It is often talked about that local culture isn’t celebrated enough in relation to overseas art, or with enough glitz and pride. Well, in no uncertain terms, ‘Where The Boys Are’ shows how it should be done.

The show doles out the style without sacrificing charm and heart. In anybody else’s hands, a production of this nature, that is so slick and polished, could have felt cold, calculated and crudely flashy, like an Idols showcase or something. Appollis reveals a cultured and mature sensibility in his handling of the tempo and tone of the production.

To spruce things up, the creators have spliced in a few international favourites in along with the local classics and it feels right, as Capetonian songwriters and composers over the years have been heavily influenced by overseas music.
This show has played before in the Baxter Concert Hall and at the more intimate setting of On Broadway. The expansiveness of the Artscape Theatre affords the creators to go truly razzmatazz on yo’ behind (forgive the imported, obnoxious slang), yet the intimate feel of the stories told by the cast isn’t sacrificed in the process.

In Alistair Izobell, Loukmaan Adams and Mono Dullisear, Appollis has three performers in their absolute prime, yet I think he manages to get possibly the best performances to date out of them. ‘Where The Boys Are’ walks a fine balance of immaculately worked out structure and improvisation, and the cast intuits that balance to perfection.

The ultimate impression they leave one with is one of consummate, world class. For many people who have seen these performers mature over the years, ‘Where The Boys Are’ will leave them beaming with pride.
Simply put, there is nothing in the City at the moment that can touch this show for pure entertainment value.

* Book at Computicket.