blackdogg Media: Breathing Contemporary Life into an Arthur Miller ...

blackdogg Media: Breathing Contemporary Life into an Arthur Miller ...: "Date: 19 january 2011 The Crucible - more relevant than ever. In 1692, in the small village of Salem, Massachusetts, in the US, one o..."

Breathing Contemporary Life into an Arthur Miller Classic

Date: 19 january 2011
 The Crucible - more relevant than ever.

In 1692, in the small village of Salem, Massachusetts, in the US, one of the strangest and most awful chapters in human history played itself out: The Salem Witch trials. Swept up by religious hysteria, the townsfolk of Salem sent many men and women to the gallows for the alleged crime of being witches. What makes this shameful period of atrocity even more shocking is that these brutal and unfounded punishments all stemmed from the allegations of a handful of young girls.

In 1953 Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible as an allegory to McCarthyism; a period in US history during which numerous prominent Americans were named, shamed and ostracised as being communists and subversives.

On the other side of the world, and hundreds of years after the Salem Witch Hunts, in the Limpopo province of South Africa, an epidemic of witchcraft accusations have been prevalent since the demise of Apartheid. This has lead to mock trials and killings, and has seen refugees fleeing for their lives – destroying not only families but also crippling society in general.

Throughout history, humankind’s faculty for reason has been clouded by irrational fears and superstition, creating a destructive tendency to project the blame for society’s ills on people who differ from the norm. False accusations, manifestations of mass hysteria and rumour-mongering have always been part of our existence, and are sadly still present, despite the relative sophistication of modern living.
Joburg Promusica is proud to present Arthur Miller’s The Crucible as you have never seen it before. The cast is headlined by Stephen van Niekerk (of ‘Isidingo’ renown) and Motlatji Ditodi (of ‘Askies’). Others in this top-drawer slate of actors include Jacques Bessenger, Kim Cloete, Clive Gilson, Cindy Swanepoel, Clifford Hughes and Christien LeRoux.

Alby Michaels, known for his incredibly innovative and strongly visual productions, directs this production, which is designed by the extremely talented Kosie Smit. The Crucible promises to be a feast for theatregoers’ senses. From physical theatre to puppetry, from masks to music, from symbolism to simplicity – you will just have to expect the unexpected!
***
For school/group bookings, contact Queen (queenm@promusica.co.za) or Nevolan (nevolanr@promusica.co.za) on 011 674 1356/7/8/9 or fax on 011 674 2365.
Other bookings can be made at Computicket Outlets (Checkers Hyper and Shoprite), or online at http://www.computicket.com/

The year 2011 marks 100 years since the death of Gustav Mahler

The year 2011 marks 100 years since the death of Gustav Mahler, and the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra will commemorate the great Austrian composer’s life by performing two of his symphonies this year.

These works will be played during the JPO’s first and second seasons of symphony concerts for the year. Season one kicks off on 9 February, with all concerts taking place on Wednesday and Thursday nights at the Linder Auditorium in Parktown. Selected programmes will be repeated at Unisa’s ZK Matthews Hall in Pretoria on Sunday afternoons.

Due to audience demand, from this season the JPO will perform three major works during each concert, instead of four shorter works.

The first three weeks of the season will see Emil Tabakov, the eminent Bulgarian conductor, composer and double-bass player, leading the JPO as well as a number of top international soloists. Maestro Tabakov is well-known around the world as a guest conductor and has an enormous repertoire featuring a variety of styles from classical and romantic to contemporary genres.

On Wednesday, 9 February 2011 and Thursday, 10 February 2011, the JPO will kick off its first season of concerts for 2011 with Rossini’s Semiramide: Overture and Mozart’s Symphony No.36, K.425, C major (Linz), and will be joined by pianist Michael Roll for Beethoven’s Piano Concerto, No.4, Op.58, G major.

Roll is one of Britain’s most distinguished pianists, who came to prominence at an early age and has since enjoyed a career that has taken him around the world, giving recitals and appearing with prominent orchestras. The programme will be repeated at Unisa’s ZK Matthews Hall at 3pm on Sunday, 13 February.

On 16 and 17 February, the orchestra will perform another Mozart composition, The Impresario Overture, K486, as well as Beethoven’s Symphony No.4, Op.60, B-flat major. Also on the menu is Haydn’s Cello Concerto, Hob.V11b:2, D major, featuring talented 25-year-old Belorussian cellist Georgi Anichenko, now based in Paris, who has won several international music competitions – including first prize in the Unisa International String Competition.

