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THE MAGIC OF THE ROYAL BALLET COMES TO THE BIG SCREEN WITH CINEMA NOUVEAU

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Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland comes alive in Christopher Wheeldon’s magical ballet for the enjoyment of audiences of all ages…

‘Absurdist, dark and almost beyond praise: Christopher Wheeldon’s take on Lewis Carroll is a dazzling extravaganza’  – The Telegraph  ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

All the beauty, grace and magic of the ballet will soon be enjoyed on the big screen, thanks to a screening partnership between Cinema Nouveau and The Royal Ballet in London. Following on the success of the screening of ‘live’ theatre, opera and art exhibitions, lovers of the arts will now be able to enjoy wonderful ‘live’ ballet productions from The Royal Ballet at Cinema Nouveau theatres in Johannesburg (Rosebank Mall), Pretoria (Brooklyn Mall), Durban (Gateway) and Cape Town (V&A Waterfront).

A season of five famous ballets will be screened over the next few months, and launches with a ballet that will appeal to audiences of all ages. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, adapted from the delightful book by Lewis Carroll, releases exclusively at Cinema Nouveau from Saturday, 28 March, with limited screenings. The other ballets to be screened include Swan Lake (02 May), Romeo & Juliet (06 June), La Fille mal gardée (27 June) and The Winter’s Tale (08 August).

Tumble down the rabbit hole with The Royal Ballet with an exhilarating performance of choreographer Christopher Wheeldon’s magical Alice’s Adventures in WonderlandHis version of the ballet first arrived on the stage in 2011, with a burst of colour, theatrical magic and inventive choreography. It was The Royal Ballet’s first new full-length work since 1995 and was greeted with delight by audiences.

Exuding a girlish charm, Alice, danced by American Principal Sarah Lamb, encounters a cast of extraordinary characters including the gardeners’ boy, Federico Bonelli, who later becomes her Knave of Hearts as they dance a tender and lovingpas de deux of delicate beauty.

There is also the highly-strung Queen of Hearts, who performs an hilarious send-up of The Sleeping Beauty‘s famous Rose Adage, dancing playing cards, the jittery White Rabbit and the quirky tap-dancing Mad Hatter.

But the ballet does not avoid the darker undercurrents of Lewis Carroll’s story – a nightmarish kitchen, an eerily disembodied Cheshire Cat and the unhinged tea party are all created in vivid detail.

The familiar story is reimagined with quirky designs by Bob Crowley as we follow Alice into Wonderland across a lake of tears, playing croquet with flamingos and hedgehogs, and attending the deranged tea party. Drawing upon a wealth of theatrical effects, projection and puppetry are used to visualise the grinning Cheshire Cat and the sinuous Caterpillar with his 16 legs of ballet dancers en pointe to create a mesmerising world of enchantment.

A feast for the senses, Wheeldon’s spectacular ballet brings to life Lewis Carroll’s famous story with a menagerie of colours, characters and compelling choreography. Joby Talbot’s lively score combines contemporary sound worlds with sweeping melodies that gesture to ballet scores of the 19th century, to provide the perfect accompaniment to the ballet with sparkling idiosyncrasy. Bob Crowley’s wildly imaginative sets and costumes draw on puppetry, projections and masks to make Wonderland wonderfully real.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was the first full ballet created for the Company since 1995 and premiered in 2011 with sold-out world performances. The live screening on Tuesday 16 December was captured for release on cinema screens worldwide.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland releases on South African screens on Saturday, 28 March, for four screenings only – on 28 March, 01 and 02 April at 19:30 and on 29 March at 14:30 – at Cinema Nouveau theatres in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town. Bookings are now open, and the running time of this production is 2hrs, 55mins (including two intervals).

For booking information on the Royal Ballet’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, visit www.cinemanouveau.co.za orsterkinekor.mobi. Folllow us on Twitter @nouveaubuzz or on Facebook at Cinema Nouveau. Download the Ster-Kinekor App on any Nokia, Samsung Android, iPhone and Blackberry smart phones for updates, news and to book from your mobile. For queries, call TicketLine on 0861 Movies (668 437).

 

Durbanite
Author: Durbanite

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Art

‘DON’T LET’S GO TO THE DOGS TONIGHT’ PREMIERES LOCALLY THIS MONTH

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Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight, the highly anticipated feature film based on Alexandra Fuller’s best-selling memoir, will have its official South African premiere on 25 July 2025.

Directed and adapted for screen by Embeth Davidtz, the film marks a rare and powerful cinematic portrayal of Zimbabwe’s transition from colonial rule to independence through the eyes of a child.

