Jozi Journeys
Your Ultimate Joburg Weekend Guide: 21 to 23 November
From shutdowns to sunsets: a very Joburg weekend
After weeks of grey skies and heavy rain, Joburg is finally promised a bit of sunshine again. The timing could not be more Joburg. Just as the city gets ready to host the first G20 summit on African soil, the streets, stages and gardens of the city are filling up with protests, concerts, cinema nights, markets and late-night parties.
If you have been itching to get out of the house, this weekend, from Friday 21 to Sunday 23 November, is packed with choices, whether you want to take a stand, dress up, lie down on the grass, or simply listen to world-class music.
Stand still to be heard: G20 Women’s Shutdown
On Friday, the city’s usual rush will be interrupted by an act of quiet resistance. The G20 Women’s Shutdown calls on women and members of the LGBTQI+ community across South Africa to step away from both paid and unpaid work. The point is simple and serious. In South Africa, a woman is killed roughly every two and a half hours, and recorded femicide cases increased by more than thirty percent in a single year.
To make that violence visible, people are urged to stop work where they can, avoid spending money during the shutdown, and wear black. At midday, women, children and LGBTQI plus communities will gather for a fifteen-minute silent lie down in public spaces to honour the women who are killed every 2.5 hours in South Africa.
In and around Joburg, you can join the national lie down at:
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Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden in Randburg
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Constitution Hill in Braamfontein
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The lawns at the Union Buildings in Pretoria
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Aula Lawn at the University of Pretoria
Even if you cannot leave work completely, organisers are asking Joburgers to wear black and take part in the lie down where possible. It is a rare weekend when your first outing can be an act of solidarity.
Big ideas and global beats at Constitution Hill
From Thursday to Saturday, Constitution Hill becomes the meeting point for activists, thinkers and performers from around the world. The inaugural We the 99 People’s Summit for Global Economic Justice runs over three days on the historic hilltop.
The first two days focus on workshops, dialogues and creative actions that explore the kind of economy ordinary South Africans deserve, not just in theory but in practice. On the third day, the site shifts into festival mode with the We the 99 Uprising Festival. Expect a full day of live music and performance from some of South Africa’s favourite acts.
Entry for days one and two is free. Day three tickets cost three hundred and fifty rand per person and can be booked online. What is even better for budget-conscious Joburgers is that the first fifty people to buy a ticket using a special code from What’s On in Joburg score a free ticket for the final day.
Cinema for thinkers at The Bioscope
If you prefer your activism in the form of reflection and storytelling, the Goethe Institut South Africa and the Austrian Cultural Forum are hosting a free double feature with acclaimed German director Hans Steinbichler at The Bioscope in Milpark.
On Wednesday night, the programme pairs:
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A Whole Life, a 2023 film that follows Andreas Egger through decades of struggle and love in an Alpine valley
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Memories of Angelika Schrobsdorff, a documentary portrait of the German Jewish writer and her life of exile and return
Both screens are in German with English subtitles, and Steinbichler himself will be present for a question-and-answer session afterwards. Entry is free, although you need to book online, and the screening starts at six in the evening at The Bioscope in the 44 Stanley precinct.
Classical colour: JPO season finale
On Thursday night, Linder Auditorium in Parktown hosts the final concert in the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra’s Spring Symphony Season. Returning conductor Daniel Boico leads the orchestra with Russian pianist Fedor Orlov and soprano Siphokazi Maphumulo as guests.
The programme ranges from Leonard Bernstein’s sparkling Overture from Candide to Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and Henryk Górecki’s Symphony of Sorrowful Songs. Pre-concert talks begin at half past six in the evening, with the performance starting at seven thirty. Tickets start from around one hundred and seventy rand per person via Quicket, making it one of the more affordable symphony nights in the city.
Markets, bubbles, and festive browsing
If the G20 and symphonies feel a little heavy, there is no shortage of lighter ways to celebrate the first proper summer weekend.
At Royal Johannesburg Golf Club in Linksfield North, The Grand Pop Up: Christmas Is in the Air Market brings together stallholders, designers and food traders for a festive shopping weekend. It runs on Saturday and Sunday, with entry priced at twenty rand per person at the door. Members of the club walk in free. Expect gifts, decor and a big focus on small businesses and local makers.
Over at Hyde Park Corner, visitors can drop into the Moet and Chandon personalisation pop-up. Shoppers can view colourful limited edition bottles from the French champagne house, and have their own bottle personalised as a gift. Entry to the pop-up is free, and it runs through until early December.
Spa days, quizzes, and late nights in Sandton and Fourways
If your idea of the perfect weekend is more about recovery than protest, Fourways and Sandton have you covered.
At Mowana Spa at the Indaba Hotel in Fourways, the African Rejuvenation Full Day Spa Pamper Journey offers a full day of African-inspired treatments, with a complimentary checked picnic mat worth two hundred and fifty rand included as a festive extra. The spa operates from Wednesday to Saturday from eight in the morning until eleven at night, and on Sundays until late afternoon. Booking is essential.
In Sandton, Hotel Sky’s Melomania show invites music lovers to play six different music-themed games in one high-energy quiz theatre night. Expect everything from Disney classics to diva hits. The show runs on Saturday evening from eight until midnight at the Infinity Auditorium in Sandton, with tickets available on Quicket for around two hundred rand per person.
