Simpatico

SIMPATICO -- BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!Godfrey and Aletia are a two of only a handful of South African artists who understand the essence of cabaret. This is the third iteration of this talk-show style cabaret where they share their unique style of comedy, original music and classic duets. Godfrey and Aletia met at UCT in 1996. He was the musical director of the Pantomime; she was Flora Dora Daisy. Was it Sleeping Beauty? Who knows? It was too long ago…. Aletia considers Godfrey her cabaret mentor who gave her the gift of believing in her. They have continued their separate careers on different continents and have both been awarded for their ‘bravery’. Their collaboration is a special connection to behold.Material from cabaret masters like Jacques Brel, Leonard Cohen, as well as songwriters like Joni Mitchell and divas like Judy Garland and Barbra Streisand juxtaposed with contemporary singers and vintage and alternative arrangements of pop songs in this rare collaboration. UNIQUE FACTORS: A very rare collaboration. Two award winning performers. Talk show style cabaret. Original music from both artists. Vintage cabaret music. ‘Godfrey is a consummate professional and has complete command of the keyboard and his splendid voice. His rendition of Cohen's Famous Blue Raincoat remains one of my favourites. Aletia is a delight, and one of the highlights of the show is her interpretation of Maya Angelou’s Phenomenal Woman.’ – The Heart of Theatre Godfrey Johnson is an award-winning performer who has graced the stages of Europe, South Africa and Canada. He was most recently seen in his 4-time Fleur du Cap nominated one man VASLAV, THE GOOD NEWS CABARET with Roland Perold and BAMBI SINGS THE FAK SONGS with Pieter-Dirk Uys. He was recently nominated for several Fleur du Cap awards: best actor in a musical, best actor in a one person show as well as best composer. Aletia Upstairs is a doctor of archival performance, cabaretist, performance activist, singer-songwriter, and vintage jazz songstress. She performs her award-wining participatory-immersive cabaret performance mostly in London and Birmingham. She was a nominee of the QX Cabaret Awards in 2019 and a finalist for Jazz Idol with the London Gay Big Band in 2017. Her skills have been acknowledged in 5-star reviews for A Queer Love of Dix at The Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2018 and for The Artist as Explorer at The Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2017 and she was awarded the Kantor Demarco award for directing Emballage in 2016. In in 2009 she won a scholarship to The International Cabaret Conference at Yale. She has composed and produced four solo albums, and her original music is available on all online platforms.Simpatico: @Aletia_co and @godfreyjohnson123 (Instagram). A very rare collaboration from two award winning performers. A talk-show style cabaret with their unique style of comedy, original music and duets. Time: 19:00 - Doors open at 18:30Tickets: R200 online - R220 at the door