Tag Archives: Computicket

Fugard Theatre transforms into Bioscope with Classic Film Festival!

I was impressed with the screening of the film of the Fugard play “The Road to Mecca” at the Fugard Theatre two weeks ago, given not only the content of the 1970’s movie, but also how well The Fugard Theatre had been transformed into the Fugard Theatre Bioscope.

The Fugard Theatre opened about a year ago, and its service teething problems have been largely sorted, other than the slowness of the ticket buying procedure if one has not pre-booked.  A few months ago the management fall-out was widely documented.  But all seems to have settled down now, and the management cleverly has transformed the theatre into what it calls a Bioscope, and even sells popcorn now, to fit the theme!   In addition, one will be able to buy soup and Thelema wines. The Theatre now has proper individual and most comfortable seats, having originally had benches, which did not allow one to book a specific seat, and seating then was on a first come first grabbed basis.  The movies are projected onto a giant screen on the stage.  One may take one’s popcorn and drinks into the theatre, showing a huge relaxation of the management in its attitude to its clients relative to when it opened.

Earlier this month the Fugard Bioscope kicked off with a week of films made about Fugard plays, a different film every night.  I enjoyed ‘The Road to Mecca’, starring Yvonne Bryceland, Athol Fugard and the very youthful Kathy Bates and Soli Philander.  It told the story of Helen, the owner of the now National Monument Owl House in Nieu Bethesda, with superb acting by Bryceland in particular.  Fugard received the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre in New York last week, ironic that his recognition should come from outside the country.

From today, running for four weeks, the Fugard Theatre Bioscope is running a themed Winter Classic Film Festival, costing R40 per ticket, and screenings start at 8 pm on Mondays – Saturdays, as follows:

20 – 25 June : Award-winning German and French Thrillers: Z, The Baader Meinhof Complex, The Lives of Others, Carlos, A Prophet, Mesrine

27 June – 2 July: Classic Political Thrillers: Seven Days in May, The Day of the Jackal, The Conversation, Three Days of the Condor, All the President’s Men, Network

4 – 9 July: Gay Movies: Brokeback Mountain, Dog Day Afternoon, Philadelphia, Bad Education, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Milk

12 – 16 July: Rock Concerts: Woodstock, Pink Floyd live in Berlin, Simon & Garfunkel – Concert in Central Park, The Last Waltz – The Band, Bob Dylan and Neil Young, Gimme Shelter – The Rolling Stones 

Winter Classic Film Festival, The Fugard Theatre Bioscope, Caledon Street, Cape Town.  Tel (021) 461-4554. Book at Theatre or at www.computicket.com

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com  Twitter:@WhaleCottage

‘Taste of Cape Town’ offers a taste of Cape Town and Winelands restaurants

I have enjoyed attending the Taste of Cape Town, run in our city for the past four years, and the first one in Camps Bay, as well the one in Mowbray last year, were particularly enjoyable in respect of the large number of diverse participating restaurants and wine estates, as well as easy and ample parking.

Every year the venue has changed, and this year the Restaurant showcase will be held at the Green Point Cricket Club.  Inexplicably, the dates for the event were moved from April, which would have meant better weather, to today until 8 May, and no wine estates are on show, compared to their presence in the past years.  The ‘Taste of…’ showcases are held in major cities around the world, and the one in Cape Town has been organised by Justine Drake since its inception. 

The 14 participating restaurants are Bistro Sixteen82 (Chef Brad Ball serving sticky five-spiced free-range pork belly); Il Leone Mastrantonio (its chef Daniel Toledo serving a selection of Italian specialities);   Jordan Restaurant with George Jardine from Stellenbosch (Eat Out Top 10 George Jardine will offer barrel-smoked kingklip fettucine, Chalmar sirloin, foie gras bourguignon, as well as a buffalo milk yoghurt mousse with Valrhona chocolate); Nobu from the One&Only Cape Town (serving yellowtail sashimi, pork belly with spicy miso, and Japanese halibut with den miso); Pierneef à La Motte’s chef Chris Erasmus will offer Cape Bokkom salad, smoked lamb’s rib with pickled tongue, dried pear dumplings and verjuice poached pear, and milk tart;  Simply Asia;  Wang Thai;  Societi Bistro; Planet Restaurant at the Mount Nelson with Chef Rudi Liebenberg; GOLD; Taj Cape Town; Fyndraai Restaurant from Solms Delta, with chef Shaun Schoeman; and Savour Restaurant at 15 on Orange. 

