Alia Marshall
The Koru Hour: 2 Elite 2 Handle, written by award winning comedians Anna Maclean and Lesa Macleod-Whiting, is returning to the stage after a sold out season in 2019. As I’m sent the tickets for this show, I check my airpoints balance - purely out of curiosity - then miserably put my phone away. I am not the target audience for this show with my measly 16 points, but perhaps that makes me well placed to watch a show about wealth inequity and skeevy politicians - as a student and a poor person, I’m well aware that Chris Luxon would sell me for a corn chip.
Maclean and Macleod-Whiting are dressed in flight attendant costumes and directing us to our seats as we enter, which is an excellent way of starting the show before the lights have even dimmed, and I find myself wishing for more moments like these. The stage is pretty well dressed, with a large projector screen placed in the middle, some plants, fancy stools, and cardboard cutouts of a man and woman. It opens with a hilarious cult ritual to the omnipresent ‘Market’, with the pair donning hooded robes and speaking in different tones to give off that monk-like speech pattern - funnily enough I was actually talking to a friend about self flagulation today. This sets up the show well, we’re in for a night of goofing on rich people - one of my favourite pastimes.
The pair have excellent chemistry with one another, and their timing is stellar. Macleod dons an incredible bald cap at points as she portrays our… beloved prime minister, and Maclean’s impression of David Seymour is so convincing I find myself holding back a boo everytime she flashes that slimy smile our way (I mean that as the highest compliment). Some stand out sketches include the flight safety video, the sensual tango between Luxon and Seymour, and the absolutely absurd ending. I had a blast watching these politicians get put on blast.
The Koru Hour: 2 Elite 2 Handle is a satirical romp about our wildly out of touch elite, however I wasn’t entirely sold on the Koru lounge setting. On one hand, I can see the link (especially with Luxon’s past as the CEO of Air New Zealand), but on the other I think this show could have been just as good if it were set in a parliament cafe, or even the toilets. Placing them in the lap of luxury from the get go means that luxury is all we really see, and I craved a few moments where we could see the staff members working at the buffet, or what a chance encounter between David Seymour and a New Zealand celebrity would look like. There are a lot more faces in the Koru lounge than just our politicians, and I want to see them.
My other qualm was to do with the voice overs. Don’t get me wrong, they’re an incredibly useful tool in performance, especially for quick changes, but in this instance I felt as though they were relied upon too heavily. The interaction between our two cardboard cutouts is hilarious, and a moment where we do get to see people other than politicians, but I want to see more moments where the pair are crouching behind cut outs, or using mics backstage. I feel that having less voice overs would have prevented the dips in energy that occurred when the pair were offstage, and perhaps could have strengthened the connection with the audience.
All of that being said, it’s still an excellent show that had me giggling all night. I’ve never stepped foot in a Koru Lounge, I stare at it forlornly when I walk past at the airport, but this show painted a pretty good picture. One day, when I do eventually enter the pearly gates of the Koru Lounge, I’m expecting a full on cult initiation.
Taking jabs at the upper class is always necessary, and felt fitting after being bombarded with images of gross displays of wealth at the Met Gala. I applaud these two for this clever, absurd, and very relevant political satire, and I would love to see it performed in the actual Koru Lounge in the Wellington Airport someday - I think some folks in there are due for a wake up call.
The Koru Hour: 2 Elite 2 Handle is on The Stage at BATS until Saturday the 11th of May.
The pair have excellent chemistry with one another, and their timing is stellar. Macleod dons an incredible bald cap at points as she portrays our… beloved prime minister, and Maclean’s impression of David Seymour is so convincing I find myself holding back a boo everytime she flashes that slimy smile our way (I mean that as the highest compliment). Some stand out sketches include the flight safety video, the sensual tango between Luxon and Seymour, and the absolutely absurd ending. I had a blast watching these politicians get put on blast.
The Koru Hour: 2 Elite 2 Handle is a satirical romp about our wildly out of touch elite, however I wasn’t entirely sold on the Koru lounge setting. On one hand, I can see the link (especially with Luxon’s past as the CEO of Air New Zealand), but on the other I think this show could have been just as good if it were set in a parliament cafe, or even the toilets. Placing them in the lap of luxury from the get go means that luxury is all we really see, and I craved a few moments where we could see the staff members working at the buffet, or what a chance encounter between David Seymour and a New Zealand celebrity would look like. There are a lot more faces in the Koru lounge than just our politicians, and I want to see them.
My other qualm was to do with the voice overs. Don’t get me wrong, they’re an incredibly useful tool in performance, especially for quick changes, but in this instance I felt as though they were relied upon too heavily. The interaction between our two cardboard cutouts is hilarious, and a moment where we do get to see people other than politicians, but I want to see more moments where the pair are crouching behind cut outs, or using mics backstage. I feel that having less voice overs would have prevented the dips in energy that occurred when the pair were offstage, and perhaps could have strengthened the connection with the audience.
All of that being said, it’s still an excellent show that had me giggling all night. I’ve never stepped foot in a Koru Lounge, I stare at it forlornly when I walk past at the airport, but this show painted a pretty good picture. One day, when I do eventually enter the pearly gates of the Koru Lounge, I’m expecting a full on cult initiation.
Taking jabs at the upper class is always necessary, and felt fitting after being bombarded with images of gross displays of wealth at the Met Gala. I applaud these two for this clever, absurd, and very relevant political satire, and I would love to see it performed in the actual Koru Lounge in the Wellington Airport someday - I think some folks in there are due for a wake up call.
The Koru Hour: 2 Elite 2 Handle is on The Stage at BATS until Saturday the 11th of May.