A Night of Chaos, Laughs, and Second Chances

Ginge and Minge’s REDEMPTION is a mission to save the discarded and rejected from the bottom of the bin and give them another shot.

These two have been tearing up stages across Aotearoa since 2020, and their chemistry is as strong as ever. Megan, fresh off a Master of Arts in Creative Writing, and Nina, a seasoned theatre producer and performer, bring the kind of energy that makes you wonder if they’re secretly powered by espresso and pure chaos.

The premise is genius. Every night, three brave artists are invited to the show to pitch a sketch or scene that’s failed in the past. Then Ginge and Minge rope in their cast of seasoned comedians and improv actors to rework these flops into something brilliant. The audience votes, and the winning sketches get their moment to shine, in other words redeemed. It’s like a comedy version of a second chance at love, but with more mayonnaise.

If you’ve seen Ginge and Minge before, you know what to expect. Wild, messy, and high-energy performances that demonstrate their sharp thinking and impressive connection as partners in comedy. Even though they weren’t doing the heavy lifting this time, this show still reflects the Ginge and Minge style of loud, emotional, and of course always much weirder than you’d expect.

The sketches I saw were a masterclass in absurdity. There were the human personified emotions. Think an adult, chaotic version of Inside Out that somehow led to sexual tension with a jar of mayonnaise. A tense drama explored the complications of romance when your new partner isn’t familiar with what a reflection is. And an incredible musical about a pacifist praying mantis with outstanding improvised songs that spanned four genres: funk, ballad, to hip-hop.

The lessons to be learned here are that love prevails, everything deserves a second change and improv is very silly.

 

Written by Nadia Freeman