The clinking of cutlery and mumbled conversation greet us as we walk into the theatre. Blue glowing lines show the edges of the fishtank. It’s a sparse place but I guess the fish aren’t there to live. Blue Cod (Hweiling Ow) is preparing to be chosen. She is joined unexpectedly by Crayfish (Bemjamin Teh) who […]
When I invited my friend Keith to Tosca and he told me he’d seen it before, I asked for no spoilers. He sent me a text saying “Psh. It’s an opera. There is singing. People die. From a feminist view it is problematic. That’s about all there is to it”. His text was true, but also […]
A Bluecod has been in the tank of a Chinese restaurant for an indeterminate amount of time. She’s not sure how she got there or what life was like before the tank. Then a Crayfish arrives. He’s energetic and she starts to think about life again. Meanwhile there’s always the possibility that one of them […]
Improv shows are always different depending on the energy of the performers, the prompts they are given, and the energy of the audience. Most of the ones I’ve seen in Wellington have been entertaining. Some are sublime and contain moments of pure theatrical genius. The kind where the whole audience holds its breathe then exhales […]
Bart (Paul Waggot) is a writer who is married to Jane, (Acushla-Tara Sutton). Jane is an actress who is nervous about her job security and therefore is keen to cultivate a working relationship with Wallace (Gavin Rutherford) a gossip columnist. Wallace throws a party where Jane and Bart meet Terry (Andrew Paterson) who can help […]
On Sunday 6th September at San Fran, in a one night only performance to raise money and awareness for the Mental Health Foundation, Wellington’s performing arts fraternity band together to honour a beloved friend and colleague. This tribute is their way of honouring a talented member of the performing community, who left us after losing his battle with the Black Dog. Actor Robbie Tripe, […]
Stutterpop written and performed by Sam Brooks is entertaining mixture of lipsyncing and storytelling which explores Brooks’ love life, and his love for life. He walks onto the stage looking fabulous in a long hooded cape. It’s whipped off to reveal a glittery top and sparkling heels leaving him looking a little like classic Eddie Izzard. […]
My son’s friend John, who is Irish, said that there’s always something sexual in Irish dancing (he probably just calls it “dancing”). Malo explained this to me when I expressed surprise that all the women Irish dancers in Lord of the Dance – Dangerous Games had stripped off their pretty traditional outfits to bras and […]
One of New Zealand’s most-loved plays has returned for a short season at the Hannah Playhouse. Having not seen it before (despite it coming around every couple of years for almost the last twenty!) we took the chance to finally go see it. Gobi Krishnan (“a small man”, as the McGlashan-esque song/narrator would have […]
The Young & Hungry festival of new theatre provides young people with the opportunity to gain practical experience working in a theatre under pressured timeframes. Actors, technicians, designers, & directors have all been mentored through the programme. The three shows in the 2015 season are quite different in style but uniformly entertaining. How to catch a […]