The following week, on 23 and 24 February (as well as on 27 February at Unisa), it’s the turn of Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Overture, Saint-Saëns’s Introduction & Rondo capriccioso, Op.28, and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol, Op. 34. Accomplished and highly decorated Bulgarian violinist Svetlin Roussev will make a special appearance, performing Ravel’s Tzigane, Rapsodie de concert for Violin & Orchestra.

The JPO’s principal guest conductor, Bernhard Gueller, will take over the reins for the remainder of the first symphony season. On 2 and 3 March, the JPO will be joined by young Russian pianist Natalia Lavrova, a highly-regarded and multi-faceted performer whose sincerity of interpretation and charm on the stage has won the hearts of audiences across the United States and Europe.

Lavrova will be playing Mozart’s Piano Concerto, No.9, K.271, E-flat major (Jeunehomme). The concerts will also feature Respighi’s Antiche danze ed arie (Ancient Airs and Dances):

Suite 1

, and Bizet’s Symphony No.1, C major.

Described by the Jerusalem Post as “musical, energetic and full of flair”, trailblazing Taiwanese pianist Ching-Yun Hu, winner of the 2009 Concert Artists Guild International Competition, will perform Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto, No.1, Op.23, B-flat minor with the JPO on 9 and 10 March in Joburg, and on 13 March in Pretoria. The remainder of the programme includes Liadov’s Eight Russian Folk Songs, Op.58, and Dvoøák’s Symphony No.6, Op.60, D major.

The season wraps up on 16 and 17 March with an operatic flourish, when exceptional young soprano Kelebogile Boikanyo, who recently appeared in Opera Africa’s La Bohème and La Traviata and will be performing in the upcoming production of Carmen, will join the JPO to sing Das himmlische Leben from Mahler’s Symphony No.4, G major. This work is considered Mahler’s most accessible symphony.

During the final concerts for the season, the JPO will also perform the Nachtgesang, Prelude and Liebestod from Wagner’s opera Tristan und Isolde.

Join the JPO for some choice musical encounters of the classical kind in 2011! The Wednesday and Thursday night concerts at the Linder Auditorium start at 8pm, and the Unisa Sunday concerts start at 3pm. 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.

Afrikaans comedy promises ‘massive’ take-off at Promusica

15 December 2010


Joburg Promusica in Roodepoort promises to start the new year with a ‘massive’ take-off by staging the Afrikaans comedy Vettie! Vettie! Promusica audiences can expect much more than just a smile when this hit show kicks off the theatre’s 2011 programme.

Vettie! Vettie!, produced by Kosie House of Theatre, will debut from 27 January to 20 February 2011 in Roodepoort, whereafter the show will embark on a nationwide tour.
Originally written by Charles Laurence and then translated into Afrikaans by Johan Bernard, Vettie! Vettie! (My Fat Friend) is a humorous look at women’s ongoing battle with the scale and that extra bit of weight. With the award-winning comic actor Tobie Cronjé as director, Vettie! Vettie! will inject the new year with a healthy dose of laughter.
Vicky (Karen Wessels) is a successful owner of a bookshop in Hatfield, Pretoria. She is single and obviously overweight. When she meets the man of her dreams, Tom Delport (Paul du Toit), she decides to get rid of the excess weight once and for all in order to secure her Prince Charming.

Easier said than done, especially if one of your house mates is a gourmet chef, while the other one keeps reminding you how many diets you’ve experimented with in the past... and failed!
Henri (Casper de Vries) knows Vicky too well and that all her good intentions ended in the garbage bin. The sharp-tongued Henri loves to be ‘truthful’ and make no excuses for his constant jokes about Vicky’s weight issues.
Gert (Johan Botha) is the gourmet chef who is allergic to cooking anything plaind and ordinary. During the day he also works as Vicky’s assistant in the bookshop and has a very soft spot for her.
Will Vicky be able to charm the man of her dreams and live with him happily ever after?
My Fat Friend was translated into Afrikaans by Johan Bernard and adapted as Vettie! Vettie! by Pierre van Pletzen.
Tobie Cronjé, known for his roles in the annual pantomime and the recent comedy Sing!, is the director.
Bookings through Computicket.
For more information about the play and tour schedule visit the web site http://www.vettievettie.co.za/

SAB partners with Gauteng Economic Development department to promote responsible trading in the liquor industry

Johannesburg, 14 December 2010:

 The South African Breweries (SAB) and the Gauteng Department of Economic Development today announced a landmark partnership to promote responsible trading in the liquor industry throughout Gauteng, which includes facilitating interventions to encourage traders to operate formalised businesses.

