REVIEW: Sea (Red Leap Theatre)

March 11, 2014

Blue Leap [by James Wenley] Under Red Leap’s outstanding vision the sea is a phenomenon of awe: a place of wondrous beauty, unrelenting power, but also, poignantly, of great fragility. In Sea human kindness, resilience, and cruelty is set against the wild untameable force and fate of nautical nature. Red Leap’s reputation has been built on the company’s debut The Arrival […]

REVIEW: Mamma Mia! (Auckland Music Theatre)

March 5, 2014

Here I go again [by James Wenley] You should have a fairly good idea by now if you are inclined to enjoy Mamma Mia! Here’s a simple test: Do you like Musicals? Do you sing along every time ABBA comes on The Breeze? Do you have your own flared lycra jumpsuit in your wardrobe? If you answered yes to either of […]

REVIEW: The Slapdash Assassin (Science Of Humans Theatre)

March 3, 2014

Killer Father Ted [by Andrew Parker] If you knew nothing at all about Ireland or its people then chances are a trip to see Mark Power’s play The Slapdash Assassin would get you up to speed, or at the very least deter you from visiting anytime in the immediate future. One half of the Basement’s ‘Murder Season’, Assassin is a blackly […]

REVIEW: They Saw A Thylacine (Human Animal Exchange)

February 20, 2014

They also came and conquered [by Matt Baker] Completing the New Zealand tour of their award-winning fringe show, writers and performers Justine Campbell and Sarah Hamilton have brought a unique play based on fundamental storytelling to Auckland’s Basement Theatre. The disconsolation of extinction and the mystery of its validity is a major part of the interest in the Tasmanian Tiger, and […]

REVIEW: Velcro City (The Basement)

February 19, 2014

Stuck on you [by James Wenley] Eli Matthewson and Hamish Parkinson are endearing performers, and also rather talented doodlers. In two hander shows where actors play multiple characters, some shows will trust the actors to indicate character changes through physicality and voice, others might make a comic virtue out of rapid costume changes. These guys go one step better. The main […]

REVIEW: Fallen Angels (Auckland Theatre Company)

February 18, 2014

Divine Inspiration [by James Wenley] Credit to the publicist who angled a ninety year old play into the Herald on Sunday Gossip pages. “Are age-defying celebrities Nicky Watson and Sally Ridge the inspiration for Fallen Angels…?” the paper breathlessly asks. It explains that the play “tells the story of two former BFFs who shared a lover when they were younger… Sound familiar?”, […]

REVIEW: Queen (Smoke Labours Productions)

February 14, 2014

Gay outing [by Sharu Delilkan] Queen is a scream, a sass, a laugh, a cry, a voice. The publicity material’s description of Queen is spot on. Although a re-staging of the show, Sam Brooks’ Queen is still unique in nature because unlike most coming out gay stories the focus is the emotional roller coaster of under 18-year olds. Despite its […]

REVIEW: Passionate Acts (SHAKEITUP!)

February 12, 2014

Passionate Acts Shake It Up [by Sharu Delilkan] “Not Shakespeare again” I thought en-route to the preview of Passionate Acts, Grae Burton’s and Alistair Browning’s scenes of passion from Shakespeare’s most popular plays. Driving up the entrance to the magnificent Pa Homestead I lamented how and why Shakespeare persists when there is so much modern and contemporary excellence around, some […]

REVIEW: Lantern (Pretty Asian Theatre)

February 11, 2014

Lantern truly illuminates [by Sharu Delilkan] Right from the get-go the acting is ballsy and confident – in yer face and full of pace. Chye-Ling Huang and James Roque play off each other nicely and clearly believe and/or personally identify with the key themes and characters of the play. Coming from Malaysia where Chinese New Year is a big part […]

REVIEW: Macbeth (Young Auckland Shakespeare Company)

February 7, 2014

Scot problems [by Matt Baker] Shakespeare wrote for an aural audience; he doesn’t show, he tells. Accordingly, an actor’s vocal articulation is as an integral element of their performance as much as their understanding of the text. Fortunately, I know Macbeth as a text. I say fortunately, because had I not, I doubt I would have understood much of what […]

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