Stars shine on and in Maynardville
A venue that steals our heart time and again
Whether it’s opera, Shakespeare, ballet, or a journey through musicals, Maynardville is always a standout star of the show.
The backdrop of trees is so spectacular that, even when you are being serenaded by four of South Africa’s finest soloists, a 70-piece orchestra and a 60-strong choir (as we were in Sunday in the Park with Sondheim), your eyes remain wide open, drinking in the multi-sensory delights of this gorgeous Cape Town venue.
Like Cape Town Opera Sings Shakespeare in the Park, review above, the tribute to Broadway’s great composer is performed on the stage set custom-designed for The Tempest (running until March 8). You might think this would hint at a compromise required by a local theatre operation; in fact, the slight incongruity of the stage is just another rather curious layer of magic in both of these shows.
Like the birds that sometimes seem to call back to the singers and the occasional police siren (which we heard only during the performance of Assassin … funny that), the natural and the unnatural conspire in this wonderful venue so that all seems to be intended as additional layers of magic and mystery.
It is, no doubt, not half as easy as it looks, but these exceptional cast, under the direction of Elizma Badenhorst, seem so at home in this unusual setting you would be forgiven thinking they live under toadstools in the park.
The shows are always designed for the setting. As Jonathan Roxmouth explained, the first half of the show, which was performed before sunset, would be the lighter, more playful material (if you can describe Sondheim as light).
The second half is the darker material, we were told. It is not that easy to tell the light from the dark. The sun is there one moment, gone the next, and there is a golden thread of humour from the beginning of the show until the end, through the ‘light’ bits and the darker.
Something unusual in Sunday in the Park with Sondheim that added another layer of magic on the night was the foregrounding of the orchestra. The 70-piece Winelands Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of Reghardt Kühn, played their hearts out on stage and often stole the show. Not that the four soloists were ever anything but deserving of the full spotlight.
Roxmouth, a firm favourite of ours, is the epitome of a confident and suave leading man, and so perfectly paired with the hilarious and gorgeous Kate Normington. He is at his most slick and charming, and she is a match for his confidence and charm as she sails playfully though the trickiest of lines.
The wonderful Isabelle Jane and superb André Terblanché complete the quartet of soloists that had a power and a fullness that often made the 60-strong Vivox Voices choir seem almost surplus to requirements. A very moving rendition of Send in The Clowns, by eight of the Vivox singers, gave me goosebumps and made the busy-ness of so many people on stage seem worth it.
You have one more chance to celebrate the genius of Stephen Sondheim in Sunday in the Park with Sondheim on February 23. There are a few other occasions this season to enjoy a night of fabulous entertainment under the stars at Maynardville. From the variety of food on offer, to efficient and friendly service at the bar, and great visibility and excellent sound quality wherever you are sitting, this season at Maynardville features a fabulous range of exceptional productions in all-round glorious night out.
Was there on Sunday 16th, sound quality was really not good. And I don't recall the wonderful Lynelle Kenned being on stage ...