Jazzing up the night (& day) with Cape Town City Ballet. Photo by Michael Groenewald courtesy of CTCB.

Whether you’re looking to end the holiday on a high note, or kick start the new year with some memorable melodies, Cape Town City Ballet will have you tapping and clapping to the lively tunes of legendary singer/songwriter Cole Porter with their production of Night & Day, on at Cape Town’s Artscape Theatre until 11 January 2014.

Showing off the versatility of Cape Town City Ballet’s dancers, this production blends ballet with tap, cabaret and jazz set to Porter’s witty lyrics and charming tunes. You’ll recognise songs like Let’s Misbehave, I’ve got you under my skin and It’s too darn hot; and for days afterwards you’ll be humming It’s delicious, it’s delightful, it’s De-Lovely as well as Let’s do it, let’s fall in love.

In fact, you can start singing along right now with this fantastically fun little video clip – taken from the movie DeLovely based on Cole Porter’s life – with Alanis Morisette singing the lead…

And here’s another special old-time treat with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers performing Cole Porter’s Night and Day.

Booking details:

Dates: 30 December 2013 – 11 January 2014
Venue: Artscape Theatre, Cape Town
Tickets: From R150 or children (6 to 16 years) at R50 through Computicket.

Starting with The Tin Soldier from 11 to 24 December, we’ll get to unwrap a fresh new ballet creation based on Hans Christian Andersen’s magical storybook, The Steadfast Tin Soldier (Rabbit Ears Storybook Classics)

Choreographed by Cape Town City Ballet’s artistic director, Robin van Wyk, this ballet tells the story of a toy tin soldier’s love for a paper ballerina. Set to the music of Alexander Glazunov, the score will be performed by the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra for all but two performances (recorded music will be used for the shows on Friday 13 December at 11:00 and Tuesday 24 December at 14:00).

Overlapping with The Tin Soldier, from 18 to 22 December, the ballet company will present Belles and Beaux of the Ballet, which will include a selection of beautiful scenes from well-loved ballets, where Cape Town City Ballet’s star ballerinas and danseurs will perform some of the most enticing roles in the ballet repertoire.

Following this, from 31 December 2013 to 11 January 2014, comes the entertaining and popular production of Night & Day – the ballet tribute to the legendary songwriter, Cole Porter, featuring his memorable tunes and danced with a combination of ballet, jazz, tap dance and cabaret. Read more about Night & Day here, including a fun video with Robbie Williams’ take on Cole Porter too.

A bit of fun for everyone

Commenting on this bumper ballet programme, Cape Town City Ballet’s artistic executive, Keith Mackintosh says:

“I guess the idea is to create a summer festival of ballets, offering our regular audiences, together with visitors both local and international coming into Cape Town at that time of the year, the opportunity of a variety of works while at the same time demonstrating the versatility of the company and its dancers.”

Booking details:

The Tin Soldier
Dates: 11 – 24 December 2013
Venue: Artscape Theatre, Cape Town
Tickets: from R125 to R225 and children (6 to 16 years) at R50 through Computicket.

Belles and Beaux of the Ballet
Dates: 18 – 22 December 2013
Venue: Artscape Theatre, Cape Town
Tickets: from R125 to R220 and children (6 to 16 years) at R50 through Computicket.

Night & Day
Dates: 30 December 2013 – 11 January 2014
Venue: Artscape Theatre, Cape Town
Tickets: R250 or children (6 to 16 years) at R50 through Computicket.

Special Discounts:

• Block Bookings of 10 or more: R10 off ticket price.
• 2 Show Combo (The Tin Soldier and Belles and Beaux of the Ballet OR The Tin Soldier and Night & Day): 10% off ticket price.
• 3 Show Combo (The Tin Soldier, Belles and Beaux of the Ballet and Night & Day): 10% off ticket price

Cape Town City Ballet’s fast-paced production of Night & Day. Photo by Michael Groenewald courtesy of CTCB.

Following successful runs in Cape Town and Johannesburg, Cape Town City Ballet’s popular production Night & Day – a tribute to the vibrant life and memorable music of Cole Porter – will be performed at The Playhouse for the first time from 4 to 7 July 2013.

Cole Porter achieved huge success in the 1920s and 1930s as one of the major songwriters for the Broadway musical stage and went on to become one of the 20th century’s most popular song writers, creating some of the wittiest and romantic songs ever composed.

“It’s delightful, it’s de-lovely”

Porter’s music has continued to be popular with the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Robbie Williams, Michael Bublé, and Alanis Morisette, who all recorded versions of his well-known songs, like Let’s Misbehave, Too Darn Hot, Let’s Fall in Love and Anything Goes.

In this fun video clip, Robbie Williams takes us behind-the-scenes on the set of the 2004 movie De-Lovely, which was based on Porter’s life (and served as the inspiration behind this ballet). The delightful-delicious-delovely Robbie plays the part of the wedding singer, singing one of Porter’s famous songs, and he shares his thoughts with us on why he “gets a bigger kick out of singing this stuff” than his own…

Named after Porter’s other most famous song, Night and Day, this modern ballet by Robin van Wyk takes you on an absorbing journey through the joys and tragedies of Porter’s love and life.

The exciting choreography combines ballet, tap, jazz and live musicians to transport the audience to a Parisian park, a cafe in Venice, the streets of New York and a Hollywood film studio.

Photo by Michael Groenewald courtesy of CTCB.

Booking details:

Performance dates and times:
Thursday 4 July 2013 at 7:30pm
Friday 5 July 2013 at 7:30pm
Saturday 6 July 2013 at 2pm
Saturday 6 July 2013 at 7:30pm
Sunday 7 July 2013 at 3pm

Venue: The Playhouse, Durban
Tickets: R90 or R120 from Computicket