Vincent Maphai, SAB director of Corporate Affairs and Transformation, says SAB has a responsibility to encourage responsible trading. “SAB firmly believes that alcohol producers can and must make a positive contribution to reducing harmful drinking. Alcohol producers are ready and willing to partner with like-minded stakeholders to develop initiatives to halt the abuse of alcohol, including promoting responsible trading by liquor retailers. SAB believes that in order for these initiatives to be truly successful, it is essential that the company plays a key support role. We wholeheartedly welcome the partnership with the Gauteng department of economic development and look forward to it being a long and fruitful one.”

Last year, SAB announced an alcohol strategy (background details included), an integral part of which was increasing resources to build partnerships with government and the industry. There is also a strong focus on driving real advances in the normalisation of the industry through supporting and incentivising shebeens to become part of the formally regulated industry. SAB is committed to collaboration and self-regulation in the industry. The company assists the relevant stakeholders with licensing and supports regulators in building capacity and capability.

As part of this strategy, SAB will be launching a pilot project in February next year which seeks to promote responsible trading amongst taverns and shebeens. The project will run amongst 500 traders in four of SAB’s regions across the country, and will inform the way in which the company moves forward on promoting responsible trading. The pilot project is part of a review of SAB’s Mahlasedi programme - a specially designed taverner training programme to incentivise shebeens to obtain licenses – which the company is undertaking in light of the increased complexity of the regulatory environment. Over the last few years, the Mahlasedi programme has trained approximately 19 000 taverners. The programme includes a social responsibility module and a mentoring component.

Dr Maphai says SAB has long promoted the normalisation of the liquor industry. There are an estimated 120 000 people who run unlicensed outlets and who struggle to become part of the formal liquor market due mainly to the complexity of the licensing regime. These are people who are pursing an honest living but who fall outside the law by administrative fiat and as a result, struggle to grow their businesses, develop their entrepreneurial skills and who have a limited incentive to trade responsibly. SAB is therefore working hard to support government to normalise the industry.

“One of the most effective ways of ensuring that industry promotes the responsible use of alcohol is to be able to influence the behaviour of retailers and how they interact with consumers. This can only be achieved when all retailers are legal and a structured relationship with them can be formed. For this reason, the normalisation of the industry is a key tenet of SAB’s alcohol policy – it will allow us to work with retailers legitimately to ensure responsible trading.

“Ultimately, we believe that all stakeholder interests will be served by a properly regulated industry that is equitable, focuses on compliance, responsible retailing and the minimisation of abuse,” says Dr Maphai.

Jozi will bid farewell to a landmark year with a vibrant celebration of music and art on New Year’s Eve, when the Joburg Carnival once again brings the city’s streets to life.

Joburg Carnival to ring in 2011 in style

Now in its seventh year, the City of Joburg’s annual carnival has become a favourite fixture among residents – providing them with a constructive creative outlet to express their festive spirit on 31 December.

This year, the Joburg Carnival’s theme is “Jozi My Jozi, My City”. The colourful parade will start in Kotze Street in downtown Jozi at 12 noon on New Year’s Eve, and will proceed through the city, over the Nelson Mandela Bridge and end at Newtown Park during the afternoon.

Expect an exuberant assortment of troupes, choirs, bands and floats making their merry way through the city – and residents are encouraged to line the route to check out the spectacle, or even join in the fun.

“Carnival is the most exciting project in the city for many reasons,” says Steven Sack, the City of Joburg’s Director of Arts, Culture and Heritage.

“Most importantly, it provides opportunities for young artists to participate in a wonderful spectacle: to design, paint, dance and construct a performance that moves through the streets in celebration of the end of one year and the beginning of a new year.”

Residents are currently hard at work in recreation centres across the city, with locals and foreign nationals coming together in the spirit of unity and tolerance to create costumes, floats and other carnival paraphernalia. During these carnival camps, they learn valuable carnival arts skills that could ultimately earn them a living.

Hosted by the City of Joburg, in partnership with the municipal-owned entities (MOEs) and the South African Police Service, the Joburg Carnival celebrates the creativity and diversity of Jozi, and provides a safe New Year’s Eve activity for inner-city residents and the youth. Police statistics indicate that the carnival has directly resulted in lower crime levels in the inner city over New Year since it was initiated seven years ago.

“This year’s carnival will be time to say goodbye to 2010 and to welcome in 2011,” adds Sack – so come and join with other Jozi families in the fun and jollity on 31 December, and see in the New Year in grand, celebratory style.

blackdogg Media: whis is the Heart Boy?

blackdogg Media: whis is the Heart Boy?: "All is Revealed After Vuka! Awards Ceremony It would be difficult for anyone who owns a TV set, listens to the radio or reads a newspaper,..."