Gauteng Opera's Christmas Concert

Gauteng Opera invites music lovers to a Christmas concert at which patrons are encouraged to bring along an unwrapped gift for children aged 3-18. This annual concert has become a tradition especially in Pretoria. Conducted by Eddie Clayton, members of Gauteng Opera and the Gauteng Orchestra will perform popular festive season carols.

Keeping up to annual tradition, all patrons attending the Christmas Concert are encouraged to bring along an unwrapped gift for children of ages 3 to 18, between the value of R50 and R100. This year, the concert will celebrate International AIDS Day and the gifts will be donated to charities that care for orphaned and vulnerable children, mostly infected or affected by HIV/AIDS.

The following organisations will benefit:

Oliver's House in Benoni, Johannesburg, which supports the Nomthandazo Children's Care Centre situated in the Zenzele Informal Settlement in Daveyton and cares for 200 disadvantaged children from the ages of six months to six years old. Some of the children are HIV positive, with a further 20% having been orphaned as a result of the HIV/AIDS epidemic;

Child Welfare Tshwane, providing safe-homes for children in areas such as Attredgeville, Mamelodi and Eersterus, receiving 60 to 70 intakes per month, of which almost 80% are HIV/ AIDS orphans; and

Peas in a Pod in Pretoria, a specialist house of safety caring for sexually abused girls, aged two to 18 years.

Performances:

Friday, 29 November: 8pm, Linder Auditorium, Parktown, Joburg.

Sunday, 1 December: 3pm: AULA Theatre, University of Pretoria.

Prices: R100, R110, R130, and R150. Discounts: 10% discounts for pensioners and scholars 10% discount on block bookings, of 10 or more tickets

Book at Computicket outlets, phone +27 (0)11 340 8000 or online at www.computicket.com.