Theatre
The Importance of Being Earnest
Max Webster directs a joyful and flamboyant reimagining of Oscar Wilde’s most celebrated comedy. Olivier Award-winner Sharon D Clarke is joined by Ncuti Gatwa and Hugh Skinner in this National Theatre Live production, on screens at select cinemas.
Dates: August 30 & 31, September 2
Venues: Select SterKinekor cinemas
Tickets: R249.90
Feedback
Playwright and director Andrew Buckland’s Feedback is a murder mystery and satirical comedy centred on two brothers, a detective and a host of flying cheeses. Prepare to be delighted.
Dates: August 7-30
Venue: The Baxter Studio, Cape Town
Tickets: R160-R240
The Dumb Waiter
The Dumb Waiter, starring Brent Palmer and Jock Kleynhans, is a one-act play by Harold Pinter, written in 1957. In a desolate basement, two hitmen wait for their next assignment. Expect dark humour and a sturdy dose of unease. Directed by Aidan Scott.
Dates: August 12-24
Venue: Theatre on the Square, Sandton
Tickets: R150-R180
Art
Contra.Joburg
Contra.Joburg — a radical visual-arts festival — returns to Joburg under the theme “Expect the Unexpected”. This year’s edition promises “surprise interventions and unscripted artistic experiences”. Various studios open their doors to the public over the weekend, with a free shuttle service looping between them.
Dates: August 30-31
Venues: Art studios across Joburg
Tickets: R120
Don’t miss:
- David Krut Project’s group exhibition “Still Life: A Contemporary Arrangement”, featuring, among others, Deborah Bell, William Kentridge, Boemo Dialle, Maja Maljević, until August 31.
- “Happy Women’s Month, I Guess” group exhibition by Athenkosi Kwinana, Amogelang Maepa, Claire Lichtenstein, DuduBloom More, Inga Lokwe, Leila Abrahams, Puleng Mongale, and Yonela Doda at Berman Contemporary until August 24.
- William Kentridge’s “The Pull of Gravity” exhibition at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, UK, until April 19 2026
- “Fertile Ground” group show with Lothar Böttcher, Eric Duplan, Kay Fourie, Pauline Gutter, Cobus Haupt, Mandie Immelman, Elrie Joubert, Miné Kleynhans Grietjie Lee, Io Makandal, Elsa Maritz, Louis Olivier, Stella Olivier, Kyra Papé Holz, Sarel Petrus, André Rose, Brett Rubin, Wessel van Huyssteen, and Geertje Venter at Gallery 2, Joburg, until August 23
- Adelheid Frackiewicz’s “Drawing the Line” and Tebogo Boikanyo Matshana’s “Transposing an Echo: Reimagining Oral Setswana Poetry through Digital Intervention” at the Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town, from August 7 until September 25.
- Mapula Embroidery Project’s “2020 Through the Eye of a Needle: Remembering the Covid-19 Pandemic in 2025” group show at the Wits Art Museum until September 13.
- “The River Beneath the River: Women Artists and the Human Figure in Nature” by Deborah Bell, Diane Victor, Nthabiseng Boledi Kekana and Heidi Fourie, at David Krut Projects Artspace, New York from August 1 until September 28.
Books
Vernac Book Fair
Bridge Books holds its first Vernac Book Fair this month, bridging the gap between writers, publishers and readers in a celebration of local and indigenous languages. Directed at young readers, professional language practitioners, and leisure readers, the fair features story-time sessions, performances and panel discussions.
Date: August 16
Venue: Bridge Books, Barbican, 89 Helen Joseph St, Johannesburg
Tickets: R80
Music
Early Spring Symphony Season
On August 7, Dutch maestro Arjan Tien opens the Johannesburg season with the Suite from Bizet’s Carmen, followed by Arutiunian’s Trumpet Concerto and Dvořák’s Sixth Symphony. Mei-Ann Chen takes the podium on August 14 with Mozart’s “Haffner” Symphony, Haydn’s D Major Piano Concerto and Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony.
Chen returns on August 21 with Mendelssohn-Hensel’s 1832 Overture in C Major, Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No 5, and Schumann’s Fourth Symphony. Conductor Daniel Boico ends the season on August 28 with Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No 4, Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No 2 and Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” Symphony.
Dates: August 7-28
Venue: Linder Auditorium, Joburg
Tickets: From R180
American Flair: Spring Symphonies At The City Hall
The Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra opens its spring season with conductor Daniel Raiskin and soloist François du Toit. The evening’s programme consists of Bernstein’s Candide Overture, Gershwin’s Concerto in F, John Williams’ The Cowboys Overture, and Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story.
Date: August 28
Venue: Cape Town City Hall
Tickets: R190-R450
