Streets of Gold doesn’t glisten like it should.

Robyn Lawrenson

Streets of Gold, the latest theatre production to hit the Lyric Theatre at Gold Reef City, has been described as a goldmine of South African talent – from the adaptions of popular band Cassette making up the musical score and AngloGold Ashanti’s stunning gold jewellery showcased by the actors. But to be honest, I was left feeling underwhelmed.

Nonetheless, the story goes like this: Johannesburg has the last of the world’s precious gold, hidden in a vault, deep underground. Prefect Flora von Higgins (Fiona Ramsay), leader of the Global Union of Nations (GUN), holds the gold-bracelet key to the vault. But Cassandra (Samantha Peo, who also played Roxie Hart in Chicago) a rebel on the run from GUN, steals the key to the vault. But Flora has already activated the self-destruction button, and doom awaits. There are a bunch of other characters, including Jabulani Bond (Tumisho Masha), sent to find Cassandra and recover the key, crooked Minister of Defence, Mark Richardson, and Viddy (Shaun V) the rebel leader – whose singing left me saying “yikes” more than once.

You would think a political story about greed, distrust and corruption would capture the heart of the audience, but sadly, it doesn’t. There were so many characters that I was left confused half the time and had to keep nudging my date to remind me who was who; I felt ambushed by the musical performances; and the dark, dreary setting got very boring after a while. The jewellery was impressive, but if I didn’t know beforehand that AngloGold Ashanti was purposefully using this opportunity to market itself, I might have left thinking it was nothing but costume jewellery …

The most memorable thing about the production was the backdrop. An impressive movie screen took the audience through the scenes of the play, so you felt as if you were moving into the gold mine with the actors. But I’m afraid that’s where the awe ended.