Real quick impressions of 3 NZ Fringe shows They’re all worth your money.

A note on koha: Most of the shows I’ve seen are recommending between $10-$20 for koha. BRING CHANGE. It’s just rude to reach into the koha box because you’ve only got a $20. If you’ve only got a $20 give the performers a $20.

Against the piercing sun, presented by Making Friends Collective, on at Gryphon Theatre to 26 February 2016

Not exactly as described in the programme this is a play rather than solely a soundscape by Flinn Gendall. (An excellent soundscape!) It follows Cameron as they try to make sense of a breakup, new friends, their own apathy and selfcare. Nicely directed by Amy Griffin-Browne and Johnny Crawford, the 6 cast members have good timing as they walk on and off stage interacting or providing background colour. Good stuff and should come back for a return season.

N.B. I’m loving the tendency of our new writers to give their characters gender neutral names. This is backed up by the use of they as a pronoun in this play. (I mention this because it’s been written about in a less than complimentary manner elsewhere.) It’s great.

Potato Stamp Megalomaniac by Pressure Point on at 17 Tory street to 27 February 2016

This koha play is a reponse to a ‘hypomanic episode’ the writer had in the final year of his B.A. He invites us to clear our heads of any preconceptions and just go with it. For me it starts slowly then stealthily becomes more and more compelling until I’m at the final scenes, unwilling to look away. Strange and wonderful.

Raster on at 17 Tory street to 27 February

Short little koha show that presents three representatives of the types of people online – Anon, Avatar, Profile. It doesn’t make any judgements leaving us to make our own comments. (Take a fully charged device so you can connect to their Wifi network and participate in the show.) Uses X-box Kinect to investigate the intersection between devised theatre and tech.  I’m hoping they extend this test into a full length show.