031 Theatre Festival set to delight audiences with sneak previews
Image: Supplied.
Durban is set to come alive with the vibrant energy of the stage as the much-anticipated 031 Theatre Festival returns.
Spearheaded by Lisa Bobbert and Aaron Mcilroy of Macbob Productions and Michael Broderick from Theatresmiths, the festival serves as a precursor to the 2025 National Arts Festival in Makhanda, offering theatre-goers a unique opportunity to preview a diverse array of engaging productions.
The line-up features a selection of innovative plays, comedies, and cabarets designed to entertain and inspire.
Productions include Erika Breytenbach's one-woman comedy drama, "I can buy myself Flowers!", which features Natalie Jackson, an estate agent in her fifties, who entertains as she reflects on the ups and downs of relationships, children, professional life and her women's friendships.
Ben Voss's heartfelt comedy, "Becoming Benno", and Bobbert's tribute cabaret to Ethel Merman, where she performs beloved songs from Merman's extensive repertoire.
The festival also features Patrick Kenny's engaging game of humour in "Comedy Games", alongside McIlroy's humorous one-man show, "ADHD!", and finally, the entertaining romantic comedy "Date Night".
Where: Seabrooke's Theatre, Durban High School, Musgrave.
When: Friday, June 6, to Sunday, June 8.
Video Player is loading.
Play Video
Play
Unmute
Current Time
0:00
/
Duration
-:-
Loaded :
0%
Stream Type LIVE
Seek to live, currently behind live
LIVE
Remaining Time
-
0:00
This is a modal window.
Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.
Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan
Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan
Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan
Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque
Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps
Reset
restore all settings to the default values Done
Close Modal Dialog
End of dialog window.
Advertisement
Next
Stay
Close ✕
"Thumbelina" will stage at the Playhouse later this month.
Image: Supplied.
Upcoming show:
"Thumbelina"
This is the story about a small girl and her adventures to find a place to call home, based on the fairytale by H.C. Andersen.
Where: Playhouse Drama Theatre, Durban Central.
When: June 14 -15.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
19 hours ago
- The Star
From 'Moonlit' musings to 'Technicolor' dreams: unmissable stage shows you need to see
There are still a few more days left to catch Aldo Brincat's 'The Moon Looks Delicious From Here' at the Market Theatre. Based on Brincat's personal experiences as a first-generation South African, this multi-award-winning production explores themes of identity, sexuality, and heritage. Directed by Sjaka Septembir, the music is helmed by celebrated singer and songwriter Bongeziwe Mabandla. Last year, it bagged a Standard Bank Silver Ovation Award at the 50th anniversary of the National Arts Festival (2024) and the Special Jury Award at the Bitesize Theatre Festival in London. Brincat takes on numerous local and foreign family characters in this one-hander. A stage veteran, he effortlessly slips into the skin of these characters as they grapple with an ever-changing political landscape, while also torn by other key issues that reach a boiling point. Brincat revealed: ' This show is universal in its theme, particularly at this time when the intersectional knock-on effects of migrancy, sexuality, heritage and identity are brought increasingly into our consciousness. It makes us question what and who we think belongs, probing our conventional understanding of identity, family, ancestry and nationality.' Where: Barney Simon, Market Theatre. When: Runs until July 27, 7pm. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat If musicals are your kryptonite, look no further than this masterpiece by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Produced by Pieter Torien and the Luitingh Alexander Musical Theatre Academy (LAMTA), this family entertainer is infectious and will have everyone snapping their fingers. Featuring an outstanding ensemble of LAMTA graduates, the musical score ranges from favourite pop tracks to classics like 'Any Dream Will Do', 'Close Every Door', 'There's One More Angel in Heaven' and 'Go, Go, Go Joseph'. Where: Pieter Torien Montecasino Main Theatre. When: Runs until September 28, 3pm and 7.30pm.
