These were possibly my most anticipated shows of this year’s Fringe. FA’AAFA is presented by FAFSWAG, an Auckland based collective of artists who celebrate LGBTQ Pacific Islander culture. I’ve seen the photos, watched the interactive documentary, and read about their work so I was excited to see them in this year’s Fringe. Big J Stylez […]
This is a story from a summer in Dunedin in 1998 when the possibilities were endless for Anya and her best friends. They have jobs at a cafe. They have their own space to share. The Backstreet Boys are at their peak. Enriched with exquisite details about Dunedin and intercut with asides about the state […]
It’s almost that glorious point in Wellington’s calendar when the New Zealand Festival (23 February — 18 March), the Performance Arcade (23–25 Feb, 1–4 March) the Pride Festival (24 February — 10 March) and the NZ Fringe Festival Wellington (2–24 March) are all on at the same time. I love it for the exciting mix […]
Here’s a round up of what shows are on this week. At Circa Theatre… Anahera, on at Circa Theatre to 7 October 2017 A contemporary domestic thriller (in the style of Broadchurch) about a struggling kiwi family. Liz and Peter Hunter have it all. A great marriage, successful careers, a beautiful house and two wonderful children. Until […]
The Pickle King is on now at the Hannah Playhouse and is a colourful, quirky and unique tale of love, death and what is worth preserving. Once the finest hotel in town, the Empire is now as faded as the dreams of the piano player who haunts the lobby. Ammachy runs the Empire with an […]
“The Swimmer” is a story of love between two young women who are both professional swimmers. Despite their love for each other their story is not simple. Anna’s mother is deeply involved in her life and she works tirelessly to shape her daughter to be the successful swimmer she never was. She will do anything to make sure […]
Layered with myth and fable, The Mooncake and the Kūmara is a moving story about a mixed-up, Māori-Chinese love affair that sprouts among rows of potatoes. Told in a mixture of English, Māori and Cantonese, the play is showing in Wellington as part of the Kia Mau Festival. Māori-Chinese playwright Mei-Lin Te Puea Hansen talked […]
New Zealand’s only contemporary indigenous theatre and dance event Kia Mau Festival returns to Wellington from Friday 2 – Saturday 24 June. It’s a unique and innovative opportunity for whānau and communities across the Wellington region to engage with today’s tangata whenua and First Nations artists from across the globe. Led by Wellington’s own Māori and Pasifika theatre […]
At BATS Theatre: Starting this week is an encore season of Onstage Dating by performance artist Bron Batten. Watch as she goes on first dates on stage. (These are actual first dates with a stranger, not with a performing audience plant.) Witness the vulnerability, thrills and heartbreak of the dating experience up close, as Bron […]
From the mind of Wellington based artist Rose Kirkup, the recipient of the 2016 Fringe Festivals’ NZ Pacific Artist Residency award, comes I Am Tasha Fierce. We’re introduced to Kirkup’s alter ego Tasha: your typical Kiwi chick. Her time at polytech, as well as following the teachings of Beyoncé, has helped her get out of […]