0lnWxyUA
Behind the Scenes part 2 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8zF9GDriyE&feature=related

NIGHT DRIVE : Some things are worse than dying.... Terror has a new destination

Drag Cabaret Extra-Ordinaire: The Fantabulous Cooky Cups!

2011-03-04T07:03:00.000-08:00

A fantastic night filled with laughter and suspense is being presented by Coffee @ Capital, a quaint little restaurant and coffee house in Capital Park, Pretoria’s own little art hub. On stage will be the well known Artists of Drag, the Cooky Cups. Known for their “tongue in cheek” performances they have performed all over South Africa.

Holding their own on stage, or opening for the likes of Karin Zoid, they will entertain you with their witty renditions of old favourites. This of course will al be done in the style of Drag Performing. Joining forces with the duo will be the well known ruler of gossip, Eagan Williams.

Coffee @ Capital is decorated in a style reminiscent of the past, very relaxing to the soul. Get away from the mad rush and come and enjoy a relaxing night, easing you slowly into the weekend.

The combination of the Venue, the Drag Artists, and the friendly personal promises to deliver a night to remember.

Revisiting some old favourites, as requested, the Cookies will entertain the trusty followers, and introduce their magic and wit to some new patrons as well on the night. Known as Dame Crystal Chandelier and Mistress Tilly Tittelation the duo will surely make the eyebrows lift and the laughing muscles work overtime.

Show takes place on Friday the 11th March 2011 at Coffee@Capital in Pretoria.
196 Venter Street, Capital Park

Show starts at 20:00 and includes a light dinner and dessert.
R150 pp, booking essential as there is limited space available.
Cash bar.
Join us early, when the night is but a baby!

PHOTOS: The Cooky Cups

Contact : Organizers
: Jaco Strydom 082 564 4243 E-mail Strydoj2@telkom.co.za
: Louis du Plessis 083 593 6238 E-mail 0837086498@mtnloaded.co.za
: Event Venue: Coffee @ Capital
BOOKINGS:
Emmarentia 012 325 7818

A fantastic night filled with laughter and suspense is being presented by Coffee @ Capital, a quaint little restaurant and coffee house in Capital Park, Pretoria’s own little art hub. On stage will be the well known Artists of Drag, the Cooky Cups. Known for their “tongue in cheek” performances they have performed all over South Africa.

Holding their own on stage, or opening for the likes of Karin Zoid, they will entertain you with their witty renditions of old favourites. This of course will al be done in the style of Drag Performing. Joining forces with the duo will be the well known ruler of gossip, Eagan Williams.

Coffee @ Capital is decorated in a style reminiscent of the past, very relaxing to the soul. Get away from the mad rush and come and enjoy a relaxing night, easing you slowly into the weekend.

The combination of the Venue, the Drag Artists, and the friendly personal promises to deliver a night to remember.

Revisiting some old favourites, as requested, the Cookies will entertain the trusty followers, and introduce their magic and wit to some new patrons as well on the night. Known as Dame Crystal Chandelier and Mistress Tilly Tittelation the duo will surely make the eyebrows lift and the laughing muscles work overtime.

Show takes place on Friday the 11th March 2011 at Coffee@Capital in Pretoria.
196 Venter Street, Capital Park

Show starts at 20:00 and includes a light dinner and dessert.
R150 pp, booking essential as there is limited space available.
Cash bar.
Join us early, when the night is but a baby!

PHOTOS: The Cooky Cups

Contact : Organizers
: Jaco Strydom 082 564 4243 E-mail Strydoj2@telkom.co.za
: Louis du Plessis 083 593 6238 E-mail 0837086498@mtnloaded.co.za
: Event Venue: Coffee @ Capital
BOOKINGS:
Emmarentia 012 325 7818

.

