Durban - South African singer, songwriter, playwright and musical director David Kramer has been spending time at Kearsney College, coaching and directing the school’s music and drama pupils for next week’s production of “Kat and the Kings”.
It’s the first time he has granted permission for the award-winning musical, written in 1996, to be produced by a school or amateur theatre company.
The fast-paced show is full of humour and laughter, coupled with toe-tapping songs composed by the late Taliep Petersen and Kramer’s own witty rock-n-roll style lyrics.
Kearsney is proud to have been granted permission and to have had Kramer’s intimate involvement in staging of this production, which runs from May 9 to 12.
The five leading male roles are played by Grade 10 and 11 Kearsney boys studying music and drama ‒ Mohau Tladi (a young Kat Diamond), Sethu Magubane (Kat Diamond), Khwezi Msimang (Bingo), Tjama Keta (Ballie) and Mpande Luhlongwane (Magoo). Nkanyezi Kunene, who plays Lucy Dixon, is in Grade 12 at Westville Girls’ High.
It’s a true South African story, told through the eyes of Kat Diamond, who started a vocal harmony group with his three best friends in District Six during the 1950s. The musical follows these teens through their trials and tribulations as they become a well-known performing act touring South Africa.
Sethu Magubane, who plays the older Kat Diamond, said he’s “excited for opening night, as one might expect.
“It’s an absolute honour to be able to perform a play like this with such a deep and rich history.”
The production is directed and choreographed by Daisy Spencer, a legend in Durban’s entertainment industry, with musical direction by Kearsney’s Bernard Kruger.
The male members of the cast are part of the acclaimed Kearsney College choir which has built up a large international following of appreciative supporters, having won 15 gold and seven silver medals at the World Choir Games.
The show runs for four nights next week ‒ Tuesday, May 9 to Friday, May 12. Booking is through Quicket.
The Independent on Saturday