Sean Burnett Dugdale-Martin Two Guitars in the Circa One Stage, directed by Carrie Green, written by Jamie McCaskill, and produced by Sonia Hardie, is about two Māori musicians (McCaskill as Te Pou and Cameron Clayton as Billy) who have won the Tūturu music competition and are facing the biggest performance of their lives. But are they both on the same page? Filled with humour and music that keep the important and meaningful conversation light, this show should not be missed.
Emilie Hope I arrive at the Michael Fowler Centre (MFC) on Friday the 15th of March stressed (due to our wonderful Metlink bus system), a bit wet and (therefore) cold. The weather has really started to pack it in and my poor friend who has agreed to accompany me to the show has to go in and be seated before I make it to the lobby.
Emilie Hope & Evangelina Telfar Arooj Aftab and her band graces the Michael Fowler Centre one pleasant Wellington evening. The place is busy--not packed--full of 30-something year olds and some older members in the crowd who look pretty cool. It’s also nice to see groups of young Muslims in the audience here to see the Queen of Sufi Music.
Jack McGee History is fluid. “The canon” can change quickly and wildly (see the 2023 Sight & Sound list) as we re-evaluate and re-discover works from our past. The New Blue: A Portrait of Pixie Williams, alongside with the entire oeuvre of Blue Smoke Records, is an urgent re-framing of our history. In 1949, Pixie Williams sang Blue Smoke (written by artist Ruru Karaitana while serving in the 28th Māori Battalion during WW2), the first commercial record produced and recorded in Aotearoa.
Emilie Hope On a Wednesday evening, my friend and I go to see a GRAMMY award winning violinist and producer, Johnny Gandelsman, perform at St. Mary of the Angels on Boulcott Street. I am quickly informed by my friend that classical music is not just a genre of music but also the name of the period, and what we will be listening to for the next two hours is one of the greatest composers in the Western music canon, Johann Sebastian Bach.
Isaac Andrews Rat Tales! by Hootie-Patudi Productions is a humble collection of stories and anecdotes, set up at the Newtown Community Theatre. When I come into the space, it’s none other than Eryn Gribble herself making speedy work of the kitchen and informing our guests “We’ll be on rations tonight!” She refers to the complimentary cup of tea and biscuit upon entry into the theatre, and it’s a lovely accompaniment to the cozy couch-and-cushioned environment around me. I am probably one of the youngest audience members, but to no dismay, as I’m surrounded by older, upbeat, chatty and bubbly patrons, making me feel right at home.
Lilli Margaret False Idol is a sermon for the cynical; the program for this show describes it as “it’s just like going to church, only funnier and sexier”. And does it deliver! False Idol, directed by Melanie Luckman, produced by Georgia Kellett and performed by Andy Manning, is serving queer joy.
Lilli Margaret Nick Robertson’s Leave to Enter is, on the face of it, the story of a guy who is stopped from entering Scotland. The reality of this show is a comedic deep dive into the psyche of young 20-something year old Robertson navigating a difficult situation with humour, sadness, optimism, and Candy Crush.
Katie Hill The Butterfly Who Flew Into The Rave is a stamina-driven dance production set to the beats of the techno album Nocturbulous Behaviour by Suburban Knight, curated by Oli Mathiesen, Lucy Lynch, and Sharvon Mortimer. Regrettably, I'm not one to frequent raves; I’m not cool enough, nor do I have the rhythm. Mathiesen, Lynch, and Mortimer, on the other hand, epitomize coolness, especially with their creation of this epic endurance spectacle of non-stop, beat by beat choreography – It has my dance-averse self bobbing my head erratically for the full hour and ten minutes these rave machines dominate the stage.
Brie Keatley Content warning: discussion of domestic abuse, child abuse, and suicide.
What are Sisters For? is a deeply personal piece by writer and director Josie Eastwood that intimately retells the relationship between them and their late sister. The show has strong performances from the two actors and striking scenographic elements but overall feels too personal for me as an audience member to connect with completely. Isaac Andrews Everyone’s Got An Errol opens on the Dome Theatre stage at BATS. It’s a quiet tuesday night and there’s nothing in particular that stands out when I walk into theatre. There’s a yellow and green lighting wash (Sophie Bradwick) and cheesy pop tunes ring out - that of a 14 year old's birthday party in the early 2010s. There’s a few chairs and a table, and two cartoonish looking handmade props: a giant glue bottle and a pronounced ‘FIRE’ alarm button on the wall. I sit alongside a couple friends who I have bumped into and we think: sounds like a cool show, fun concept, should be good. I couldn’t have been more naïve to the sheer brilliance that underlies the show - Errol. Who is Errol? Let me give you my take.
El Yule Rituals of Similarity, the newest production from Dance Plant Collective (performed at Te Auaha during Wellington’s 2024 Fringe Festival) is a moving memoir of twinhood, an exploration of the tensions between “warmth and friction, rivalry and unity, synchrony and idiosyncrasy… a pas de deux of sameness, doubles and contrasts.” For creators and performers Brittany Kohler and Natasha Kohler, this show has been a lifetime in the making, and the stunning intimacy and artistry brought to the stage is a clear reflection of this.
Jack McGee The day after I saw Steve Willburry’s magic show/medical tell-all The Unluckiest Magician, I spot him performing street magic on the waterfront. A crowd of children have gathered around him, and he is performing a card trick. I couldn’t make out the specifics, but it had that classic magic bait and switch - convincing the subject that you’ve messed up somehow, only to reveal you were in control the entire time. I stood and watched for a while. Willburry has such a strong presence that it’d be hard not to.
Brie Keatley Fitting that a show so out of the ordinary has its opening at the peculiar time of 3pm on a Saturday. Antarctic Endeavours, directed by Peggie Barnes, is an absurdist piece of fourth wall breaking theatre. It is a triumph for the whole team to have created something so perplexing and out of the ordinary for a typical theatre show.
Katie Hill Trick of the Light’s Suitcase Show is a collection of tales tucked away and then masterfully revealed, in yes, suitcases. Now, I am no seasoned Trick of the Light audience member, through no one’s fault but my own, I haven’t seen any of their other critically acclaimed works. I think this is a good thing, and I try my best to not go in with any preconceived ideas of what Trick of the Light is – other than their namesake, of course! It’s less than a minute in, and I get the hype. Suitcase Show is sophisticated play, it’s adult bedtime stories with child-like wonder. My friend jests that the show really is a Trick of the Light – but, by god it’s true, my mouth hangs open for most of the show! It’s crafty as all hell. Through deftly wielding scale and shadow, Hannah Smith and Ralph McCubbin Howell are obvious frontrunners in this corner of the theatre-making world.
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