| What: Unthinkable – Variety, vaudeville, cirque and burlesque When: Booking until January 25, 2025 (selected nights). The planned extension is that show will end at the end of February 2025 but bookings have not opened yet on Quicket Where: Kalk Bay Theatre at Brass Bell Restaurants & Pubs, Main Rd, Kalk Bay Performers: Vanessa Harris, Ash Searle, Brad Searle, Jessica Kohler, Bronwyn Craddock, Anna Olivier and Tamsyn Dexter Choreography: Ash Searle Concept: Vanessa Harris and Ash Searle Costume design: Vanessa Harris Set and lighting design: Vanessa Harris Technician: Nicki Sisson Music: Ash Searle Age restriction: No under 18s Created and produced by: Followspot Productions Dress code: Black tie, glitz & glamour, fancy and fabulous Tickets: R350 and R24.72 booking fee (Does not include cost of a meal at Brass Bell) Booking: Quicket – go via Kalk Bay Theatre website at http://www.kalkbaytheatre.co.za or if you get stuck, WhatsApp on 066 205 5063 Good to know: Those who dine at the Brass Bell in its Theatre Restaurant on the Captain’s Deck, get preferential seats Parking: The best parking lot is the one opposite the Wetsuit Warehouse. Alex is the car guard, and if you can’t find parking, he will valet park your car |
Unthinkable, the Kalk Bay Theatre’s 2024/2025 festive season show is sheer entertainment with thrilling acts. The show includes cirque, cabaret, burlesque (in reverse), aerial and comedy acts (great to see the “towel act” revived Ashley Searle and Bradley Searle). Unthinkable is currently booking until January 25, 2025. Most houses have been sold out. The planned extension is that show will end at the end of February 2025 but bookings have not opened yet.
A big innovation at the Kalk Bay Theatre is that the venue has been refigured. The stage has been moved- flipped from where it was to the ocean side. The ceiling is now high above the stage which facilitates aerial acts and sophisticated rigging.
Each year, the KBT raises the bar of the festive season shows. Unthinkable is outstanding – the best KBT festive season show that I have seen. Choreography by Ash Searle is superb with an extensive range of genres, including ballet, stunning aerial and pole dancing and the usual great comedy.
Unthinkable is a highly polished show with terrific lighting (love the laser light act) and shadow puppetry. There are 16 acts and 16 costume changes (costumes by Vanessa Harris): Sixteen acts in a show which is 85 to 90 minutes long. That gives you an idea of the pace of the show. There are no lag moments.
The eclectic song list includes Take Me to the River – the Annie Lennox version – song made famous by Talking Heads in the late 70s.
Vanessa Harris as the MC Vee, links the acts together, with zing. Her full bodied comedy which is delicious – even if it involves wine from Checkers. The call out is to make the most of things and cherish each moment. This is underscored by the song, I Will Survive, which gets everyone singing along.
Unthinkable is in the main (besides from the chit chat in the MC interludes), non-verbal theatre. The joy of watching is being surprised so I don’t want to spoil – too much. I will mention the chest of draws set with figures. That is all I am going to say. It is a clever and lyrical set.
I have to give a shout-out to the infamous towel act by Brad and Ash Searle (they are brothers). If you are like me, you will wonder why the one towel has a small piece cut out of it. Wait for the end and watch what happens. This act has been performed several times by the brothers and it is great to see how they have innovated the towel shtick in Unthinkable with the finessing of clowning and the risqué elements. Watch the clip here: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMkDJSTjL/
It is remarkable how Ash Searle and Vanessa Harris (husband and wife) have developed the KBT. They took over the theatre in August 2014. The KBT was started by the late Simon Cooper at the previous premises, in a deconsecrated church in Kalk Bay. The stage area was tiny and was part of the floor, ie not a raised stage. It was in the old KBT, that Followspot Productions (Ash and Vanessa’s production company) started its festive season cirque/cabaret/comedy shows.
During Covid, unable to continue in the old premises, team KBT considered other venues. They were offered a home at the Brass Bell Restaurants and Pubs and in December 2020, at the tail end of Covid (but I think, there may have still been mask wearing and some restrictions). The new KBT at the Brass Bell opened with an extended version of their show Man Band, which has been a hit in the first KBT. It featured a raised stage and the capacity to do aerial acts. Now with the flipping of the theatre, at the end of 2024, they are able to take aerial to new heights. The stage area is bigger as well.
The year 2025, marks over a decade for Followspot Productions, heading up the KBT. That is an incredible milestone. The KBT is destination theatre. There is usually a dress code, prompting the audience to dress up and get into the vibe of the show. Shows are always fun. Unthinkable is a tightly conceived show, beautifully staged, with knockout acts and choreography. Go and see it – if you can get a ticket.
❇ Ash Searle, Brad Searle and Bronwyn Craddock in Unthinkable at The Kalk Bay Theatre, Cape Town. The production is booking into January 25, 2025. Images supplied.