Shot in South Africa , the film brings to life 8-year-old Bobo’s coming-of-age amidst the final days of the Rhodesian Bush War. Played by newcomer Lexi Venter, Bobo is a white child growing up on a farm in Zimbabwe, grappling with grief, fractured family life, and the racial dynamics of a world at war. The film’s raw emotion and nuanced storytelling offer an African narrative told from within, with complexity, empathy, and historical depth.

With a powerful local cast including Zikhona Bali, Fumani N Shilubana, and Rob Van Vuuren, and supported by a seasoned creative team, the film is both global in its reach and deeply rooted in the Southern African soil.

Director Embeth Davidtz, who also stars in the film, drew on her own childhood in apartheid-era South Africa to tell the story from Bobo’s point of view allowing space for innocence, questioning, and emotional truth.

This film is deeply personal for me. It helped me process my own childhood in apartheid-era South Africa. Through Bobo’s eyes, I wanted to show that even in the middle of pain and inherited racism, love and transformation are actually possible” stated Embeth Davidtz.

The film is executive produced by South African media powerhouses Anele Mdoda, Frankie Du Toit, and Trevor Noah, and produced by Helena Spring and Paul Buys, whose work continues to redefine African cinema on the global stage.

Following its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight now comes home, inviting South African audiences into a layered exploration of land, identity, memory, and healing.

Shelley
Author: Shelley

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Movies

Review: Movies @ Suncoast – Deadpool 2

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If you are a lover of Durban and you hear of the word ‘Suncoast’, you would automatically be thinking: Casino and Entertainment World – well, if it was only ‘Casino’… then good job!

BUT it’s not all about the casino or the restaurants… it’s also about the movies, which brings us to the point of this post where we review Deadpool 2 at Suncoast’s Cinecentre.

FUN FACT: Cinecentre is part of the Avalon Group which is South Africa’s largest and oldest independent Cinema Exhibition and Entertainment Company – they have been a pioneer of importing Bollywood movies to South Africa for over 70 years.

DEADPOOL 2: REVIEW

DP 2’s elaborate anti-marketing campaign has been simply brilliant by bashing popular pop-culture while also making fun of itself.  Ryan Reynolds, who plays both DP and Juggernaut, has once again pulled out all the stops to
deliver an entertaining and hysterically funny anti-hero flick that will appeal to all DP 1 fans.

Storyline: This blockbuster brings together X-Force, Bill Skarsgard, Terry Crews and Brad Pitt (who’s out of sight), a team of misfit hero’s on a mission to save a troubled mutant boy (Russell “Rusty” Collins) from a time traveling cyborg (Cable), played by Josh Brolin, who lugs around a beast of a gun and other advanced weaponry. But it doesn’t end as you may think.

The movies ability to break down the fourth wall without skipping a beat is what makes this film special. This brilliant idea that DP knows he is a fictional character living in a comic book universe could even be expanded upon in future installments, and hopefully it will be. All DP’s literal back breaking and head splitting weirdness mixed with a kind of super consciousness of his own reality should keep all die hard comic book movie fans coming back time and again.

Expect some rib-tickling one-liners, plenty of trash talking and loads of action. DP 2 scores and solid 8 out of 10, so book your tickets now at CINECENTRE!

Suncost Casino and Entertainment World

Centrally located at the northern end of Durban‘s Golden Mile, Suncoast is always a hub of activity. Not only a great spot to visit if you are a local but for tourists to our beautiful city as well. Currently under construction, we found that parking was a mission and running across the lot in the rain not very pleasant, but this is our only negative about our Suncoast experience. On a good note, a little birdie says that part of the new building will be undercover parking – which we think is fantastic!

Durbanite
Author: Durbanite

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Entertainment

Granada Square outdoor movie night this April 30th

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Looking for some fun family bonding time, or a romantic couple’s night out? Then a night under the stars with popcorn in hand and a popular family movie is just the event for you!

Granada Square will be hosting its very first outdoor movie night on Monday, 30th April, 2018 at 18h30 – the day before the public holiday!

Take your blankets and cushions along, unwind and enjoy the comedy drama, We Bought a Zoo (2011).

This American family comedy-drama follows the story of a widowed father (Matt Damon) who decides to start a new life with his two children. He buys a house that is home to a struggling zoo in need of renovation and together with the current staff, they take on the challenge of restoring the zoo to its former glory and reopening to the public

Book now through web tickets at a cost of R50 for adults and R25 for children under 12. Under 3’s are free.
Popcorn will be included in the ticket price.
Tickets are limited, so book now!

Movie goers to please note that this event is weather dependent. In the case of rain, a new date will be scheduled.

For more information visit www.granadasquare.co.za

Shelley
Author: Shelley

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