Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra’s annual variety gala will take place on Friday September 1 at the Artscape theatre, at 7.30pm, with television personality Ryle de Morny as master of ceremonies and conductor Brandon Phillips on the podium.
Wendy LaRosa will do a drag act, while Cape Town Opera House soloists Brittany Smith, Lukhanyo Moyake and Conroy Scott as well as soprano Hlengiwe Mkhwanazi and flautist Esihle Mthethwa will add a touch of the world of classics.
On the line up will be singers Whitney April, Craig Lucas and Sasha-Lee Davids as well as trumpeter Mandisi Dyantyis, saxophonist Don Vino, guitarist Mauritz Lotz, a saxophone quartet from the Hugo Lambrechts Music Centre and singer Vernon Barnard.
Zimbini Makwetu will perform with Three Black Pearls and dancers from the Elvis Sibeko Dance Studio.
As usual, the line-up will be mixed and matched, as is customary for music director Stefan Lombard and director Aviva Pelham, so expect to hear Whitney April’s Fighters accompanied by dancers. You will hear Nessum Dorma on the guitar, Flight of the Bumblebee renamed Bumblebee Boogie on a flute and the Cat Duet lip synched.
There will be an eclectic mix of opera and songs like Purple Rain and Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah in Afrikaans and several of the works have been arranged or written by Paul Loeb van Zuilenberg, Damian Philander, Stefan Lombard, Feodor Vtracnik, Didi van der Hoven and Mike Campbell.
“We have again achieved our goal to give performance opportunities to some who have never performed with a symphony orchestra, while bringing back some beloved local icons,” says Louis Heyneman, the CEO and artistic director of the CPO as well as the producer of this show.
Tickets cost R150 from Artscape Dial-A-Seat at 021 421 7695 or Computicket.