Daily Maverick
a day ago
- Daily Maverick
Dulce de membrillo is the star of this cheese board
Dulce de membrillo is a jelly-like quince paste from Spain that is often used as a component of a cheese board. We used it as the focal point of exactly that. A creative soul from Barrydale in the Klein Karoo, Jonathon Rees, turned a crop of quinces from his garden into a healthy batch of dulce de membrillo, a quince 'paste'. Membrillo, to shorten its name, is not well known in South Africa. Yet. It really ought to be, though, given how many quinces grow here. It is generally regarded as Spanish (though is found elsewhere) and is sometimes called quince cheese, and now that I have used it on a cheese board I really don't like it being called that at all, and Jonathon agrees. Jonathon, who on another note has just held an exhibition of his jazz performance images in the Settlers Monument in Makhanda during the National Arts Festival, acknowledged that 'some people call it quince cheese, but that is misleading'. 'My understanding is that membrillo will last for up to six months in the fridge,' he says. 'Mine is wrapped in baking paper, cling film and tin foil and is good as new. I made some more chocolates at the weekend.' This followed email conversations earlier in the year, which led to a rectangular old chocolate box arriving by courier at my Cradock home. Inside it were the aforementioned layers and, finally, a gleaming block of the moist, reddish-brown dulce de membrillo. I peeked, covered it in its layers again, and it was in the fridge for about two months before I tentatively opened it, wondering what effect, if any, time may have had on it. It was visibly unchanged from its original state. In mint-jelly condition, you might say. Since then, he and I have exchanged new emails. 'The quince has a rich history and I've read that the apple that tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden may have been a quince,' he says. 'A lot of old gardens in SA seem to feature quince trees, often gnarly and old, particularly in the Karoo, though we had one growing up in Edenvale. I doubt people used all the fruit so it probably added to the diet of pigs. 'The two acres we are restoring in Barrydale certainly have an abundance of them, and with a few years of feeding and pruning they now produce abundantly. Harvest is from late March through May.' I have made quince jelly in the past, which is a beloved preserve in the small towns of the Karoo – a clear pink jelly, quite unlike the much denser membrillo. When we make our venison fynvleis pies, some quince jelly goes in to finish it off. And you'll find it served alongside venison in our small town restaurants and hotel dining rooms. Jonathon says: 'In SA the only widely known use of quince I have found is the making of jelly; and while you see ingelegte kwepers sold at farm stalls I've never been served them.' Chunks of quince are bottled in a very sweet syrup and sold throughout, while my friend Heyla Meyer preserves whole slices of quince, an unusual alternative. The fruit is inedible when raw, as Jonathon points out. He also finds it time consuming dealing with them, 'as the shape is irregular and so hard to peel, and the core spreads through the fruit. But what a rewarding flavour if you get it right. 'Reducing it to a paste seems to be the only way to really get the unique sweet/tart flavour. I decided obsessively to try and make use of and add value to my entire crop. We didn't quite get there but I did process hundreds of kilograms in March/April with my assistant Stanley.' Here's how Jonathon prepared his dulce de membrillo, which he gladly shared with us. (No, he doesn't have much of a stock of it, he says.) And of course you'll have to wait for the next quince season if you want to have a go yourself.) 'My method is as follows. I don't recall where I sourced it but it appears to be the common/standard. 1 kg quince fruit, peeled, cored, cubed and rinsed 3 ½ cups white sugar (I tried reducing the sugar but the membrillo didn't set) 1 litre of water 2 Tbsp lemon juice (I squeeze it fresh) Put everything into a heavy-bottomed pot on a stove at medium heat (I use a stock pot and make up to 5x the recipe in a batch). Once the sugar melts, reduce to simmer and leave for hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. You have to stir more and more often, and almost constantly at the end. Enjoy watching the pale-yellow quince transform through a pink blush to a rich ruby red. 'It takes longer than you think… but at some point the mixture transforms into a paste that will stick without near-constant attention. A good test is to scrape some off the bottom of the pot with a spatula. If the pot remains visible for a second or two then it is probably ready. 'But it is highly idiosyncratic and each batch has its own behaviour. Even the colour seems to change across batches and I haven't worked out why. Sometimes it comes out a rusty orange, sometimes a deep dark red. 'Blend the paste with a stick or jug blender and pour into shallow trays lined with baking paper – and put into the fridge to set. In cool weather it would likely set at room temperature. 'If it hasn't firmed up after five hours then you took it off too early. So cook it some more. 