David Fick

The mood was set from the get-go when I watched DEVIL SONG on an autumnal evening with a yellowing moon. Compiled and directed by David Fick, this cabaret consists of different monologues and songs that create a funhouse of humanity's darker aspects. Needless to say, my inner goth was hooked from the start.

Dal Segno Theatre is bringing what they're calling a devilish new cabaret to the stage this month. DEVIL SONG is set to premiere to Cape Town audiences at the Avalon Auditorium at the Homecoming Centre towards the end of March. Star of the show, Schoeman Smit chatted to us about bring DEVIL SONG to life.

A brand new South African cabaret DEVIL SONG will have its premiere in Cape Town from 27 March to 5 April at the Avalon Theatre. Presented by Dal Segno Theatre, DEVIL SONG is created by a stellar team of theatre makers. Compiled and directed by David Fick, it is performed by Schoeman Smit.

The loss of one of the brightest lights of the Great White Way has been terribly challenging to accept. I think everyone within the theatre community can share a story related to Sondheim that led them to where they are. For me, it was the production of West Side Story and the album of Sunday in the Park with George. The South African production of West Side Story, reminded me of the magic of theatre and it solidified my dream of being part of a story made for the stage. While the Sunday in the Park with George revival with Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford is my go-to album for inspiration.

I think I can speak for all theatre kids when I say, High School, would've been awfully dreadful if we didn't have our school plays. From the actors to the techies. A community that is strong and full of love. 

Beyond the theatre, audiences at the National Arts Festival can also roll up their sleeves and get creative with a new series of art classes that form part of the Visual Art programme for the first time this year.

In 2004 on Broadway, against all the odds, a little show called AVENUE Q snatched 3 Tony Awards for Best Book, Best Score and Best Musical from a monster hit, WICKED. This year, VR Theatrical and Kosie Smit are proud to be presenting this triple Tony Award winner to Johannesburg audiences.

Luitingh Alexander Musical Theatre Academy (LAMTA) is a full-time tertiary Academy for the Performing Arts and is especially geared for training triple-threat performers for a career in Musical Theatre. The school will open its doors to its first intake of students in January 2019.

There is nowhere better for fans of cabaret to visit than the Purple Palace on Bree, Gate69. This premier cabaret theatre currently sees Cathy Specific and the Trolley Dollies making magic in their latest production, SNIP/TUCKED - a mini medical musical that sees Cape Town's beloved pin-up girls of Aviation take on today's 'self-improvement' culture and come out looking even more magnificent than ever.

In today's world, there has been a marked resurgence of humanitarian rallies and causes. People are standing up for their rights, demanding that the time has come for change. With movements like The Women's March and the #metoo campaign, it is clear to see that the up and coming generation are ready to cultivate a world that they can be proud to live in

For two weeks only, popular musical theatre star Jonathan Roxmouth returns to Theatre on the Bay to perform the words and music of titan composers Leonard Bernstein, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Stephen Sondheim. Between these gentlemen, the musical theatre was reshaped and revitalised. 

The eighth Shakespeare Schools Festival South Africa (SSF SA) is taking place in Cape Town this April and May. The Shakespeare Schools Festival is Educape's flagship initiative, an education program that is aimed at improving language and social skills through the performing arts.

Lefra Productions is excited to announce the staging of BUDDY - THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY at the Theatre of Marcellus at Emperors Palace from 14 May to 10 June. Written by Alan Janes to showcase a jukebox of pop hits from the late 1950s, BUDDY has been enjoyed by millions of people around the world and tells the story of the tragically short life of Buddy Holly, who along with his high-school friends, the Crickets, turned country music upside down to create some of the best rock 'n' roll songs ever written.

Athol Fugard's THE ROAD TO MECCA is back on stage in South Africa in a major production mounted by The Fugard Theatre. At the helm of this new staging of the classic play is Greg Karvellas, who shared his thoughts on directing this well-loved South African play in this week's edition of 'Five on Friday' for BroadwayWorld South Africa.

WEST SIDE STORY, the Fugard Theatre's epic out-of-house production, which is currently back for a final South African season at the Artscape Opera House, has extended its run by popular demand. The highly acclaimed show that opened on 7 March to rave reviews and five-star ratings, has once again taken Cape Town by storm and will now run to 22 April 2018, when it must close. There is no possibility for extension beyond that date.

JAM EVERY OTHER DAY is returning to the Masque Theatre to delight and entertain audiences this April. Adapted from the memoir of South African author, Emmaleen Kriel, this play is a feel-good show with healthy doses of humour, charm and pathos.  F Creations is proud to be presenting this incredible play in association with Constantiaberg Theatre Players for a run in April 2018.

The current season of WEST SIDE STORY - produced by the Fugard Theatre in the Artscape Opera House - is still as grand as it was in 2015, but is even better in 2018 than it was before - an emotional rollercoaster that is second to none. When I look back at the various productions and performances of WEST SIDE STORY that I have seen to date, this is the one I will remember.

#METAMORPHOSIS is UJ Arts & Culture's 2018 programme of change. Drawing inspiration from the theme of #METAMORPHOSIS has seen UJ Arts & Culture plan to change more than its content. The 2018 programme features two brand new festivals as well as new partnerships that will increase opportunities for the university community, creative industries and the public to experience and participate in the arts.

The eighth annual 2018 Zabalaza Theatre Festival to showcase some 40 productions by dynamic young theatre-makers from all over the Western Cape.

The divas of Cape Town's 'purple palace' are at it again, aiming to have audiences in stitches with their new show, SNIP/TUCKED. The girls have been pricked, plucked, pulled and prodded - and its time for everyone to brace themselves for this titillatingly turbulent treat.