[Working Title] Mrs Warren’s Profession was way ahead of his time – written by George Bernard Shaw in 1893, it was initially banned for the stage, and didn’t debut until nine years later. In Auckland Theatre Company’s production, a stellar cast (headlined by Jennifer Ward-Lealand) and talented creatives (led by Director Eleanor Bishop, known for deconstructing classic dramatic texts) promised […]
[All-Stars] Is the original Shrek (2001) film the ideal model of romance for our times? That’s the theory espoused by Murdoch Keane in Tender, the first of three plays in ATC’s Here & Now Festival playing until Monday. Shrek doesn’t go out looking for love. As an Ogre, it’s not something he ever thought he’d find, never thought he’d be […]
[Mountain-eerie] Written by Maurice Gee in 1979, the story of Under the Mountain takes many of back to our childhood bookworm days, our imaginations set ablaze by children’s adventure stories such as The Famous Five, Where the Wild Things Are, The Adventures of Tintin, and Swallows and Amazons. The plot is a truly Kiwi story, inspired by the land and […]
[Togs, Togs, Drama] Red Speedo is Benjamin Henson’s mainbill directorial debut with Auckland Theatre Company after a series of successful endeavours across New Zealand. Henson as made a name for himself as a director with shows such as AUSA’s As You Like It, Last Tapes Company’s Valerie, and his most recent Auckland work The Effect as part of Q Theatre’s […]
[The Rebirth of the Theatre] Of the many great responses from liberal tweeters commenting on the backlash to Jodie Whittaker’s casting as the thirteenth Doctor, my favourite was from playwright Dan Rebellato: EXT. PLAYHOUSE. 1660. AUDIENCE MEMBER runs from theatre. PASSER-BY: What ails you sir? MEMBER: ’Sblood, they have a WOMAN playing DESDEMONA. — Dan Rebellato (@DanRebellato) July 16, 2017 […]
[Class Sha in Class Gaff] Often when people come to an opening night there’s an air of anticipation. But the opening of Billy Elliot was even more electric because we were coming to see a new theatre. Billy Elliot is exactly the right sort of spectacle to launch the ASB Waterfront Theatre and to show off this magnificent space. From […]
[Theatrically Stimulating] It turned Nina Arianda into an overnight success, her performance earning her the 2012 Tony Award for Best Actress. In 2013 it became the most produced play that year with 22 productions. And its origin is found in a 19th century German S&M novella. At least that’s how Vanda Jordan, a brazen and uncouth, yet inarguably fascinating, actress refers […]
[Start Strong. Subvert, Go Nuts] Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda Devised with the cast under the direction of Ahi Karunaharan, Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda is the most earnest and self-effacing theatrical portrayal I’ve seen about what it means to be young. Theatrical deconstruction can be ostentatious at best when used by practitioners who are still learning its rules, but Karunaharan never allows his […]
[Bloody Marvellous] We departed That Bloody Woman‘s opening night feeling proud, informed and uplifted by the musical portrayal of this ‘her-storical’ story. The face of Kate Sheppard that gazes somewhat benevolently from our $10 note belies a passion, a person and a struggle that we think we know, but don’t. By communicating directly with the audience, the show makes us […]
[Go Set a Scout] The trouble with To Kill A Mockingbird is that the Pulitzer Prize winner’s literary composition does not lend itself to theatrical narrative structure. The trial, in which a black man is accused of attempting to rape a white woman, is a MacGuffin. Tom Robinson is the catalyst for a litmus test on racism proffered by a white woman […]
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