Christina Nassif - Carmen - Opera Africa

2011-02-27T09:11:00.001-08:00

Globally acclaimed not only for her “powerful and expressive voice” but for her “electric stage presence” (The Washington Post on her Vitellia with Washington National Opera), Cristina Nassif is establishing herself as one of the finest singing actresses on the operatic stage. Her 2009/2010 engagements include her international debut as Carmen at London’s Royal Albert Hall, Strauss’s Four Last Songs with the McLean Symphony, Countess Almaviva with Opera Delaware, soloist in Opera New Jersey’s Concerts in the Park Series, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Buffalo Philharmonic and Virginia Symphony, LyricFest’s Biography in Music – Shakespeare, Donna Elvira with the Virginia Opera, a solo program of operatic arias with the Al Bustan Festival in Beirut, Lebanon as well as a revival of Carmen at London’s O2 Arena. She is currently performing Donna Elvira with Opera North.

Ms. Nassif’s operatic repertoire also includes Violetta, Nedda, Musetta, Rosina, Alice Ford, Pamina, Despina and Tatiana, among others, with audiences and critics alike praising her performances with the Washington National Opera, London Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Shanghai Opera Orchestra, Shenzhen Symphony, Virginia Opera, Shreveport Opera, Piedmont Opera, Opera Tampa, Opera Delaware, Virginia Symphony, West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Pan-American Symphony Orchestra, Wichita Grand Opera, Central City Opera, and Opera Theater of Pittsburgh.

Equally at home on the concert stage, Ms. Nassif has been hailed for the distinct quality of her voice, her charismatic stage presence and her innate ability to sincerely communicate music and text. In addition to a Chinese Concert tour, Ms. Nassif has performed at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Zankel Hall, the Concert Hall, Terrace Theater and Millenium Stage of The Kennedy Center, the Austrian Embassy (as part of Washington, DC’s Embassy Series) and D.C.’s Lisner Auditorium, among other places. Among those selected from the Montserrat Caballé International Competition and Masterclasses, Ms. Nassif performed in the closing concert in the Sala Mozart del Auditorio de Zaragoza, Spain. Other concert highlights include Mahler’s Des Knaben Wunderhorn, Mendelssohn’s Elijah and Lobgesang, Duende!, an all Spanish solo recital sponsored by the International Poetry Forum in Pittsburgh, PA and most recently Pasión por la Zarzuela at Carnegie Hall, celebrating the beauty of Spain's musical tradition.

Of Spanish and Lebanese descent and the daughter of two musicians, Ms. Nassif began her vocal training with her mother, mezzo-soprano Cristina Herrera de Nassif, and the two have shared the concert stage with father/pianist, Dr. Thomas Nassif. She earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Maryland and an Artist Diploma from The Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia. While there, she began working with her current teacher, Bill Schuman.

Her competition credits include the Rosa Ponselle All Marylanders Competition’s Gold Medallion, the Marjorie Lawrence International Vocal Competition’s First Place Prize, the International Vocal Competition of Bilbao’s Critic’s Choice Award and the Gerda Lissner International Competition’s First Place Prize.

Taking opera from the stage to the people

2011-02-27T08:56:00.000-08:00

Shoppers at Soweto’s Maponya Mall were today treated to excerpts from Opera Africa’s forthcoming production Carmen, which features a stellar line-up of South African and international singing and artistic talent.

Carmen came to Soweto to give residents a small taste of what to expect from Bizet’s ever-popular opera with its gorgeous music and exquisite sets and costumes, to be staged at the South African State Theatre in Pretoria from 18 to 26 March and at the Joburg Theatre from 1 to 10 April.

American stars Cristina Nassif (who plays Carmen, the flirtatious gypsy who causes all the trouble) and Noah Stewart (who plays Don José, the dashing but naive young soldier who falls for her fatal charms) were on hand to chat to the crowds and sing selected arias from the opera. Joining them were international stage director James Marvel and conductor Tim Myers, who enthusiastically came on board to help take South African opera from the stage to the people.

