SOUTH AFRICA THEATER REVIEWS

This beautiful adaptation by the team from VR Theatrical is pretty much just what the doctor ordered for the festive season. It combines song, animation, puppetry, voice overs, beautiful acting and a healthy dose of humour to warm the heart....

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Just like that, all the tell-tale signs are here to tell us that the festive season is upon us: terrible Cape Town traffic, warmer temperatures and great opportunities to return to the theatre for seasonal shows! To welcome in the holiday spirit, head on down to see LOVE AND MISTLETOE at the Milner...

BEING STEVE, featuring the music of Stephen Sondheim, Schwartz and Flaherty is a celebration of some of the most prolific contributors to musical theatre in history – all of whom happen to share a first name. This high-energy revue, performed by the current students of Luitingh Alexander Musical T...

HOLD STILL holds up a mirror and quite deftly questions whether or not you’re as good a person as you think you are. It’s a jarring question to be faced with and the four characters on stage are left reeling in the wake of getting their answers....

It is imperative that I begin this review by admitting that before viewing ALCINA, I was an opera-virgin. Well, this production was the perfect introduction to the genre. Firstly, what a magical experience to be back in the Artscape after a lengthy COVID-induced hiatus. The excitement and anticipat...

DINNER WITH THE 42S is an absolute treat! It’s gritty, it’s funny, it’s sharp – it’s a production definitely worth watching....

This is the third year that CONSTELLATIONS is running out at Spier Wine Farm and I’m glad that I finally got to experience it. It’s a magical setting for performances and the whole experience was unlike anything I’d done before....

This run of THE UNLIKELY SECRET AGENT brings with it some new energy in the form of two new cast members. It’s quite exciting to get to see the same play, which is still fairly fresh in my memory, with new faces and new ideas for characterisation. It must’ve also been a fun challenge for the exi...

It felt to me like the play moved in gasps. The characters and the momentum of the play seemed to hold still like they were holding their breath, and then there’d be a rush of movement and emotion as if everyone was gasping for air before holding it all in again....

It’s so good to be back at the Masque Theatre and see an amateur society show being produced again! This week I went to see a dress rehearsal of A PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY, produced by Cape Town Theatre Company, just before it opened. This is an original adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s classic story, ...

WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGNIA WOOLF? has to be one of the most in-your-face pieces of theatre ever written, and it’s as entertaining and relevant today as it was when it debuted 60 years ago. Under the exceptional direction of Sylvaine Strike, this incredible cast had me simultaneously wanting to hide...

It’s quite amazing that a script written in 1997 about a fledgling democratic South Africa can still be so relevant and haunting in 2022. FORDSBURG’S FINEST by Paul Slabolepszy delivers in heart and in asking some truly tricky questions of the characters and of the audience members....

It’s always exciting when one of the Cape Town societies puts on original work. SO… THAT HAPPENED is made even more interesting in that it’s a sequel or a follow-up from another original work. I really loved that director and writer Werner Asher Steffen and Milnerton Players were able to bring...

Actress Imke du Toit throws herself into the piece body and soul. Everything about her physicality and her voice says that this character is completely immersed in the turmoil of this nightmare landscape conjured up by the character’s mind....

I’d heard a lot about ÎLE after its highly successful run at the National Arts Festival earlier this year. It won a Gold Standard Bank Ovation Award and audiences had raved about it. So, it’s safe to say that my expectations were high, and the show did not disappoint....

Cape Town City Ballet's rendition of ROMEO AND JULIET is a rich tapestry of music, dance, colour and emotion. The score is exquisite, and it was an absolute treat to have it played live by the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra under internationally renowned guest conductor Jonathan Lo. A live orchest...

For their 2022 acting showcase, LAMTA offered audiences a very clever DOUBLE BILL. In the first half of the evening, we saw Anton Chekov’s classic THE SEAGULL. After interval, we were treated to STUPID F@CKING BIRD – a parody of the former written by Aaron Posner. I honestly had such a laugh thr...

The characters in CAREFUL are really well-rounded and the story develops in a very clever way. I enjoyed this offering from Milnerton Players and it was great to be back at this lovely theatre after two years....

ONCE ON THIS ISLAND is a joyous expression of music and dance from start to finish. It’s feel-good musical theatre at its best and this production from Wêla Kapela is just wonderful. I had a blast in the audience from the moment I walked into the auditorium....

THE GREAT GATSBY is one of my absolute favourite books – the characters, the landscape, the era are all so beautifully described by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This stage adaptation by Stephan Fourie and directed by Neil Leachman did not disappoint. It is a joyous spectacle up on stage that stayed beauti...

DIE GOEIE PA is a gritty tale based on true events, and this Afrikaans version pulls no punches. It’s must-see theatre....

What did our critic think? The latest dance production from LAMTA is a celebration of so many things – dancing, theatre, music and performance excellence. Sitting at The Theatre on the Bay, watching these talented young performers up on stage, you can easily forget that these are actually students...

IMBILINI… MY FRIEND! is a moving piece of physical theatre that has been carefully crafted for the stage. The chemistry between the two real-life friends, who also wrote and perform this original piece, is natural and completely tangible as you sit watching them move on stage....

The careful and clever direction by James Ngcobo, mixed with the finely tuned performances of Francois Jacobs and Mncedisi Shabangu, draws you completely into their world. The team strikes an excellent balance between the lighter, comic moments and the hard, cruel truth of the story....