HOLD up just a minute…these are, checks notes…students? This is a cast fresh in its craft, and we just watched their fourth performance of the criminally short run of Tony Award-nominated musical comedy Something Rotten! at Artscape Arena? Apparently these things are true and what a night of joyful exuberance Waterfront Theatre School has given us.
Something Rotten! has made its South African premiere here in Cape Town, and it sparkles from the first moment to the last. Briefly, it’s about an ambitious bard who is jealous of THE bard’s success, and consults a soothsayer to peer into the future and advise what he, Nick Bottom, can do to outshine Will Shakespeare. Where would we be if that all went smoothly? Out in the foyer drinking wine, that’s where.
The short answer is: musicals. The future of theatre. As such, we have multiple references to the great musicals of the last century, and lots of Easter eggs hidden in the script and songs that will delight fans who spot them. You have to be sharp though, but don’t worry if you’re not that nerd; the entire thing is hilarious without you having to be pompous about it (but it is nice, I cannot lie). Then of course, there is the Shakespearean side of things…
Will is a rock star, an ego barely contained, surrounded by adoring fans. Being The Bard is hard though, especially if it has to be in iambic pentameter and rhyming couplets. This too will charm the Shakespeare geeks. Lots more Easter eggs to be gathered with famous lines and just some of the words the playwright and poet invented: more than 1700 of them. Have a look here for some fun and prepare to be amazed.
As much of a rollicking — and clever, oh so clever — two and a bit hours including interval as Something Rotten! is, like every good musical, it leaves you with some thoughts to take home along with the catchy music, if you care to. To thine own self be true, remember who and what is important in life, love and be loved and know what that looks like.
And what of the performers? Brilliant. I choose the word deliberately. That much triple threat talent in one place at the same time is exciting to witness and we can take much comfort in that this is the future of local theatre — although this production would not be out of place on an international stage.
The casting is on point not only in terms of physical appearance but how that conveys into the musical numbers each is responsible for. As much as I’d love to, I’m not going to single anyone out and say what each brings to the stage (tip: look at everyone, no one is melting into the background) because if I go down that road I’ll have to list the entire cast.
Tickets are selling like hot cakes so I do hope you manage to nab them before they’re all gone. Something Rotten! is about as perfect a night out at the theatre gets, and the smile it will put on your face is priceless.
PRESS RELEASE
Something Rotten! is a gloriously cheeky, tap-dancing, jazz-handed love letter to theatre that gleefully asks one very important question: what happens when the Bard’s competition gets desperate enough to invent the musical? The answer, as it turns out, is chaos, spectacle, and a lot of rhyming couplets.
It’s bold, brash, knowingly silly, and packed with show-stopping numbers. In short: if you’ve ever loved musicals, Something Rotten! is here to roast them, toast them, and then serve them up with a flourish of jazz hands.
Performed by the talented Waterfront Theatre School students, direction is by Paul Griffiths with choreography by Ursula Lubbe, the same dynamic team who dazzled audiences with sold-out hits Heathers – The Musical and Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.
Thinus Viljoen completes the powerhouse creative team as musical director. He brings his wealth of performing arts experience and musical knowledge to the production. He says it’s fitting this is his first time in the role of musical director for WTS, as the first song he sang during his time as a student there was from Something Rotten!
Written by Karey Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell with music and lyrics composed by Wayne Kirkpatrick and Karey Kirkpatrick, Something Rotten! was nominated for 10 Tony Awards, including Best Musical.
“Something Rotten! is a joyous celebration of theatre itself. It reminds us of the power of imagination, collaboration, and storytelling to bring people together,” says Griffiths.
“However beneath the laughter, the spectacle and the wonderfully irreverent humour, there lies a deceptively simple question: what happens when we spend so much time trying to be someone else that we forget who we are?
“Following our previous productions of Heathers and Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Something Rotten! felt like a natural next step in an ongoing conversation with our students and audiences about identity, authenticity, and self-discovery, because ultimately, whether in theatre, education, or life itself, success is rarely found in becoming somebody else. It is found in the often difficult, but deeply rewarding, journey of becoming more fully ourselves.”
Set in the Renaissance yet remarkably contemporary in its message, Something Rotten! follows Nick Bottom’s relentless pursuit of success as he struggles under the shadow of the seemingly perfect Shakespeare. His journey is driven by comparison, self-doubt, and the belief that fulfilment lies in becoming more like someone else. It is only when he reconnects with his own voice and vision that he begins to understand the true meaning of success.
