Don’t Miss This: September 18 – 24

Cape Town

• New-York based contemporary dance company Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre is performing in Cape Town after a successful Johannesburg season. The dance company, which was founded in 1958 by choreographer and dancer Alvin Ailey, will alternate two programmes of dance vignettes under the direction of Robert Battle. WHEN Until September 20. WHERE Artscape Theatre Centre. COST R100 to R475. TICKETS Available at Computicket. INFO Visit artscape.co.za

• The University of Cape Town (UCT) Big Band will share the stage with university staff members Andrew Lilley, Mike Rossi, Amanda Tiffin, Darryl Andrews, Jason Reolon and Mike Campbell at the annual South African College of Music Jazz Festival. The college offers performance studies in classical music and opera, African music and jazz, and music technology. WHEN September 18 and 19. WHERE Chisholm Recital Room, South African College of Music. TIME 8.15pm. COST R60. Senior citizens and students pay R45, school pupils pay R35 and UCT students get in free. TICKETS Available at Computicket or at the door. INFO Visit sacm.uct.ac.za

Durban

• This year the ballroom and Latin American dance production Shall We Dance celebrates its 23rd season. The show features about 100 dancers, some as young as 13, as well as South Africa’s world champions, Gerhard van Rooyen and Amor Kruger, and Danish champions Nicolai Bouet and Anna Shagalina. WHEN September 18 and 19. WHERE Playhouse Opera theatre. TIME 7.30pm. COST R75 to R140. TICKETS Available at Computicket. INFO Visit playhousecompany.com

The cast of Shall We Dance

Johannesburg

• American hitmaker Brian Mc­Knight is the latest international R&B act to grace South African stages. His nationwide tour comes to an end in Jo’burg this weekend when he will perform his classic ballads and new material from his latest offering, Better. WHEN September 19. WHERE Carnival City festival lawns, Ekurhuleni. TIME 7pm. COST R495 to R1?250. TICKETS Available at Computicket. INFO Visit suninternational.com

*Read more on Brian McKnight here. 

• Bassline is hosting the Speak the Mind Poetry and Music Sessions, celebrating 10 years  of this poetry, spoken-word and live music festival. The sessions feature artists from South Africa, Africa and the diaspora and will include a discussion on “graft, class, white privilege and black rage”. Panellists include Mzilikazi wa Afrika, Nomsa Mazwai and Kyle Louw, and there will be performances by American poet Black Ice, Zimbabwean spoken-word artist Charity Hutete and musicians The Muffinz, Madala Kunene and Kabomo. WHEN September 19. WHERE Bassline, Newtown. TIME 3pm to 7pm. TICKETS R100 at Computicket and R150 at the door. INFO Visit facebook.com/SpeakTheMindSessions

* Read more about Speak the Mind Poetry and Music Sessions here. 

• Pretoria-born artist Lionel Smit presents a multidisciplinary exhibition titled Close/Perspective. Smit, who is a painter and sculptor, aims to challenge the way we perceive and interpret things through his latest body of work. He recently showcased some of his work at the FNB Jo’burg Art Fair. WHEN Until September 30. WHERE Everard Read gallery, Rosebank. TIME Mondays to Fridays from 9am to 6pm; Saturdays from 9am to 1pm. INFO Visit everard-read.co.za