Art Murmurs - Reviews

TRÖLL

18/7/2019

Emilie Hope

It was a cold and wintery night in Wellington. The vampires have all vacated Circa Theatre to make room for children’s theatre in the school holidays and a tröll… In the dungeon? No. In our very walls! Award-winning theatre company Trick of the Light give us TRÖLL, a 90s Icelandic-New Zealand dial-up internet story told by an enthusiastic and easily likable 11 year old Ottó (Ralph McCubbin Howell). Ottó really likes the internet because he’s able to connect to people who also like the Dark Ages, can be 12, and choose his own name. But when the internet takes a turn for the worst, Ottó falls into darker places, places where tröll’s grow…

The Dunstan Creek Haunting

15/7/2019

Austin Harrison

Theatre company, Rollicking Entertainment’s latest offering to Circa Theatre is a deep dive into the world of hauntings and superstition. Inspired by performers Lizzie Tollemache and David Ladderman’s discovery (while on their honeymoon) of the many ghost stories which ruminate through the lands and minds of Central Otago, The Dunstan Creek Haunting is both a joyful adventure and spooky as heck.

MANIAC on the Dance Floor

12/7/2019

Lilli Margaret

MANIAC on the Dance Floor by Natasha Lay, directed by Adam Rohe and produced by A Mulled Whine, explores the highs and lows of mental illness to the beat of our favourite love-to-hate-it radio bangers. We follow Anna (DaeDae Tekoronga-Waka) while she flaunts her progress with her mental health, only to come to the realisation that she is living in denial about her own mental health struggles.

Dancing On My Own

11/7/2019

Sara Hirsch

Part storytelling, part stand-up, Dancing on my Own is a jovial jive through the trials and tribulations of growing up queer and with ADD while being born for the stage. Maddy Warren, a master of physical comedy, comes into her own with the awkward punch line. Unfortunately, a lack of preparation lets her down and a sixty-minute show feels like a drawn out half hour.

The Aliens

6/7/2019

Jenny Nimon

The Aliens by American Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Annie Baker is a poignant piece, and Red Scare Theatre Company handles its themes with sincerity. Over the course of two hours we follow misfits KJ (Jack Sergent-Shadbolt) and Jasper (Jonny Potts) as they take seventeen-year-old Evan (Dryw McArthur) under their wing, and each begin to unravel. In a fitting touch, Red Scare opens the show on Thursday 4 July, which matches up with the show’s holiday setting.

Double Falsehood

20/6/2019

Jenny Nimon

Lonely Shakespeare Collective, the company that focuses on Shakespeare’s less popular plays, raises the stakes this year by presenting a tragicomedy that sparks debate over authorship. Double Falsehood is a play that I had only heard vague historic ramblings about—it is officially attributed to Lewis Theobald but is thought to be adapted from the lost play The History of Cardenio. It’s new territory for me, going into Shakespeare blind, but it’s satisfying to see the all too familiar plot devices crop up along the way.

Katie Boyle's The Merry Wives of Windsor

6/6/2019

by Laura Ferguson

A one-woman show of my favourite Shakespeare play The Merry Wives of Windsor? Oh, yes please! Katie Boyle makes my Shakespeare dreams come true with a ninety minute show where she embodies every one of the characters from the Shakespeare classic. So ‘twas a dark, rainy, frigid night I went along to the Newtown Community Centre to see how this iteration played out.

Running Late

30/5/2019

Jenny Nimon

Having both received a Highly Commended in Playwrights b4 25 2018 and won the teenage category of Plays for the Young in 2017, Courtney Rose Brown’s Running Late has a bit of a reputation to uphold. On top of its accolades, any show with a completely sold out season creates a buzz of its own, so I was excited to say the least. To add to the opening night hype, audience members were offered the Beth Taylor touch™ of branded Running Late sugar cookies. They tasted great—if you were wondering.

'Elevation'

24/5/2019

Jenny Nimon

Uther Dean’s ‘Elevation’ is a piece of classic, warm stand-up comedy that lifts the room. Its lightness is exactly what Dean says he is aiming for, following a heavy season of his 2018 NZICF show My Fat/Sad, and while ‘Elevation’ does dip into some serious content, its playfulness is what makes it most memorable. Over the next hour, Dean takes us on a surprising journey with the oddly thorough dissection of the U2 song ‘Elevation’.

So You Think You Khandallah?

24/5/2019

Lizzie Murray

Welcome to Kandallah Academy of Performing Arts! It’s 1982 and dopest dances and coolest singers prepare for a new term in their very best and brighest leg warmers. The completely improvised show is presented by with an extremely varied cast bursting with talent, ego and 80s references. Kickin’ Rad Productions deliver an episodic season of their colourful improv show for the Comedy Festival entry.

Myth and Legend - Eli Mathewson

24/5/2019

by Laura Ferguson

Eli Mathewson is a queer, geeky, boardgaming, Classics degree holder who has never used it until now with his new show Myth and Legend. I am a queer, geeky, board game-hoarding, Classics degree having person myself. When I read the synopsis for Mathewson’s show, I didn’t just think Cool, that sounds like me, I thought, Holy Elysium fields, this IS me. I am almost definitely going to be biased towards this show so I brought a non-ancient history obsessed friend along as a gauge for universal hilarity.

Tui Christie: Gifted

23/5/2019

Kate Norquay

Tui Christie is an eighteen year old comedian with a lot of energy and even more talent. Gifted is her debut solo comedy show. Performed in front of a small audience in the Studio at BATS, Christie delights us with jokes about her family, becoming an adult, and the meaninglessness of life itself.

Of Consequence - Brendon Green

23/5/2019

by Laura Ferguson

How could I possibly resist a show that has a cute, little, orange kitteh on the poster? For me, it’s impossible, so along I go to Brendon Green’s Of Consequence. Having seen Green a couple of years ago with a very feline-themed show, I was looking forward the the comedian’s brand of storytelling humour. Sitting down, I feel that same familiarity I felt last time, Green’s presence is fun, friendly and relaxing, like a bubble bath of comedy.

ORBICULUS

23/5/2019

Emilie Hope

NZSD Choreographic Season 2019 – ORBICULUS. NZSD Students - Haruka Chan, Courtney Mae Lim, Stephanie Halyburton - 'Hana'. Choreography by Olivia Castagna. Photo by Stephen A'Court.

I’m a serial student. Primary, secondary, and tertiary education done – but wait, there’s more! I’ve gone into postgrad education and am currently working on Masters. Why, you ask? Expelling my personal, psychological, and terrible financial reasoning for a moment, learning institutions are exciting. Here, there is focus. Here, there is experimentation. Here, there is pushing the boundaries. As humans, we are never more exciting than when we’re learning, which is why I was squealing to go to the New Zealand School of Dance’s choreographic season for 2019 ORBICULUS. Thirteen dances, each choreographed by a graduating student, and directed by Victoria Colombus.

Me 'n' Ma: Hamish Parkinson and Lynette Parkinson

23/5/2019

Austin Harrison

Me ’n’ Ma is a wholesome and delightful addition to this year’s Comedy Festival. We are welcomed into the space by a beaming Hamish Parkinson who offers popcorn and lemonade on the way to our seats. He greets every audience member with warmth and gratitude, setting the tone for the heart-warming 55 minutes ahead.