GARTH ANDERSON BENEFIT CONCERT

Mark Banks and Durban theatre luminaries present special fund-raising evening to benefit veteran Durban theatre personality.

Join Mark Banks and a host of Durban theatre luminaries for a very special fund-raising evening to benefit veteran Durban theatre personality Garth Anderson.

The theatre community salutes the contribution Anderson has made to the theatre industry in KwaZulu-Natal. Under the umbrella of KickstArt, a fabulous benefit concert has been arranged themed around two of Garth’s greatest loves: comedy and Coward (Noel Coward). You can “Laugh Out Loud” with Mark Banks and Noel Coward for one night only at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre on June 1 at 19h30.

The first half of the hour-long programme will see accomplished local performers Lisa Bobbert, Anthony Stonier, Steven Stead, Karen van Pletsen, Frances Currie and Shelley MacLean singing 10 of Noel Coward’s best loved and most amusing songs. Friend and associate of Anderson, Mark Banks, will be taking control of the second half of the evening, with a hilarious half hour of his popular stand-up comedy.

Anderson is the founder and artistic director of the Actors Co-operative, and a respected theatre practitioner whose work has been performed as far afield as New York, Perth, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Belgium and France. He is especially well-known for his work in the field of children’s theatre. He is the recipient of the National Vita Award for direction (White Men with Weapons), and has won numerous awards for his work in classics such as Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest.

Garth was diagnosed with diabetes seven years ago, and has gradually become more and more physically debilitated. Over the last three years, he has had both legs amputated just below the knee, and is currently undergoing further surgery for new infection. It is not known how many further operations he will have to undergo. He has been fitted with two prosthetic legs, but with the surgery he cannot currently use them for walking.

Unable to work, he is currently living in Cheshire Homes and has become dependent on the generosity of several friends and the support of the theatre community.

Anderson graduated from the University of Natal in 1976, having studied Drama under Prof Elizabeth Sneddon and has worked as an actor and director ever since. He has been seen in numerous productions for NAPAC, including Amadeus, Robinson Crusoe, Cinderella, Peter Pan, The Sound of Music, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Twelfth Night (Regional Vita Award Best Actor). He has also worked for the other arts councils, CAPAB, PACOFS and PACT, having appeared in several large-scale touring musicals, such as Fiddler on the Roof, Oklahoma and Singing in the Rain.

As an independent producer and director, he has been responsible for some groundbreaking work in Pietermaritzburg and Durban, with productions of The Effects of Gamma Rays on the Man in the Moon and Marigolds, The Importance of Being Earnest, and the first productions of Greig Coetzee’s award-winning plays, White Menwith Weapons and Breasts.

In recent years, it is particularly his work in theatre for young people that has enriched Durban’s cultural landscape. His company, the Actors’ Co-operative, produced productions of the matric Shakespeare setwork every year for eight years, until ill health forced him to stop being involved two years ago. His acclaimed productions of children’s fairytales in the Botanic Garden have been hugely popular until ill health again prevented him from staging them in the last two years.

The management of The Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre and the producers of A Handful of Keys have donated the use of the theatre for the evening; Computicket have generously waivered their surcharges / commissions and will sell the tickets for the concert and the theatre community will be giving their time for free. The event will be produced / directed by the award-winning KickstArt management team.

Tickets R120 booked through Computicket. For those wishing to make a donation, the account is held with Nedbank Musgrave. Branch Code: 130126; Account number: 2515038638