South African talents Kelebogile Boikanyo, Rouel Beukes, Joey Masemola, Phenye Modiane and the Opera Africa Chorus also dazzled onlookers with their superb singing and obvious enjoyment at meeting and greeting existing and potential opera lovers from the broader Soweto community.

This mini-performance at Soweto’s premier shopping centre forms part of Opera Africa’s ongoing outreach and audience development programme, which aims to introduce new audiences to the magic of opera. Some of the opera company’s existing initiatives include offering affordable rates for schools, retirement homes and under-resourced communities; as well as the Opera Africa Studio which identifies aspiring young vocal talents and hones and refines their professional skills.

Set in the Spanish bullfighting hub of Seville in the 19th century, Carmen is a story of passion, betrayal and explosive sexual politics that remains one of the enduring favourites in the international repertoire. This lavish production – in French with English surtitles – will see a first-rate multi-national cast perform, accompanied by the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra.

Booking is open at Computicket. For more details, phone (011) 883 4189 or visit www.operaafrica.co.za.

JPO - 2nd & 3rd March, First Symphony Season 2011

2011-02-27T05:53:00.000-08:00

Wednesday 2 & Thursday 3 March

Bernhard Gueller conductor
RESPIGHI Antiche danze ed arie ( Ancient Airs and Dances ): Suite1
MOZART Piano Concerto, No.9, K.271, E-flat major (Jeunehomme)
BIZET Symphony No.1, C major
Natalia Lavrova piano

STRICTLY TAP DANCE FEVER

2011-02-27T05:28:00.000-08:00

Get ready to be dazzled! For the first time in South Africa and direct from their smash UK Tour, the adrenalin-driven STRICTLY TAP DANCE FEVER took to the stage exclusively at The Mandela at JoBurg Theatre from last week to March 6th 2011. The audience loved the production and danced in the aisles as the final curtain came down.

Brought to Johannesburg by Spirit Productions - the people that brought us two of Joburg Theatre’s highest-grossing and most popular shows of the past decade: SPIRIT OF THE DANCE and LE GRAND CIRQUE, - the internationally renowned cast in this tap dance sensation takes the audience on a whistle stop roller-coaster ride of the greatest tap dance moments in show business history.

South African ‘super-celebrity’ and African Tap and Modern Dance Champion for seven straight years, the very glamorous AMOR VITTONE also makes a nightly guest appearance – and, I must say, that however much I have loathed her performances and lack of class in the past, in this show she is brilliant! Good for you Amor and watch her dust Joost! She couldn’t be yours, she’s is way too big for you now!

Starting in the era when Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were the stars of the day, the show tap dances its way through history, thrilling and exciting audiences with the vibrant tap dance styles that entertained generations through the ages! Featuring fantastic musical classics mashed with modern day beat, these taps build with energy and spectacle. Acapella tap sounds can be heard as the show opens and - as the taps build - so does the energy and spectacle. Soon you discover there is so much more than tap to this show: swing, jive and sensational singers add to the cocktail of pure showbiz heaven.

Joining the cast of the show at the JoBurg Theatre is crowd favourite, SIMON SCHOFIED. This singer thrilled audiences as part of The Twelve Tenors in February 2010 and proved so popular with those who saw him perform, that he was invited to return to South Africa in May to record the main love theme for the popular local teen movie, BAKGAT! 2 which was released to great success in September.

Says Simon "I fell in love with South Africa and its people during my first visit to your wonderful country a year ago, and even then I planned to return as often as my schedule allowed. I'm thrilled to be able to join the cast of Strictly Tap Dance Fever so that I can once again experience the joy of performing for JoBurg Theatre audiences. It is great to re-connect with this enthusiastic audience again every night."

Joining Simon on stage to divide the vocals is the talented JON HAWKINS and impressive LARA DENNING.

To date, Amor Vittone, has released six albums; Wild Cherry Kisses (1998), Dance in Colours (2000), Young Forever (2002), amor (2005), Voluit (2006) and Glo Altyd Aan More (2009). The Voluit Afrikaans album enjoyed Gold Status in South Africa.

