Theatreview Weekly: 13/02/2014
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Festival fever has begun in Wellington, starting with the NZ Fringe Festival. The latest Theatreview Weekly brings us reviews from the fringe.
See more recent reviews at theatreview.org, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory.
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Festival fever has begun in Wellington, starting with the NZ Fringe Festival. The latest Theatreview Weekly brings us reviews from the fringe.
See more recent reviews at theatreview.org, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory.
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The Basement, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - PURPLE RAINBOW: Formulaic yet innovative
- reviewed by Raewyn Whyte
singularly coloured individuals make wonderful use of their faces in comic-book style.
The dancing is so slick and coordinated, and their individual contributions so wonderfully styled, that you have to just sit back and admire them – and accept whatever mayhem follows. Fortunately, there’s a pre-recorded voiceover that confirms the narrative thread.
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Gryphon, Wellington - SHU: Fun, entertaining, and occasionally surprising
- reviewed by Hannah August
This is the type of fringe theatre that either charms or exasperates its audience, and it is to Arte Visuale’s credit that Shu is not once exasperating, and is very frequently charming.
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The Basement, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - LASHINGS OF WHIPPED CREAM: Kinky fun
- reviewed by Jacqui Stanford
It may have been a one wo-man show but Rhubarb Rouge, by herself, almost has too much personality to fit on one stage. Lashings of Whipped Cream, like its star, is outrageous!
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The Basement, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - LASHINGS OF WHIPPED CREAM: Delicate mix of funny, eye-opening, and moving
- reviewed by India Hendrikse
Tentatively walking into the The Basement to see Fiona Samuel’s Lashings ofWhipped Cream: a session with a teenage dominatrix, the butterflies in the pit of my stomach were well in flight.
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The Basement, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - LASHINGS OF WHIPPED CREAM: An energetic and entertaining performance
- reviewed by Johnny Givins
Something really strange is happening in the upstairs space at Basement this week. Enter the world of a dominatrix’s working dungeon. There are a range of whips, paddles, riding crops, ropes, gruesome clips and even a special hot water bottle. It is the working space of Mistress Dominique who shares the secrets of her Bondage and Discipline profession in an hour of intimate stories, confessions and hilarious audience interactions.
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BATS Theatre (Out Of Site) Understudy Bar and various outdoor locations, Wellington - FREQUENCY: A very different theatrical experience
- reviewed by John Smythe
Being sworn to secrecy at the end of this enjoyably adventurous exercise creates something of a quandary for a critic. What can I say?
Well the first thing is that our group – amiable, intelligent, happy to work together and reasonably efficient except, perhaps, with one communication exercise involving a very old system – takes two hours to complete the tasks set in the interactive scenario; significantly more than the 80 minute approximation in the fringe brochure.
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Whitireia Performance Centre, 25-27 Vivian Street, Wellington - MISS FLETCHER SINGS THE BLUES: Polished yet playful
- reviewed by Deborah Eve Rea
The marriage between comedy, cabaret and theatre is a less charted area in Wellington and the audience seems a little unsure of the rules of engagement at times. Sproull uses Miss Fletcher’s authority (and sometimes lack of) to encourage and discourage their participation when necessary.
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Fringe Bar, 26 Allen St, Wellington - MAYHEM AHEAD!: A very deft mix of banter and bafflement
- reviewed by Michael Gilchrist
This is a fairly traditional kind of presentation of some fairly traditional tricks. It is impressive, nevertheless, to see the degree to which Lindsay has mastered these elements at such a young age. There are, too, plenty of fresh touches and a wry sense of humour at work in the show.
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Gryphon, Wellington - VINYL BURNS VARIETY HOUR: A multi-talented performer
- reviewed by Maryanne Cathro
Holding an audience by oneself for nearly an hour is no easy feat, but Burns has sex psychologist Dr Burns to guest spot for him, as well as his cowboy alter ego, so it’s a lot of value out of one act.
