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The magic of The Royal Ballet comes to the Big Screen with Cinema Nouveau

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CLASSICAL BALLET PRODUCTION OF ROMEO AND JULIET TELLS THE TRAGIC TALE OF SHAKESPEARE’S STAR-CROSSED LOVERS

Kenneth MacMillan’s ground-breaking ballet is a 20th-century classic.

A scene from Romeo & Juliet - The Royal Ballet company

A season of five famous ballets from the Royal Ballet is being screened at Cinema Nouveau theatres over the next few months. The season launched with Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in March, and then Swan Lake in May. The third production to be shown on the big screen is the ballet adaptation of Shakespeare’s tragic tale of the star-crossed lovers.Romeo and Juliet, set to Sergey Prokofiev’s beautiful music and choreographed by Kenneth MacMillan, releases exclusively at Cinema Nouveau theatres on Saturday, 06 June, for limited screenings.

Given its premiere by The Royal Ballet in 1965 with Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn dancing the title roles, Kenneth MacMillan’s first full-evening ballet has become a signature work for the Company, enjoying great popularity around the world. The story is set against a wonderful evocation of 16th-century Verona, and includes a bustling marketplace that erupts into a violent sword fight, and a lavish ball held in an elegant mansion.

From the outset, the production teems with life and colour as the townspeople, market traders and servants of the rival Montagues and Capulets go about their daily business in vibrant crowd scenes. But it is Romeo (danced by Federico Bonelli) and Lauren Cuthbertson’s Juliet who take centre stage for the ballet’s great pas de deux.

Although The Royal Ballet has performed Romeo and Juliet over 400 times, each performance and pairing is subtly different, and Lauren Cuthbertson and Federico Bonelli are utterly captivating in the title roles. This performance was captured on camera, live from Covent Garden, to broadcast on the big screen in cinemas worldwide.

Choreographer Kenneth MacMillan’s poignant setting of Sergey Prokofiev’s classic score draws out the emotional and psychological intensity of the tale. Romeo and Juliet contains three passionate pas de deux: the lovers’ first meeting, the famous balcony scene and the devastating final tragedy, in which Romeo dances desperately with the lifeless Juliet.

MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet first arrived at Covent Garden in 1965. Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn took the title roles on the opening night – MacMillan had originally created the work on Lynn Seymour and Christopher Gable. Nevertheless, Fonteyn and Nureyev’s performance had a rapturous reception, with 43 curtain calls and almost forty minutes of applause. The ballet has been at the heart of the Company’s repertory ever since, amassing more than four hundred performances. This classic production has been toured around the world and in 2011 was adapted for arena-scale performances at the O2 Arena.

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The story, the cast and crew:

Romeo and Juliet fall passionately in love, but their families are sworn enemies. The lovers marry in secret before Romeo kills Juliet’s cousin Tybalt in a fight and is banished from the city. Juliet’s family arrange for her to marry Paris. To escape, Juliet takes a potion that makes her appear lifeless. Romeo does not receive the message explaining her plan; thinking her dead, he goes to her tomb and kills himself. She wakes, sees Romeo’s corpse and stabs herself.

Romeo: Federico Bonelli
Juliet: Lauren Cuthbertson
Mercutio: Alexander Campbell
Tybalt: Bennet Gartside
Benvolio: Dawid Trzensimiech
Paris: Vale Rihristov
Lord Capulet: Christopher Saunders
Lady Capulet: Christina Arestis
Escalus Prince of Verona: Gary Avis

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, conducted by Barry Wordsworth
Choreography: Kenneth MacMillan

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden:  Ross McGibbon, a former member of The Royal Ballet, directs the live cinema production, which also includes exclusive backstage footage and interviews with the cast and crew.

View some video clips of The Royal Ballet’s performance of Romeo and Juliet here:

https://youtu.be/791y2sLVF_w

https://youtu.be/qHjh9pzQJnY

 

Romeo and Juliet releases on South African screens on Saturday, 06 June for four screenings only – on 06, 10 and 11 June at 19:30 and on 07 June at 14:30 – only at Cinema Nouveau theatres in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town. Bookings are now open. The running time of this ballet production is 2hrs and 33mins, with one 20-minute interval after Act I.

For booking information on the Royal Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet, visit www.cinemanouveau.co.za or sterkinekor.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).

The other two ballets of the Royal Ballet season to be screened at Cinema Nouveau are: La Fille mal Gardée (27 June) and The Winter’s Tale (08 August).

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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