One can try three dishes at each stand, and one uses crowns to the value of R5 to pay for the dishes, each dish having a different crown value.  Additional attractions are the Eat In Small Produce Market, which will have Buffalo Ridge mozzarella, preserves from Oded’s Kitchen, Tasha’s fudge, La Petite France camembert, and Willow Creek olive oil to taste, amongst others.   Pick ‘n Pay’s Fresh Living Theatre Chef’s Theatre will offer chef’s demonstrations, including Pete Goffe-Wood talking about SASSI, and one can learn how to make canapés at the Pick ‘n Pay Wine & Canapé Experience.  The Grolsch Beer Academy and the Johnnie Walker Whisky Theatre will offer liquid refreshments.

POSTSCRIPT 8/5:  After struggling to find parking anywhere reasonably close by on Friday evening, we went to the Taste of Cape Town yesterday at 13h00, a good time as far as parking went, but a day-time visit with relatively fewer people did not have the same magic as all my previous evening attendances, mainly because one enjoys bumping into other foodlovers.  I was impressed to see so many top chefs hands-on in their food preparation, in what must feel like a production line for them, being George Jardine of Jordan Restaurant, Stefan Marais of Societi Bistro, Chris Erasmus of Pierneef à La Motte, and Brad Ball of Bistro Sixteen82. 

I spent my R100 on 20 crowns on Jordan Restaurant’s Aged Chalmar sirloin and foie gras bourguignon (left), on Bistro Sixteen82’s Sticky five-spiced free-range pork belly with salted caramel and apple celeriac espuma (right), as well as on Societi Bistro’s chicken liver parfait on toast with pineapple chutney.  I was surprised to see a number of wine estates exhibiting as well, not having seen any information about them on the website:  Arumdale, De Wetshof, Hermanuspietersfontein, Idiom Wines, Neil Joubert, Noble Hill, Peter Falke Wines, Quion Rock, Rickety Bridge, Steenberg, Thelema, Van Loveren, Wedderwill, and even Jorgensen Distillery, which is on the list but which I did not see. There was a stand for Whale Tale Ale, which I had never heard of before, but which I must connect with.

The Eat In Small Producers’ Market was spread over two tents, and they are a little lost, not being in the flow of the restaurants and wineries.  I enjoyed meeting Wayne Rademeyer of Wellington’s mozzarella producer Buffalo Ridge, Tina Bester of the Queen of Tarts, tasted excellent frozen yoghurt from an aptly named Scoop, and was impressed with the fresh organic vegetables from The Drift, owned by father and son team David and Bruce Jack of Flagstone Wines.

Taste of Cape Town, Green Point Cricket Club, 5 and 6 May 18h30 – 22h30, Saturday 7 May 13h00 – 17h00 and 18h30 – 22h30, and 8 May 12h00 – 17h00.  Entrance costs R70 with a wine glass, or R160 for a wine glass and crowns to the value fo R100.  Book at www.tasteofcapetown.com or www.computicket.com.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio:  www.whalecottage.com  Twitter: @WhaleCottage

Earth, Wind and Fire and all that jazz blows at Cape Town International Jazz Festival!

The 12th Cape Town International Jazz Festival, taking place in Cape Town from tomorrow, is estimated to inject R475 million into the economy of Cape Town, to contribute R685 million to the GDP of South Africa, and has created 2000 jobs, reports the Cape Argus.  The headline act is Earth, Wind and Fire, and 42 artists will perform at the Jazz Festival, half of them from Africa and the rest from other countries.

Last year the International Jazz Festival attracted 34000 jazz lovers over two days, making it the single largest event in Cape Town, said Joey Pather, the CEO of the Cape Town International Convention Centre, inside and outside of which the Jazz Festival takes place.  President Jacob Zuma acknowledged the economic importance in terms of income and job creation of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival during his State of the Nation address in February. 

The attendance is expected to grow when the Convention Centre expands its capacity.   Sponsorship of the Jazz Festival has been under pressure, especially last year, due to the World Cup, but 95 % of the tickets have been sold to date.   More visitors to the Jazz Festival are from Gauteng, with the Western Cape surprisingly having the lowest number of Jazz Festival attendees.   About a quarter of all attendees are from overseas.

The spokesperson of the Western Cape Department of Tourism said that the direct benefit of the International Jazz Festival is R 43 million, spent on flights, hotels, restaurants, shopping and other expenditure. The CEO of S A Tourism, Thandiwe January-McLean, praised the contribution of the Jazz Festival: “South African Tourism takes great pride in supporting this world-class event that has helped showcase our country as a (sic) unique lifestyle and musical destination”.

