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BY BILLY SUTER
HITS by golden greats such as Neil Diamond, Rodriguez, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Dolly Parton, as well as more modern acts such as Ed Sheeran, The Lumineers, Jason Mraz and Adele, are featured in a new show headed for Durban soon.
Billed as a tribute to iconic country, folk and acoustic rock acts, it is A Beautiful Noise, and will run at the new Rockwood Theatre at Sibaya Casino, near Umhlanga, from February 8 to April 1.
The show opened the first Rockwood Theatre in Pretoria last year for owners Tom and Anne Muller, who originally owned and ran the Barnyard Theatre in Pretoria, then shook off the franchise to create their own Rockwood Theatre in the same space, operating along similar lines.
Such was its success that the Mullers, in conjunction with Sibaya Casino, refurbished and breathed new life into Sibaya Casino’s former Krakatoa nightclub, to the right of the casino’s main entrance area, to create a Rockwood Theatre there.
The attractive, three-level, 300-seater venue is currently featuring Knowing Me, Knowing You, a tribute to great partnerships of rock and pop, devised and directed by Durban performer Andrew Webster, star of many stage musicals and countless Barnyard Theatre productions.
Newly relocated to Durban, Webster is now show devisor and director for the Rockwood Theatre group and has come up with a lively and colourful tribute show.
Seen in the recent stage musical Rock of Ages and also a star of such hits as Starlight Express and Saturday Night Fever, Webster will be on lead vocals for A Beautiful Noise. He will be sharing the spotlight with award-winning Durban vocalist Marion Loudon, as well as singers Ofentse Mokhuane (starring in Knowing Me, Knowing You) and Candice Kennedy, who was in the original Pretoria production.
The show’s on-stage band will include bassist Llewellyn Chetty, guitarist Regardt de Bruin, keyboardist Lifa Arosi, pedal-steel guitarist Andy Turrell, violinist Anita Roscoe and Knowing Me, Knowing You drummer Dylan van der Linde.
Tickets for A Beautiful Noise, which also features songs by Eagles, Crosby Stills and Nash, Mumford & Sons and Shania Twain, among others, are available from R100 each.
Seating at the show is in A VIP area with its own bar service, at counters or at tables of eight. Reasonably priced, good-value meals are available at the venue, as are drinks and coffee.
Book at bookings@rockwoodtheatre.co.za or sibaya@rockwoodtheatre.co.za.
ALSO NOTE…………………………………………………………………………………………………
YouTube sensation Radio Raps, also known as “Jonathan vanaf die Oos-Rand”, is no stranger to comedy lovers in South Africa and is ready to entertain fans at Sibaya Casino’s Rockwood Theatre at 8pm on February 1 and 2, when admission will be R160 a head.
His amusing one-man show, Laat Ek Jou Só Sê, has him chatting about everyday life situations that test us. He tells us we never pay
attention to these things because we are too focused on the daily news and bigger happenings, while life could actually be fun-filled, simple and meaningful if we would only focus on the important things.
In typical Radio Raps fashion, he tells fans that the truth is not necessarily complicated, but that their acceptance of it may well be.
Jonathan’s CD, titled Da Vat Hy Vol 1, featuring his most popular jokes and stories as well as new material, was released in August 2014. In 2015, a DVD of his successful Life 101 show was released and has already reached gold status. A second live performance, Life 201, was also recorded and released on DVD in 2016.
Last year Jonathan’s third production, Laat Ek Jou Só Sê, was recorded at Carnival City before an audience of 3 500 people and released mid-2017.
.....SoSuterBill..... 