Art, comics, and cirque
Culture fans have a few last chances this weekend. At Wits Art Museum in Braamfontein, Rainbow Nation Comics’ Young Nelson: Renewal or Rejuvenation exhibition is in its final days. The show explores the creation of South African comic books using digital prints, comics, an animation trailer and music. Historic photographs of Nelson Mandela from well-known South African photographers are woven into the experience. Entry to WAM is free, and the museum is open from Tuesday to Saturday between ten in the morning and four in the afternoon.
At Cresta Shopping Centre in Randburg, The Cirk is restaging Gatsby: A Cirque Extravaganza, an acrobatic and dance-filled take on the world of The Great Gatsby. Aerial artists, contortionists and dancers perform to scenes inspired by Baz Luhrmann’s 2013 film version. Shows run on Friday and Saturday evenings and on Sunday afternoons, with tickets starting from around one hundred and eighty rand.
Theatre that hits hard
For those who like their theatre with emotional weight, Joburg Theatre and The Market Theatre both have powerful pieces on stage.
Far Gone, written and performed by Ugandan-born artist John Rwothomack, is at The Lesedi at Joburg Theatre. The one-man play tells the story of a boy forced into life as a child soldier in Northern Uganda, drawing on the playwright’s own experience of nearly being kidnapped by the Lord’s Resistance Army as a child. Performances run from Wednesday to Saturday, with tickets costing around one hundred and fifty rand on Webtickets.
At The Market Theatre in Newtown, Afropocalypse follows a troupe of travelling players as they cross a post-apocalyptic South African landscape, dodging drone strikes and helicopters while telling four fables about greed, mortality, religion and unconditional love. Tickets range from around one hundred and ten to two hundred and twenty rand, with performances from 19 November to early December.
Big voices and big nights out
Music lovers are spoilt for choice this weekend.
At Montecasino’s Teatro in Fourways, two-time Grammy winner Gregory Porter is performing three nights of jazz and soul. Only Saturday night tickets remain, with prices from eight hundred rand to two thousand rand per person via Ticketmaster. Fans can expect favourites like Liquid Spirit and Hey Laura alongside newer work.
Over at Gold Reef City’s Lyric Theatre, legendary drag artist Latrice Royale returns to South Africa for the first time in more than a decade with her one-queen show, Terms and Conditions May Vary. She performs on Friday evening with local drag stars Manila von Teez, Kat Gilardi and Stella Rose supporting. Tickets range from around two hundred and seventy-five rand to one thousand four hundred rand.
On Sunday, Emmarentia Dam becomes the site of Kiss Kiss, a new food and music event that pairs restaurants and chefs with a live bill headlined by Gipsy Kings by Diego Baliardo. Local acts include Beatenberg, Roi Turbo, Bombshelter Beast and Black Cat Bones. The event runs from ten in the morning to half past six in the evening, with tickets at six hundred and forty-five rand per person.
For a different kind of Sunday, Katy’s Palace Bar in Kramerville opens its Sunset Sundays season with panoramic views, food, fireworks, aerial performers and DJs. The event is strictly over twenty-one for women and over twenty-three for men, with ID checks at the door. Tickets start from around one hundred and fifty rand, and table tickets from one thousand four hundred rand.
For creatives, kids, and early risers
Not everything on the list is loud or late. On Saturday afternoon, Blooms on Canvas hosts a relaxed painting workshop at Jozi Craft Club Studio in Sandton. Participants paint a colourful vase of abstract flowers using acrylics, with guidance on layering, brushwork and colour mixing. No previous experience is needed, and prices start from around four hundred rand on Quicket.
On Sunday morning, Secret Sunrise brings its silent disco style wellness class to Padel and Social Club next to James and Ethel Gray Park. Participants wear wireless headphones and follow live facilitators through movement, breathwork and dance from half past eight to half past nine in the morning. Tickets start from around one hundred rand.
Families can head to the Goethe Institut in Parkwood on Saturday for the Science Film Festival Family Day. This year’s theme is Green Jobs, exploring how environmentally friendly work can shape a more sustainable future, with a focus on agriculture. Entry is free, and the programme includes films and activities in partnership with local organisations such as Play Africa and the Centre for Creative Arts.
National Children’s Theatre in Parktown continues its festive double bill for younger audiences with The Mantis and the Moon and The Stubby Caterpillar, based on Marguerite Poland’s classic stories. Shows run at various times until mid-December, with tickets costing around one hundred rand per person.
Pretoria and beyond
If you feel like a short trip up the highway, Pretoria also has a full calendar this weekend.
At the Fairtree Atterbury Theatre, Ioanna’s Belly Dance Academy stages its Arabesque showcase on Sunday evening. Tickets are around two hundred and sixty rand. At 012 Central in Pretoria Central, Red Bull Back2Beyond brings a night-long sequence of collaborative DJ sets on Saturday, with a lineup that includes KMAT, Dlala Thukzin, Major League DJz and Sun El Musician. Tickets start from around two hundred and fifty rand.
Over in Menlyn, Irish pop rock group The Corrs perform at SunBet Arena at Time Square as part of their Talk On Corners Summer Tour on Saturday night. Tickets run from the mid-eight hundreds to over three and a half thousand rand through Ticketmaster.
How to choose your Joburg weekend
From lying down in silence to dancing in wireless headphones, this weekend says a lot about Johannesburg. It is a city that can hold global justice summits, child-friendly theatre, drag legends, jazz icons and secret dinners in the same three days.
Whether you pick one big event or stitch together a full itinerary across Joburg and Pretoria, the forecast is simple. The sun is out, the stages are set, and the city is wide awake again.
Also read: Johannesburg’s Festive Spirit Returns at the Christmas Is in the Air Pop Up Market
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Source: What’s On In Joburg
Featured Image: Unsplash