'Serve with Manchego cheese, smoked meats or on any platter.' Jonathon also sent me a few chocolate membrillo sweets when he first sent the block of dulce de membrillo. They were homemade and rustic, delicious, and reminded us a little of Turkish Delight. Jonathon has been inventive with quinces in other ways too. 'I have tried quince as a fruit in stews – I fried some slices up in bacon and layered them on top of a beef short rib potjie made with honeybush tea instead of stock. It was incredible.' Tony's cheese and dulce de membrillo cheese board (Serves 6-10) Ingredients A round or rectangle of dulce de membrillo 4 or 5 wedges of cheeses that you like Small bunches of grapes Mixed nuts Friends Method Lay the membrillo on a board and use a wide, round cutter to carve out an attractive round of membrillo. Or cut it square, or into cubes or wedges, as you like. How we did it: using a smallish sharp knife, mark out wedges of it for people to cut out when helping themselves. Cut out one wedge yourself and pull it out a little, for decoration and as a guide. Take a cracker, put some cheese on it, and top with membrillo. It's a most desirable combination. If membrillo is new to you or your friends, tell them all about it. And if you want to buy some in future, send me an email next winter and I'll find out if Jonathon has made a much bigger batch (which he has in mind) in which case you may well be able to have some delivered to your front door. Otherwise, check speciality food stores. DM
The Citizen
24-07-2025
- The Citizen
Former ‘Isidingo' actress on how Sri Lanka beats a similar drum to Africa
Jessica Haines, who now lives in Sri Lanka, is returning to South Africa to debut her play at the Hilton Arts Festival in KwaZulu-Natal. Actress Jessica Haines is bringing her play to this year's Hilton Arts Festival. Picture: Supplied Former Isidingo and Home Affairs actress Jessica Haines, who now lives in Sri Lanka, is returning to South Africa to debut her play at the Hilton Arts Festival in KwaZulu-Natal. 'Sri Lanka has been a creative renaissance for me,' Haines says. Haines has been living in the Asian country with her family for several years. She is coming back home to debut her play, Once Upon a Teacup, at the Hilton Arts Festival. Established in 1993, the festival is annually held on the Hilton College campus each year in August and runs for four days. Sue Clarence and Geoff Thompson founded the Hilton Arts Festival while they were attending the National Arts Festival in Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown). Co-founder and organiser of the festival, Thompson died last year, with his memorial service held just a few weeks before last year's edition. This year's edition will be held from 8 August to 10. ALSO READ: WATCH: Youthful 'Afropocalypse' wins Gold Ovation Award as National Arts Festival comes to a close Haines on Sri Lankan stories Haines said Sri Lanka's capital city Colombo has a cultural edge and charge that she finds inspiring. 'It beats a similar drum to Africa – the stories are extracted from the natural world, the heat, the moon, the sea, the seasons, bejewelled elephants, big bats, the monitor lizards, the beautiful butterflies and the intoxicating colour,' she said. 'Their stories are ancient, spiritual and rather scary. They tell elaborate tales, using masks, exaggerated gesture and exquisite costumes to enrapture, terrify and mystify their audience.' Last year Haines returned to the stage with Once Upon a Teacup, a story that she wrote while studying shadow theatre under Norbet Gotz and the Theatre Der Schatten in Bamberg, Germany. 'Once Upon a Teacup begins on a farm in KZN and I hope audiences will recognise the many character archetypes that I bring to life,' she shared. The play is directed by South African James Cuningham. 'The production explores the journey of a young girl named Violet who grows up in Africa. The play explores the notion and power of imagination and the toll it takes under pop culture constructs, social media and the inevitable pressure of growing up. 'Violet's mental health is compromised and she soon finds herself in a dark and unpredictable place, only to be rescued by the concept of home and the memories of her childhood.' Once Upon a Teacup made its debut earlier this year in Sri Lanka. ALSO READ: 'Tebello — The Night Piece' : A German-SA collaborative effort that engaged the audience Bringing the play home Haines, who grew up in KZN, says she hopes the story reawakens the inner child in everyone who watches it. 'Once Upon a Teacup begins on a farm in KZN and I hope audiences will recognise the many character archetypes that I bring to life. 'I'm hoping that the story reawakens the child in everyone, the lost ability to play, create and fully invest in the colourful and crazy world of our imagination, which is so often diluted by the pressure and fast pulse of adulthood. My job as an actor is to step inside and dismantle the human condition.' Haines has a strong connection to Hilton College. 'My grandparents were teachers at the school, my father and all his brothers went there, my brother, my husband Richard Walker, all his brothers, my father-in-law and my nephew all attended Hilton so I will feel very much at home at the festival,' she shared. The play will be performed on 9 and 10 August. NOW READ: WATCH: Modise Sekgothe, a poet equipped in the exercise of digging deep and baring himself naked
