REVIEW: Sunday Roast (Silo)

June 9, 2014

Not how you remember it  [by Matt Baker] For her directorial debut as Silo’s Artistic Director, Sophie Roberts has presented both Silo and Q Theatre audiences with a theatrical flavour that will (hopefully) induce a new craving on the palate of Auckland theatregoers. That’s not to say that this production has been chosen simply for its untraditional ingredients, but anyone […]

REVIEW: Deans, Ward-Lealand and Rizo at The Auckland International Cabaret Season

June 6, 2014

Music and Sequins  [by James Wenley] “Jubilation heartache and everything in between. Here are your tickets. It’s almost showtime”. My branded ticket pouch seems to hold even greater anticipation than I as I head into the Town Hall Concert Chamber for the International Cabaret Season. And I had a great deal of anticipation. With the colourful squiggles beloved my logo […]

REVIEW: Shadowland (Pilobolus)

June 4, 2014

Out of the Shadows  [by James Wenley] My immediate response to Shadowland is an eerie chill: disembodied clothes – two dresses and  a suit – dangle from The Civic stage,  giving the feeling that I’d walked in on a hanging in which the bodies had decomposed long ago. This grim reading was not something I’d expected from the “enchanting tale” […]

REVIEW: Ollie is a Martian (Theatre Beating)

June 4, 2014

Out of this world  [by Andrew Parker] Ollie is a Martian. Or to go into a little more detail, he’s a man in a nifty blue track-suit with hair like Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future and who sounds like Jemaine Clement on helium. Also he’s from Mars, represented by a red ball with a heart on it. He’s […]

REVIEW: Luncheon (I’d like to thank productions)

May 21, 2014

And the Oscar goes to…  [by James Wenley] For a play that deals with the fickleness of fame, the most telling feature that of the five actresses gathered for luncheon to mark their nominations in the 1958 best supporting actress race, none of the them are well-known today. Certainly, reading the characters names down the program, none of them were […]

REVIEW: Other Desert Cities (Auckland Theatre Company)

May 12, 2014

Other American Plays [by James Wenley] The desert looking back at us is not quite the one from the popular imagination: wind turbines populate the otherwise arid landscape. Is this a symbol of progressivism and human achievement, or a blot on the natural expanse? This dessert is Palm Springs, and the centrepiece of Rachael Walker’s eye-catching stage design is a massive […]

REVIEW: Vice (The Basement)

April 16, 2014

Perverse [by James Wenley] For the past few weeks, Jordan Mooney has been posting a series of clips promoting a range of different vices. The crazy-eyed front man has whipped himself, walked naked in the wilderness, shoved his face in a toilet bowl, and lit his hair on fire. Turns out these are child plays compared to some of the predilections […]

REVIEW: Carousel and Clothesline (Vague de Cirque)

April 9, 2014

‘Circustastic’! [by Sharu Delilkan] Carousel & Clothesline is a great lesson in life not to take ourselves too seriously. Yes the strong ensemble demonstrates their precise acrobatics reminiscent of Cirque du Soleil and Cirque Éloize but it’s their emphasis on exploring the sense of play that sets this show apart from other live performances in this genre. And it is […]

REVIEW: There’s A Bluebird In My Heart But I Tell It To Shut Up (A Playwright Production)

April 9, 2014

It should’ve listened [by Matt Baker] Thirteen writers were given the poem ‘Bluebird’ by Charles Bukowski, and asked to write a scene based on what it meant to them. It’s a straight-forward premise, and one that primes an audience for an insightful night of theatre. However, while such inspiration affords writers the opportunity to produce successful works, such as Gary Henderson’s […]

REVIEW: My Bed, My Universe (Massive Company)

April 3, 2014

Bed Bound [by James Wenley] With the prospect of NZ Trio, composer Chris O’Connor, graphic artists Cut Collective and playwright Gary Henderson collaborating with Director Sam Scott and her cast on a new Massive Company show, the last thing I expected to come away from My Bed, My Universe was a feeling of underwhelming flatness. Its starts beautifully – the 6 […]

1 71 72 73 74 75 104