PLAYHOUSE COMPANY: This is Women’s Month and there’s no better way to celebrate than feasting on the fine drama, dance, dialogue, music and entertainment on offer at the annual Playhouse Company’s SA Women’s Festival (SAWAF) in Durban. This year’s festival takes on added significance as 2015 has been named the African Union’s year on women empowerment and The Playhouse Company is proud to be playing its role in the campaign. Runs until Saturday. For more information, visit www.playhousecompany.com
CATALINA THEATRE: Experience the ATKV Tienertoneel Competition in Durban which is all about talent, youth and a passion for theatre. Some 180 high school theatre groups from across South Africa and Namibia will participate in this year’s competition. The aim of the competition is provide a platform for talent development, and to nurture a love for theatre in high school pupils. The Durban regional festival will take place on Saturday. Admission is free and the evening starts at 4pm. The adjudicator’s form is available for download on the website: www.atkv.org.za/af/kunste/ tienertoneel.
City Hill Auditorium, HILLCREST: A day-long feast of family entertainment is happening on August 29 at the Festival in the Hills. The programme includes Big Broadway, Small Stars. This collaboration brings Aaron McIlroy and Lisa Bobbert together with a massed choir of primary school children, conducted by Bernard Kruger, Kearsney College’s award-winning conductor. Aaron and Lisa serve up loads of laughter as their off-the-wall stage personas spring to life. Enjoy encounters with a host of old cronies and crocks as they bring you up to date with their incomparable gallery of loons. Then there’s comedian Carvin H Goldstone in Coloured President. Traditionally a family comic, this show will also enter the political comedy arena with views on South African and world politics and, of course, what South Africa would be like if it had a coloured president. R50. The fest also includes workshops for children and an opening parade, craft market, food stalls and more. For info, visit facebook.com/FestivalInTheHills.
ELIZABETH SNEDDON THEATRE: Durban’s KickstArt Productions’ mini-musical comedy, Snoopy: The Musical, based on the much-loved Peanuts comic strip, runs until Sunday. With direction by Steven Stead and Charon Williams-Ros, musical direction by Justin Southey, and design by Greg King, Snoopy features all the familiar cartoon characters. Carol Trench plays the headstrong and outspoken Lucy; Bryan Hiles is the cartoon’s protagonist, the melancholic, and misunderstood Charlie Brown; Stead plays Charlie Brown’s eccentric pet dog, Snoopy; Caitlin Kilburn is the upbeat tomboy Peppermint Patty; Graeme Wicks is Lucy’s brother, the insecure Linus, Katy Moore as the ditzy Sally Brown and Evashnee Pillay is Snoopy’s silent sidekick, the small yellow bird, Woodstock. Tuesday to Saturday at 7pm; Saturday at 1.30pm; Sunday at 1.30pm. R200, R150, R130 and R180, R130, R110 (under-12s and pensioners) at Computicket. Age restriction is PG6.
SIBAYA IZULU THEATRE: Ronnie Govender’s hit ’80s comedy, Your Own Dog Won’t Bite You, stars Rahul Brijnath and runs from Thursday to Sunday. Rahul plays successful Reservoir Hills businessman, Jimmy Jugmohun. Jimmy own several trucks which are sometimes parked in the driveway of his Spanish-style home on Bologna Crescent, Reservoir. He runs his business from an office in his lounge. Lately, his trucks keep breaking down. That’s not the only problem. His wife, Madhu, is a hypochondriac and convinced that the doctor’s medicines can’t help her. His son, Baboo, has been neglecting his studies and is in love with “a tickey-line white girl”, as Madhu puts it. She believes that a jealous family member has bewitched the family so she calls in an exorcist, much to Jimmy’s opposition. What follows is riotous comedy. Book at Computicket and Shoprite/ Checkers outlets.
RHUMBELOW THEATRE, DURBAN: Back by popular demand is Elvis – Trilogy which runs from Friday August 30. Featuring Doug Weich, the show tells the life story of the King of Rock and Roll. Backed by his band M.S.G., we will revisit the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s as Doug takes you on a journey through three major turning points of Elvis’s musical career. Band members are Wade Wight on keyboards and backing vocals; Ollie Hart on piano; Jill Murray Brown on bass guitar; Graham Buckle on drums; Andy Turrell and Bruce Boome on lead guitar; Tammy Saville and Marion Loudon on female vocals and Kirsty Madgin on saxophone. R120 at Computicket or e-mail Roland on [email protected].
COMING UP
CATALINA THEATRE: Stand by for some great entertainment when the Warrick Frank Drama Academy present What a Crack! – a new stage comedy – which runs at Durban’s Catalina Theatre, Wilson’s Wharf, from August 27 to 30. Audiences can expect a blend of “East Meets West” in modern- Durban in this fun-filled family stage four-hander co-written by Courtney Smith and Warrick Frank, who also directs the piece. Drawing on personal experiences, the show’s creators conjure up a scenario in which disparate backgrounds unite in an explosive clash of cultures. R100 at Computicket.
SIBAYA IZULU THEATRE: Pagla Comedy Nite is stand-up comedy show featuring Mervyn Pillay, Rahul Brijnath, Arnott Payne, Anesh Dusrath and Vee Ganie. Get ready for laughter and more laughter with loads of comedy featuring the “Famous Five”. The show is for lovers of stand-up comedy, showcasing Durban’s brand of comedy. Durban is fast becoming the factory for churning out great comics who eventually get to ply their trade in the bigger cities like Cape Town and Joburg. This show will take you on a hilarious trip showcasing culture, politics, sport and all things that make South Africa funny. The show carries a 16 age restriction and promises to keep the audiences laughing all the way home. Runs on August 28 and 29. R120 at Computicket.
l To be listed in Boardwalk, e-mail all theatre-related information to [email protected]; subject line: boardwalk, by Thursday.