A selection of reviews from Theatreview from the last week including: Dolly Mixture, Cloud 9, The Clouds, and Constantinople.

See more recent reviews at theatreview.org, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory.

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A selection of reviews from Theatreview from the last week including: Dolly Mixture, Cloud 9, The Clouds, and Constantinople.

See more recent reviews at theatreview.org, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory.

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The Basement, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - CLOUD 9: I'm on it

- reviewed by Matt Baker

Cross-gender and cross-racial casting, an era-specific time relocation, and characters represented by dolls or never seen at all are three fundamental theatrical constructs employed by Caryl Churchill to present the themes of sexuality, oppression, and identity in her 1979 play, Cloud 9. Such constructs illustrate said themes to the audience in a blatant and purposeful way, but it would be wrong to consequently conclude that the play is in any way easy to perform or direct.

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The Basement, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - CLOUD 9: Unity, cohesion and an exciting shared vision

- reviewed by Lexie Matheson

Sam Shore likes challenges, otherwise why would he choose to tackle one of the greatest, and most labyrinthine, plays of the 20th century; a play recently criticised for being trapped in the quasi-intellectual quagmire of the 1970s and for trumpeting the demise of second wave feminism?

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The Basement Studio, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - DOLLY MIXTURE: Gruesome, smart, stupid, splendid: a thoroughly revolting romp!

- reviewed by Jan Maree

A great show has certain signs for me: I don't look at my watch, the time races by, the end comes too soon and of course, I desperately want a) more and b) to see it all over again. Dolly Mixture is such a show, and so much more.

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BATS - Out Of Site - Cnr Cuba & Dixon, Wellington - THE CLOUDS: Satire and surprises aplenty

- reviewed by John Smythe

The central premise is that Strepsiades (David Lawrence) wants his lazy horse-loving son Pheidippides (Julia Harrison) to go to a university presided over by Vice Chancellor Socrates (Salesi Le’ota) and graduate as a lawyer so that he can argue his way out of having to pay his debts: a clear reflection of rich list tax evaders. The more things change …

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The Basement Studio, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - CONSTANTINOPLE: Masterful amateurism

- reviewed by Nik Smythe

The set is evidently constructed from everyday objects found around the house such as a comfy looking settee and a pepper grinder, and embellished by a gigantic wall-hanging reproduction of the iconic poster image of Duncan as the semi-titular emperor Constantine, aptly posed to resemble Jesus, Elvis and Che Guevara in equal measures.

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The Civic – THE EDGE, Auckland - CORONATION STREET ON STAGE!: Take a trip down memory lane to Coro St, chook

- reviewed by Janet McAllister

My co-reviewer, Iris, has been watching Coronation Street since the first episode 52 years ago, and could be dragged away from her telly for the stage show only because she had Coro on auto record. "But I'm not a fanatic!" she says.

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The Civic – THE EDGE, Auckland - CORONATION STREET ON STAGE!: Coro remembered and mocked panto style

- reviewed by Adey Ramsel

Love it or loathe it, it's here. With an undeniable – and, in some areas, enviable – rich history of 63 years, two thousand storylines, 92 marriages, 156 deaths and too many to mention affairs, births, abductions, kidnappings and pints pulled and downed, it looks as if it's here to stay, on our screens at least.

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See more recent reviews at theatreview.org.nz, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory

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