September 16, 2008
By Zane Henry
'We're inviting you to a party in the spirit of Noël Coward," Sanjin Muftic says. "Kalk Bay Theatre will provide the food and the beverages and Godfrey Johnson are your hosts. We'll take you through the highs and lows of the party - the mad, comic partying and the taking a dip on the couch before the next bottle of champagne."
"You'll need your asthma pump before you get to Mad Dogs and Englishmen," Godfrey Johnson laughs.
Muftic is directing Johnson in Flirting With Coward at Kalk Bay Theatre. The show pays homage to singer, songwriter, actor, playwright and artist Noël Coward. The show will channel Coward's arch wit and debonair charm to the tune of classics like 20th Century Blues, If Love Were All and Mad About the Boy. Johnson will both sing and play the piano.
"We aren't imitating Coward," Johnson says. "We aren't interested in producing a generic tribute show. We've taken the songs and done them in our own style, so that they sound more modern and accessible. One doesn't need to be a Coward fanatic to appreciate the show."
"One of Godfrey's greatest strengths is his ability to take familiar songs and present them in a fresh way, so that you hear them almost for the first time," Muftic says
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"Sanjin is a tremendously kind director," Johnson says. "I don't mean that he compliments me all the time but rather that he is flexible and allows the work to grow organically."
Johnson and Muftic's previous collaboration was the well-received Behind Every Man, wherein Johnson pays tribute to female singers and songwriters.
Johnson has been working as a musician, director and composer in the theatre industry for thousands of years. OK, maybe not thousands. A while, then. He has collaborated with artists like Pieter-Dirk Uys and recently won the Fleur Du Cap Theatre Award for his work in Kissed By Brel.
Muftic has recently formed a production company called Yawazzi Productions with John Keevey. The company has produced the shows Under the Stars, Above the Tree and The Life and Work of Petrovic Petar.
Godfrey Johnson, the Zen diva and Sanjin Muftic, the Bosnian-born director are sanguine about their new production. "We love what we do and if we can communicate some of that love to the audience, we'll be happy."
Flirting With Coward runs at Kalk Bay Theatre from tomorrow until Sunday. Book on 073-220-5430.
  
 
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