Review contains major spoilers for the RNZB’s Macbeth – the only reason I’m spoiler warning a 400 year old story based loosely off an 1000 year old historical figure is that the RNZB does include some changes in its staging that are more so implied in the text, and there’s also some things you want to […]
The Nutcracker’s always been one of ‘the ballets’ I’ve heard about but never seen. Learning about it via reading the The Baby-Sitters Club books as a kid and growing up dancing myself, I’ve always wanted to get the chance to experience it, and finally, thanks to this year’s Royal New Zealand Ballet Kiwi twist on […]
Delve into the sublime, surreal and a little bit sexy this Halloween with the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s rebirth of their iconic ballet A Midsummer Night’s Dream. A co-production with the Queensland Ballet and first performed in 2015, this stunning performance combines the late Liam Scarlett’s choreography with Felix Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream score […]
Image credit: Stephen A’Court Reviewed by Talia Carlisle What a magical place Wellington is, when you can start your evening with gin and fresh seafood at Cinderella’s for the Wellington on a Plate Launch – and pop down to the St James Theatre, home of the Royal New Zealand Ballet for their opening night of […]
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is back for their final offering this year, a trio of celestial ballets within the show Venus Rising. I’ve been waiting to see this show for a couple of years now, for it’s been delayed twice by COVID, so it was an absolute delight to finally catch it at its […]
I went into Macbeth at the St James completely cold – I know Verdi’s later operas, including his later Shakespeare operas; Otello and Falstaff. But I’ve somehow missed Macbeth, and decided to keep it that way, I guess because it’s so exciting to go into something completely fresh and new, even if it was written […]
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 […]