James Cairns stars in ‘The Devil and Billy Markham’.

MARITZBURG College Old Boy, James Cairns, returns to the KZN Midlands with two shows — The Devil and Billy Markham and The Old Man and The Sea. Both will be presented at Hilton College as part of the Hilton Arts Festival, which runs from September 15 to 17.

Directed by Jenine Collocott, The Devil and Billy Markham centres on one man’s decision to gamble with the Devil.

Not the best idea, but Billy’s been on the scene for years. He’s been cut and bled a thousand times, and his eyes are wise and sad. As he says: “If you’re lookin’ for some action, friend, well, I’ve rolled them dice before.”

Cairns, who has delivered great shows like Dirt, The Snow Goose and Three Little Pigs, at the Hilton Arts Festival in previous years, has mastered the one-man storytelling show.

Catch his latest offering in the Hilton College Memorial Hall at 7 pm on Friday, September 15 and at 10 am and 8 pm on Saturday, September 16.

Tickets are R150 and there is an age restriction of 16 plus.

Cairns will also be performing alongside Jenine Collocott and Jacques de Silva in the Hemingway classic, The Old Man and The Sea.

James Cairns and Jenine Collocott in ‘The Old Man and The Sea’.

It is a seemingly simple story: Santiago is an old, experienced fisherman who hasn’t brought in a catch for months. On the 85th day of this dry spell, he heads far out into the Gulf of Mexico where he hooks a giant marlin.

Unable to pull the fish into his skiff, he holds onto the line for three days before killing it with a harpoon. After lashing the fish to his boat, Santiago heads home with his hard-won prize. But along the way, sharks reduce the fish to bones, and the old man returns to port as he left — empty-handed.

This is a tale with a relevance that transcends time and place: the universal truths of a man’s existence within this world, where pride, respect, tenacity, and dreams fuel a man in his quest to thrive in the face of struggle; a story about the indomitable spirit of man.

If you loved The Snow Goose, which was presented by the same team, then you can’t afford to miss The Old Man and The Sea.

The play is being staged at 5 pm on Saturday, September 16 and 3 pm on Sunday, September 17 in the Memorial Hall. Tickets are R150.

To book for these Hilton Arts Festival shows, go to http://www.hiltonfestival.co.za