REVIEW: Hudson & Halls Live (Silo)

November 9, 2015

A Simple Dish [by Matt Baker] Before the plethora of cooking shows both at home and overseas, there was Peter Hudson and David Halls. Commissioned by Silo Theatre, Hudson & Halls Live! is the fictional account of New Zealand’s best cooking duo, two men whose love of cooking, entertaining, laughing, living, and most importantly, each other, introduced an entire nation to […]

REVIEW: SIVA (Black Grace)

November 7, 2015

All that glitters is not gold [by Sharu Delilkan] Having followed Black Grace almost as long as we have been here (over 13 years now), I have a vivid recollection of their 10th anniversary show held at the Viaduct a decade ago. At the time it was a new experience seeing Pacific and contemporary dance infused to such a high […]

REVIEW: Hiraeth (British Council NZ)

November 5, 2015

Farm girl goes free range [by Sharu Delilkan and Tim Booth] It was somewhat intriguing to see what Hiraeth would reveal at The Basement Theatre. The programme reinforced a number of sheepey, wooly-jumpery, folky stereotypes from the get-go, and to be honest paralleled many similar stereotypes believed worldwide about us Kiwis too. The story of a free-range farm girl Buddug […]

REVIEW: The Last Man on Earth (Is Trapped in a Supermarket)

November 4, 2015

Like a movie made out of Yoga Mats and Paper Plates [by Jess Holly Bates] It’s no secret that I have a raging crush on devised theatre. It is fast, and furious, and often absurd. Providing live experiences made under pressure, the material generated in a devising room operates in a dangerous state of flux, always under threat of performative disorder. […]

REVIEW: Guys and Dolls (Auckland Theatre Company)

November 3, 2015

Nicely Nicely [by Tim George] Damon Runyon had a great ear for names. Sky Masterson, Nathan Detroit, Nicely Nicely Johnson… Part of the fun of reading his short stories, or watching Guys and Dolls, the Broadway show based on his works, are the monikers and the characters who sport them. Whether via page, screen or stage, Runyon-land, his imaginary version of […]

REVIEW: Le Noir: The Dark Side of Cirque (The Civic)

October 30, 2015

Le Blanc [by James Wenley] If you want to crack the Auckland market, sex and cirque sells. Already we’ve had the Spiegeltent adult-circus double-hit of Empire at Wynyard Quarter and Limbo for Auckland Festival. Le Noir comes from the bankable team behind The Illusionists phenomenon. If you are someone who knows their Cirques, you’ve probably seen most of these acts before here in […]

REVIEW: Afakasi (The Basement)

October 28, 2015

Identity Quest [by Sharu Delilkan and Tim Booth] What does Afakasi mean? The urban dictionary definition is “used by Samoans to classify those who have one Samoan parent and one Palagi parent. Originates from the word ‘half-caste’.” The Samoan Observer provides a great commentary which ultimately concludes that: Afakasi is “to experience TWICE the world around us”. I love this […]

REVIEW: Young & Hungry 2015: The 21st Narcissus and 7500 Days (The Basement)

October 13, 2015

[by Matt Baker] Stumblr Based on last year’s Young & Hungry plays, it would be within reason to expect a 21st Century Narcissus to modernise the Greek myth through the complexities and perils of today’s youth’s navigation of online platforms. For Sam Brooks’ 21st Narcissus, it would also, however, be wrong. Unlike Uncle Minotaur, where mythology was ingrained in the narrative, […]

REVIEW: The Leaf Jar (The Studio)

October 7, 2015

Make like a tree and… [by Tim George] The Leaf Jar by Alex Gleed is a story about contemporary relationships, and how they can fall apart. Peter (Carl Drake) dreams of becoming a writer, but has put his dreams on hold to take care of his sick sister, Sarah (Sophie Bateman) and to support his wife Christine (Karen Wharerau-Young), his wife, a nurse […]

REVIEW: Manifesto 2083 (The Rebel Alliance)

October 1, 2015

Resistance [by James Wenley] About half-way through Manifesto 2083, actor Edwin Wright, playing actor Olaf Højgaard, begins to chuckle. “Was this your goal?” he asks the image of Anders Behring Brevik, attached to a pinboard behind him. In creating Manifesto 2083, Danish theatre makers Christian Lolike, Tanja Diers and Højgaard were exposing Brevik’s manifesto, his ideology and his words, to a […]

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