PREVIEW: Mary Poppins (Disney and Cameron Mackintosh)

October 4, 2012

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious [by Sharu Delilkan] When I met Matt Lee for the first time I couldn’t believe that he was over 30. The star of stage and TV (Australia’s So You Think You Can Dance, Matt has appeared in The Voice on TV2) had the complexion and physique of a young man in his early 20s. When I gasped in dismay […]

INTERVIEW: Jersey Boys star Michael Griffiths and his Madonna cabaret show

May 30, 2012

Madge is looking a little different… [by James Wenley] Michael Griffiths is a busy man. Not only is the Australian actor starring as Bob Crewe on a little show called Jersey Boys 8 times a week, but he’s also prepping for his one man cabaret show, to be performed on his one night off. And it’s not just any Cabaret […]

REVIEW: The Last Five Years (Last Tapes)

March 4, 2012

A show to fall in, and out of love.. [by James Wenley] In the middle of Musical The Last Five Years, Jamie and Cathy pledge their loves and their lives in the song The Next Ten Minutes, which  features both a tender proposal (“Will you share your life with me / For the next ten minutes? / …. And if […]

PREVIEW: Jersey Boys at The Civic

March 1, 2012

Perfectly pitched performance predicted [by Sharu Delilkan] Having grown up when Grease the movie hit the big screen I was keen to speak to Dion Bilios, when I heard that he was cast to play Frankie Valli in Dodger Theatrical’s production of Jersey Boys – The Story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. The 24-year-old Sydney-sider’s first comment to […]

New Performance Wrap-up: Show Pony, Providence and Wake Less

February 26, 2012

You want us to do what? [by James Wenley] Show Pony asks you to get naked. Providence asks for a pash. And Wake Less asks you to dinner… among other things.   Three shows where the normal ‘rules’ don’t apply. Three shows where the audience is an important part of the performance. Three shows that made up for one intense, […]

REVIEW: Dance like a Butterfly Dream Boy (New Performance Festival)

February 23, 2012

Testosterone Overload [by James Wenley] The roof of the Aotea Centre has to be one of the coolest places in Auckland to do a show. Overlooked by the large old  Council building, imbued with the colour of street lights, and soundtracked with street noise, sirens and the odd sound of a seagull, it has the type of atmosphere that you […]

REVIEW: Be | Longing: A Verbatim Play (New Performance Festival)

February 23, 2012

Stories from the Source [by James Wenley] New Zealand, famously, is a land of immigrants. Waves of migration over the country’s history have created a rich fabric of cultures, as well as perhaps an uncertain ‘kiwi’ cultural identity. What is it about New Zealand that makes it unique, and what is this discovery like for new arrivals? How do they […]

REVIEW: Invisible Atom (New Performance Festival)

February 22, 2012

Indivisible Atom – Invisible Man [by Sharu Delilkan] His name is Atom as in the bomb, not Adam as in Eve, something Anthony Black pointed out right from the start. He stood on a black platform, which looked a bit like a pedestal and was a great metaphor for a man at his apex. What does it mean to be […]

REVIEW: Call Cutta in a Box (New Performance Festival)

February 20, 2012

Pick up the Phone [by James Wenley] The best advice I can give those who are going to Call Cutta in a Box is this: Go with your defences down, an inquisitive mind, and an open heart. The consensus does seem to be that the less you know going into Call Cutta the better. So for those don’t want to […]

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