Theatres – Discover the wonderful performing arts!
Theatre is not only a great form of entertainment, but often provides insight into the ideas and philosophies held by a particular culture. Issues that face society in everyday life are often acted out on stage to provoke the audience to think about how these things affect our lives and our outlook on life. The theatre is also a place where various facets of the country’s culture and government are featured – often in a humorous way. South Africa certainly has a vibrant theatrical scene with literally hundreds of different theatres spread across the country, offering a wide variety of theatrical performances. South African theatre goers can choose between cultural drama, cabarets, dance, music, classical ballet, opera and much, much more!
The theatres in South Africa are housed in a number of different locations. Some of them can be found in large, stately homes that were once supported by the state. Other theatres are more refreshing, being recently built to meet international standards. A few of them take the form of open air theatres at revamped fruit markets or country barns, while still others can be found at casinos or trendy Cape wine estates. The choices are virtually endless.
In addition to the various regular theatres in South Africa, you will find a variety of theatrical festivals held across the country each year. Some of these enjoy a particular focus on the performing arts, while others are more broad in nature, but will have a definite performing arts program as part of the festivities. Probably the most famous and largest theatrical festival in the country is the annual Grahamstown National Arts Festival which has now been running for almost 30 consecutive years. This festival showcases the best of the country’s established and emerging talent in all spheres of the arts, with a particular focus on performing and visual arts. Clearly you will find that South Africa offers a virtually unrestricted range of theatrical experiences all year round.