Some of the acts performing at the International Jazz Festival include Youssou N’Dour, Gang of Instrumentals, Chad Saaiman, Mathew Moolman, Lloyd Jansen, Hugh Masekela, Larry Willis, David Ledbetter and the Clearing, and Bebe Winans.  Some ‘concept bands’ will be created especially for the Jazz Festival, such as the ‘Tribute to Oscar Peterson’ concept band, which will consist of Jack van der Poll, James Scholfield and Hein van de Geyn, and play Peterson’s repertoire.  Guitafrika is another concept band, and consists of beloved local guitarist Steve Newman, Eric Triton from Mauritius, and Alhousseini Mohammed Aniviolla from Niger.   The Cape Town Tribute Band will be put together to do exactly that, paying tribute to the many jazz musicians who passed away in the past year, including Tony Schilder (‘Montreal’), Winston Mankunku, Robbie Jansen, and Hotep Galeta (‘Harold’s Bossa’).   The fourth concept band includes bassist Victor Masondo, and will see him perform live – he was recently invited to perform at the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival in Washington.   The ‘concept bands make the festival unique.  People have the opportunity to see bands that they are unlikely to see somewhere else or in their lifetime” said Rashid Lombard, the creator and Festival Director of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.

Cape Town International Jazz Festival, Cape Town International Convention Centre, Cape Town.   www.capetownjazzfest.com  25 -27 March.  Book at Computicket.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com  Twitter: @WhaleCottage

Franschhoek Uncorked Festival pops the corks on 20 wine estates

For the third year running, twenty of Franschhoek’s wine farmers are inviting wine and food lovers to visit their wine estates this coming Saturday and Sunday (4 and 5 September), to taste their new vintages, to eat specialities from the Gourmet capital of South Africa, and to enjoy French-style activities over a weekend of food, fun and wine.

Tickets for Franschhoek Uncorked cost R80 each, and can be bought at Computicket, or at any participating wine estate.  The full programme offered by the 20 wine estates is as follows:

*   Vrede & Lust will have a cigar lounge, Aston Martins will be on display, chocolate can be tasted and diamonds will sparkle

*   Plaisir de Merle will serve more of their lovely pancakes, offer live music, and for the first time offer bread made from flour ground in a historic water mill on the wine estate.

*   Allee Bleue will offer live jazz, and a tasting of their new Brut Rose’.  Smoked salmon croissants, Flammkuchen, Chicken Tandoori wraps, and Shrimp Guacamole wraps will be available for sale.

*   Solms-Delta will offer “Kaapse” music, food, and wine.

*   L’Ormarins has the Franschhoek Motor Museum on its property, will make its Antonij Rupert Protea and Terra del Capo wines available for tasting, boules can be played, and gourmet sandwiches can be bought

*   Graham Beck will offer its Methode Cap Classique bubblies as well as wines to taste, and oysters, cheese and charcuterie platters will be available to eat.  Winemakers Pieter Ferreira and Erika Obermeyer will host masterclasses at R 75 a head, on Saturday and Sunday, at 10h00 and 14h00

*   Lynx Wines will have a Spanish Fiesta theme again, and live Spanish music will be played.  Tapas served include serrano ham and calamari

*   Topiary Wines will release their Rose 2009 and their Cabernet Sauvignon 2007. Visitors can blend their own wines. Live music is offered.

*   La Chataigne offers boules and live entertainment

*   Moreson offers live music, and a food market

*   Maison is the newest Franschhoek wine estate, and belongs to Chris Weylandt of Weylandt’s, and is now also a winemaker.   Food, jazz and wines will be offered.

*   La Motte’s new and Franschhoek’s latest restaurant Pierneef a La Motte offers Cape Winelands cuisine, a Farm Shop sells wines, gifts and farm-baked bread.   The new La Motte Art Gallery, one of the rooms dedicated to the priceless paintings by Pierneef, has opened, and a classical guitar recital will be hosted on Saturday evening.

*   Glenwood will host a Boules Trophy, and is pairing its wines with gourmet food prepared by Camil and Ingrid Haas, previously of Bouillabaisse and Camil’s, serving Bouillabaisse, Chicken Curry and Crepe Suzette.

*   Rickety Bridge offers tapas too, and its Top 10 Shirazes.  Live music, boules, as well as farm rides in their Dodge truck are also available.

*   Grande Provence offers live music, five vintages will be paired with five dishes, a Chef’s Table is offered, and the Grande Provence Pinot Noir will be launched.  Cheese and charcuterie boards will be available.

*   Franschhoek Cellars offer cheese and wine tastings, as well as cheese lunches

*   Dieu Donne offers live music, Vineyard platters, “wine-infused casual food”, and micro-beer on tap

*   Cabriere offers a wine tour and tasting, with a Sabrage, at 11h00 on Saturday and Sunday

*  La Petite Ferme offers wine tours, and salmon and wine pairing at R120.

*   Boekenhoutskloof will launch The Chocolate Block 2009, a band will provide the “gees” and Reuben Riffel will offer his famous Reuben’s Barbeque Experience.

Further details can be obtained from the Franschhoek Tourism Bureau, Tel (021) 876-3603.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com