What's On: It's back!

KNYSNA NEWS - What is happening in Knysna and surrounding areas in the next while....

Museums

The Motorcycle Room museum, Thesen Isle, Knysna (daily). Info: 082 414 5167 / www.themotorcycleroom.co.za
San Ambrosio Church museum in the Gouna Forest, Knysna (daily). Info: 044 382 9762 or info@visitknysna.co.za
Forest Legend Museum & Café, Diepwalle, Knysna (daily). Info: 044 382 9762
Millwood House museum, Knysna (Mon-Sat). Info: 044 302 6320
Holy Trinity Church, Belvidere, Knysna (daily). Info: 044 382 1293

Park it at the market

The Friday Market at Knysna Montessori School in Kanonkop Street, 16:00 - 20:30. Supervised parking, seating and shelter, bonfires and live music, a quality craft selection, a bar and an amazing choice of locally produced food enjoyed on the premises or at home.
Sedgefield: Wild Oats Community farmers' market every Saturday morning (an award-winning market with over 60 stalls of the finest local farm produce, home bakes, plants and flowers, outdoor breakfast and live music), Scarab Craft Village and Mosaic Market, all in close proximity along the N2.
Plettenberg Bay: Harkerville Saturday Market every Saturday morning offers food, art and craft and more, on the N2 midway between Knysna and Plettenberg Bay.

Networking Wednesdays

The Knysna Networking group comes together for two Wednesdays every month, with like-minded business individuals meeting to network. For more information you can contact Gudrun Cox on 072 699 4174.

ROCK ROUND-UP

Under the covers

Well-known Knysna nightingale Marlene Boyce and SA's slapback to Jaco Pastorius, Waldimar van Wyk on bass, dish up their popular potpourri of jazz, rock and folk-rock standards and revamped ballads at Muse on 23 April followed by pop-songbird Rene Hunter on 24 April (see live music).
'When Divas Collide' constitutes a vocal collaboration between Cat Simoni and Lucy Tops with a heavily loaded bag of nod-along favourites by everyone from Tim Minchin, Elton John, Tones & I, Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie, Queen, Bette Midler, Marianne Faithfull and Radiohead at Mel's Place in Keurbooms tonight at 19:00.
The nimble-fingered proprietor of Mel's (appropriately named after his place and not the other way around - not) Mel Botes takes over with blazing renditions of faves by Pink Floyd and Dire Straits et al on Friday 23 April.
Saturday 24 April sees a very special tribute to widely championed Afrikaans diva Laurika Rauch by Laurika's uncannily close sound, look and feel-alik: Mari Bosman. It's a serious must-experience for any true-blue Laurika fan.

René Hurter.

Live news

It is not often that a local SA blues-rock legend such as Tim Parr crosses the border between that other world and the Garden Route. When this happens, it is incumbent on any self-respecting rock-adherent to take off those sailing shoes and slap on that throw-away pant for the party.

Formerly the nifty guitar-part of the blues-rock grouping Baxtop in the 1970s before forming the much-celebrated 80's rock-duo, Ella-Mental with his future ex-wife Heather Mc Dermott (Heather Mac), Tim's finely honed fretwork is always a welcome experience. Be at Mel's on Monday 26 April at 19:00 for this or be ridiculed in haute-rock circles.

After more than 12 years of touring abroad, René Hunter has returned home for a series of performances. Ripped from East-Rand Johannesburg as a 17-year-old, René spent two years recording her eponymously named debut pop-album which was nominated in the 'Best R&B Album' category, and never looked back. She's up for a once-off at Muse on 24 April at 18:00.
Following a star-studded Easter season, event organisers Better Live will be welcoming a huge name in music in a couple of weeks. This time around it will be in the form of award-winning Canadian alt-pop duo Neon Dreams featuring Levi Rowan. They will be stopping in Knysna as part of their tour right across the country that will see them visit many a city, but only one coastal town. This show will happen at Blend Country Restaurant on Friday 7 May, with Neon Dreams set to perform in Knysna the first time.

Tim Parr