In 2007, Amor was nominated for a South African Music Award (SAMA) in the category ‘Best Afrikaans Pop Album’. She was nominated for People Magazine’s Crystal Award in the category ‘Hottest SA Artist’ in 2007, a Tempo Music Award in the category ‘Favourite SA Female Artist’, and Voluit Lewe was nominated as ‘Favourite Song of the Year’. In the Vonk Musiektoekennings in 2007, Amor was nominated as ‘Best Female Artist.’

“I am very honoured and excited to be part of this show,” says Amor. “I started off my career in theatre, so returning to my first passion, which is tap dancing, is wonderful. I’m looking forward to be working with an international choreographer and director and appreciate the opportunity I have been given to get back on the stage where I belong.”

Amor is also currently presenting her own radio show on Jacaranda 94.2fm, between 10am and 2pm on Sundays.

Performances of STRICTLY TAP DANCE FEVER must close on Sunday March 6th 2011.

The show runs Tuesdays - Fridays at 20h00, Saturdays at 15h00 and 20h00 and Sundays at 16h00. Tickets are from R170 and are available at Computicket – call (011) 340 8000 / 083 915 8000 or visit www.computicket.com.

Special discounted ticket prices are available for groups of ten or more – call Joburg Theatre on (011) 877 6854.

To whet your appetite, view a taste of what to expect : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r92H4edQDs

STRICTLY TAP DANCE FEVER is presented in South Africa in association with M-Net and Jacaranda 94.2fm.

March 2009

2009-03-02T23:57:00.000-08:00

Time to go gaga over Killer Queen

Fred’s not dead – his legacy lives on in his timeless songs and in the musical tribute Killer Queen, which takes up residence at the University of Johannesburg’s Arts Centre from 24 March to 5 April 2009.

Killer Queen features the songs of the legendary Freddie Mercury and Queen, as delivered by powerhouse vocal outfit Overtone. Before you groan, “Oh no, not ANOTHER cover show!” listen up: this one promises to deliver the goods with a distinctive twist.

The seven members of Overtone don’t merely trot out all the Queen hits, they reinvent them with sensational a cappella arrangements, mixing in modern R&B, gospel, funk and rap influences and backed on certain numbers by a great live rock band.

This promises to be an entertainment experience with a difference, sure to enthrall Queen fans who are eager to hear all their favourites, but who will also appreciate the touches of initiative and originality thrown in to enhance their enjoyment of the show.

Overtone’s vocal range extends far beyond the usual boy-band harmonies: they don’t just sing without instruments, they replicate the instruments, and the result is a highly creative and engaging musical tapestry.

Expect to hear “killer” hits such as Radio Gaga, I Want to Break Free, Show Must Go On, Who Wants to Live Forever?, Under Pressure, Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon, Bohemian Rhapsody and, of course, Killer Queen.

The seven members of Overtone are: Emile Welman (tenor), Eduard Janse van Rensburg (counter-tenor), Ruan van Zyl (baritone), Shane Smit (baritone), Ernie Bates (tenor), Valentino Ponsonby (beat box, percussion and sequences) and Riaan Weyers (bass). As a bonus treat, sopranos Yolandi Nortjé and Loveline Madumo will add their gorgeous voices to the mix, alternating as guest artists.

Killer Queen is directed by Gina Schmukler, with musical direction by Du Preez Strauss, choreography by JC Snooke, set design by Stan Knight and lighting by Jane Gosnell.

So Tie Your Mother Down, find Somebody to Love and come and experience A Kind of Magic with Overtone and Killer Queen! Show times are Tuesdays to Fridays at 8.15pm (Tuesdays are buy one, get one free nights), Saturdays at 5.30pm and 8.30pm, and Sundays at 3pm. Tickets are available through Computicket or at the UJ Arts Centre box-office.