Even Sweeter… [by James Wenley] The second week of Short+Sweet lives life firmly on the theatrical side. After noting that I hoped for a more diverse program of plays in my review of Week One, it was certainly delivered this week. These plays on the whole were not only different thematically to each other, many were also ballsy, thrilling, seat-wettingly […]
Dark and Twisted [by James Wenley] After a string of collaborations and monologue directing, Thomas Sainsbury returns to The Basement with The Family Wilder, setting his style to the dark camp of the thriller genre’s twist and turns. Harry McNaughton plays the softly-spoken writer Clive, who is tasked with writing the biography of Wilder Family patriarch and ruthless businessman Bill. […]
Sweetness in Shortness [by James Wenley] I reckon the art of a good 10-minute play is a decidedly tricky one. Whether it leaves you laughing or with something more to think about, within those 600 seconds it generally has to traverse the entire three act structure from inciting incident to satisfying conclusion. The Short+Sweet festival, compromising of very strictly determined 10-minute […]
“What do you see?” [by James Wenley] I’ve started with a quote. “What do you see?” It’s the first line of RED by John Logan (he of Gladiator and The Aviator fame) , presented by the prestigious Auckland Theatre Company, starring theatre luminary Michael Hurst and directed by Mr. Oliver Driver. Sterling credentials all. “What do you see?” says Hurst […]
Stejko’s Sisters Scintillate [by Sharu Delilkan] To be honest when I was told that I was coming to see an Anton Chekhov play all I could think of was – it’s gonna be a long night. But that dreaded feeling of a laborious theatrical experience disappeared as soon as I entered the waiting room leading to the theatre. Although it […]
Shining a new light for alternate theatre [by James Wenley] Thread Theatre promise a breath of fresh sea air in their debut production of ‘The Keepers’. It is an ethereal, enigmatic play of dreams and feelings, felt and unfelt, using physical theatre and music to tell much of the story, such as it is. Devisors Julia Croft and Veronica Brady […]
Brooding tale of Brotherhood [by James Wenley] The Brothers Size is a play that ignites the senses. Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney has been burdened with all sorts of praise, the voice of his generation, the savior of American theatre. He grew up in Miami’s deprived Liberty City housing projects, and has worked with such prestigious theatrical institutions as the Royal Shakespeare Company […]
Spectacle and Saigon [by James Wenley, Musical Geek] An interesting development over the past few years has been the welcome take-over of the mighty Civic Theatre by ‘amateur’ theatre societies (Harlequin Theatre – Cats, Auckland Music Theatre – Rent, 42nd Street), whilst the big budget overseas touring musical spectaculars have all but dried up… blame the economic times. Indeed, excepting […]
Tongan Tale Tatalises [by Sharu Delilkan] My Tongan vocabulary is limited to their greeting ‘Malo e Lelei’; so when I arrived at the Mangere Arts Centre to see Kingdom of Lote, I was both excited and nervous about reviewing the show. ‘What if I don’t understand a word they say?’ I thought to myself. But the atmosphere (including the excellent […]
Cosmically connected comedy [by Sharu Delilkan] It was a stormy evening in Auckland as we crossed the bridge to check out The Umbilical Brothers. It has been three years since we last saw them so we were really excited that they were back at the NZ International Comedy Festival. We were pleasantly surprised to see the Bruce Mason Centre almost […]
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