Come Lam in Belgravia Road With Athlone’s Rose – Aunty Merle It’s A Girl Sal Maak Jou Hare SWIRL!

As ôs gewiet’t dat Aunty Merle nie daai lemon meringuewww klaa virrie show gemaak’tie, kan ôs mos ‘n plan gemaak’t! In elk geval the preview of Aunty Merle It’s Girl was tog sweet, sour, rich and decadent anyhow – aal die lemon meringuewww flavours ammal te saam! 

How many comedy musical shows do you know that can kiellie the audience’s funny bone in any scene, even when the tone of the scene is melancholy and disappointment?! Our answer: not many, except for one Marc Lottering.

Not many people know that the character of Aunty Merle was born out of another production written by Marc Lottering himself, From The Cape Flats With Love. This was the very first time we got to hear about Athlone’s Rose and her fabulous adventures with her husband Dennis (We are all German Carribeans!) and Shmiley, the taxi gaatjie – oh ja, but Aunty Merle don’t take taxi because Dennis drives her in a metallic green BM! 

So naturally the theatre creator in us was jits opgewonde to find out that this beautiful starlight of an Athlone character was developed into a full scale musical in 2018/2019 – and then even better, to experience its sequel Aunty Merle It’s A Girl.

The show was produced by Anwar Mc Kay and directed by Lara Foot, with musical direction by Trevino Isaacs, Choreography by Grant Van Ster and Vocal Coaching by Loukmaan Adams (Loukmaan sal ‘n qwaai Dennis gemaak’t!). The show had a 13 member cast, and a 7 member band on trumpet, trombone, drums, electric guitar, bass guitar, keyboard and sexy-phone – ja, die selfde sexy-phone player wat vir Aunty Merle en Soraya innie park gepla’t!

It’s a given that Marc Lottering comes to life with performing Aunty Merle, and the creative versatility exercised in also writing the show’s dialogue (“how can you talk to me like that, Abigail? I mos also have a skin on my face!”) as well as music and lyrics (We Work Things Out was so brilliantly klora!) was just double jits, man!  

The Baxter Theatre’s Main Theatre Venue lit up brightly in the opening scene when – SIR-PRISE! – we were introduced to the living room of Aunty Merle’s house where her 60^th surprise birthday party took place with her friends and family – her husband Dennis, her daughter Abigail and her husband Alan, her son Carl and his partner Siya (their romantic performance of Cutest Thief was just punankies!), Alan's parents Clare (the last time we saw her was on Madam & Eve on etv!) and David, and not forgetting Aunty Merle’s BFF Soraya Samsodien!  

Later on we meet Mandisa, Siya’s mother, and her cocky and homophobic younger boyfriend Glen (also known as Glen 10!) played by Tashreeq de Villiers, who likes taking bubble baths and causing friction between mother and son. While Glen really deserved a moerse klap for that frikkadel theft nommer, we couldn’t help but fall in love with his charm and undeniable vocal talent when he performed that bubble bath number, Pink Wool, in nothing a bath towel!   

(When we first saw Tashreeq in David Kramer’s recent show, we mos said he was gonna be one to watch – and we were nogalz right!) 

The sets interchange beautifully throughout the show, with accompanying backdrops: Aunty Merle’s lounge, a bar, Claremont Gardens (where Aunty Merle and Soraya feed the squirrels and skel out that lastagge sexy-phone player!), Collin and Siya’s apartment in Greenpoint, the church where Aunty Merle confesses a dream she had to a singing church choir (the gold costumes in “God Is Good” was so well selected) and Glen’s bathroom. A genius creation of the show’s director and her stage crew and set builders: Christopher Spogter, Wayne Jacob, Shimaya Mgodleni, Le Roy Reid, Sityhilelo Makupula and Brian September. Well done, ouens!

Aunty Merle’s phone call with her cousin in Australia to brag about the Bokke’s latest win also fantastically brought in current socio-political matters into the show. The show also beautifully demonstrated much needed allyship to the story’s queer couple, whose future endeavours were blessed by Aunty Merle – look at her also being a leqqa activist and an example to all mommies and daddies with queer kids on the Flats! 

It was a long time since we’ve seen Carmen Moolman take to stage, and her dance moves are still so perfectly intact! We’ve seen her sing and represent some Muslim cultural flavour in District Six the Musical (2002) and Ghoema (2005), and we definitely think she deserves ten gold stars for her slamse representation in Aunty Merle It’s A Girl. Tramakassie Aunty Soraya and no, we did not need to be offered samoosas during that awkward family moment in Aunty Merle’s lounge!    

It was also qwaai to see how cast members of previous shows that were run at the Baxter – yes, Cultsha Kennis has well trained theatre eyes and ears by now! The characters of Mandisa, played by Zoleka Helesi, and Siya, played by Sizwesandile Mnisi, were great acts in Florence & The Wilderness. The character of Abigail, played by vocal talent Rushney Ferguson, was as much of a hit as she was in Danger In The Dark!

Thank you to the Baxter Theatre and Berniece Friedmann, the show’s publicist, for inviting Cultsha Kennis to attend and review this show. We were thoroughly entertained from beginning tot ending! The show runs for just under 1hr 30mins at the Baxter Theatre. Tickets are on sale at Webticket from 22 November. We are hoping that the show will return another 3 times, but its haram to gamble with time like that so rather buy your tickets ahead of time!

See moments from Aunty Merle It’s A Girl opening night on Cultsha Kennis Facebook page.