It was very special to attend a Songbirds show at Die Koelkamers in Paternoster. Mynie Grové and Kim Kallie performed two shows on March 21 and 22, 2025. They were accompanied on keyboards by Jaconell Mouton.
Songbirds is a milestone concert. It is the first time in over twenty years that Mynie Grove has performed on stage. It is a celebration and sharing of memories by Mynie and Kim – a stirring tribute to love – family, relationships, friends, love of song and music.
Family, friends and colleagues, communed in Die Koelkamers – the gorgeous theatre at the Paternoster Waterfront. Paternoster is a fishing village on the West Coast of South Africa, said to be one of the oldest fishing villages in SA. It is 145km from Cape Town – about a two to two hand half hours by car, depending on traffic. The theatre, created out of a koelkamer, a cold room used to store fish, was established during lockdown in the pandemic, March 2021. The theatre is a vital arts hub in Paternoster and is a platform for big names and emerging artists; music, musical theatre, theatre and visual art.
In Die Koelkamers, it feels like one is sitting in the living room of a home. The intimacy of the theatre dovetails with Songbirds which is an intensely personal show, imbued with emotion.
Kim’s mom, the legendary singer, Judy Page was in the audience on the night that we attended and having in her the room, added so much poignancy to the show. Kim’s career as a songbird came about at a young age. She started singing with her mom when she was seven or eight. Judy took her into Gallo Recording Studios in Johannesburg and they recorded Montreal, which became a chart-topping hit. Kim and Mynie spoke about Judy during the show, acknowledging her presence. What came across profoundly was the expression of their lived experience and processing that now in 2025. Mynie has been through a lot. There was the loss of the love of her life but she is grateful for the love that she had and precious friends like Kim who sustained her over the years. Mynie’s story songs are a joy to listen to – the farm girl regaling us with her wry sense of humour, going to boarding school and about her experiences in the music industry.
The friendship between the two songbirds goes back to the 80s in Johannesburg. Kim mused that perhaps they connected so well because they started out in the industry, so young [See https://www.facebook.com/share/r/15uqnTVzHZ] Songbirds is a captivating mix of stirring song and story within a musical theatre/cabaret format. Terrific lighting and scripted with care (with some improv, I am sure). Beautiful expressive voices. It was wonderful to hear their anecdotes as they reminisced. For instance, Kim told us that the lyrics of the song, Montreal [recorded in 1967] were written by Paul Ditchfield of the Bats. There were whoops of delight from the audience at the mention of Paul Ditchfield. At the age of eight, Kim looked at Paul Ditchfield and swooned, “God, he is the most gorgeous thing I have seen.” A delicious memory.
Bravo to Iain Banner (husband of Kim) for getting these Songbirds together – on stage – and to Jan Malan and Greg Meyer of Die Koelkamers for hosting Songbirds. The shows were sold out. Hopefully there will be encore Songbird shows.
Related coverage- interview with Mynie Grové and Kim Kallie https://thecaperobyn.co.za/interview-mynie-grove-and-kim-kallie-songbirds-music-story-cocktail-of-two-friends-at-die-koelkamers/ For more pics, see https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1HKTECp2Ez/ For more on Die Koelkamers, see Facebook https://www.facebook.com/DieKoelkamers/ and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/diekoelkamers/
❇ Mynie Grové, Jaconell Mouton and Kim Kallie and at Die Koelkamers in Paternoster. Songbirds was presented on March 21 and 22, 2025. Pic: Robyn Cohen/TheCapeRobyn.