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Puppies, cnr Tory & Vivian Streets, Wellington - THE 7 PERSON CHAIR PYRAMID HIGH WIRE ACT: A fun exploration
- reviewed by Sophie Melchior
The interactive nature of the performance space just seems to enhance the tactile feel of the production. Puppets in many forms are used to tell parts of the story, and the tools of puppetry are used to great effect. Light and dark demark the different scenes, and the amusing use of an old slide projector and screen add real humour.
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Musgrove Studio, Maidment Theatre, Auckland - LANTERN: Intelligent, funny and moving
- reviewed by Nik Smythe
Herself born and raised in New Zealand by her Chinese parents, playwright Renee Liang explains in the programme that certain events in the story come directly from her own colourful experiences. The narrative is wholly fictional however, exploiting the specific perspective of local migrant and first generation Chinese culture to express themes universal throughout humanity, notably the joyous cohesion and frustrated confusion that defines the family unit.
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Musgrove Studio, Maidment Theatre, Auckland - LANTERN: Lantern truly illuminates
- reviewed by Sharu Delilkan
Right from the get-go the acting is ballsy and confident – in yer face and full of pace. Chye-Ling Huang and James Roque play off each other nicely and clearly believe and/or personally identify with the key themes and characters of the play.
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BATS Theatre (Out Of Site), Cnr Cuba & Dixon, Wellington - HORATIO: Clever plotting yet to realise its full potential
- reviewed by John Smythe
What a piece of work is this: the immediate aftermath of the Hamlet debacle. They’re all dead: Polonius, Ophelia, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Laertes, Gertrude, Claudius and Hamlet … Not to mention Old Hamlet, whose ghost lit the fuse of vengeance in his studious son, and Old Fortinbras who died at his hand thus giving his own son a revenge motive. And Yorick, of course, of relatively natural causes. Only Horatio, Hamlet’s sole trusted friend, is left (apart from Osric and the odd other courtier).
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Your Place. Or Mine. Whatever Works., Wellington - EVERYTHING IS SURROUNDED BY WATER: Insightful and above all, honest
- reviewed by Lucy O'Connor
The character of Uther enters the story with a punch. One of the first things we learn about him is that he has an over-active imagination. Without straying too far from the point he runs on an exemplary tangent. This is a trend that continues throughout the show; a side story is sent just far enough before we are reeled back to the main point, which is a very endearing trait. It provides just enough understanding before we wonder about the purpose and lose interest.
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Fortune Theatre, Dunedin - BOOK ENDS: Hall play delivers literary levity
- reviewed by Barbara Frame
However you choose to read the title of Roger Hall's new play, it's apt. Six men, all literary in some sense, meet at the (also aptly named) Sour Dough cafe. There's little action - these are gold-card people - and not a lot of plot.
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NZ Portrait Gallery, Shed 11, Queen's Wharf, Wellington - BLOOM: Topsy turvy figures
- reviewed by Jennifer Shennan
Marisol Vargas, a Chilean artist, proposed to the Portrait Gallery a dance event, entitled Bloom, to be performed within the exhibition. Virginia Kennard and Jeremy Haxton danced through the space in a ten-minute improvisation that caught their response to McArthur’s work.
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Fringe Bar, 26 Allen St, Wellington - BATTLE OF WITS 2014: Muddled middles subvert good endings
- reviewed by Lucy O'Connor
This is no one’s fault in particular and I catch enough between the rowdy revellers shooting pool and the bar staff pouring pints to get the idea. He seems oblivious to the background noise however as he never increases his volume. Luckily I am incredibly good at lip reading.
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Fortune Theatre, Dunedin - BOOK ENDS: Erudite camaraderie often biting as well as funny
- reviewed by Terry MacTavish
The four scenes at the cafe take place a year apart, and so we see the men first panic, then come to terms with each new technological development, using smartphones and reading newspapers online while recalling regretfully the days when the Guardian Weekly was posted out from England ‘on almost translucent airmail paper’. It gives a nice smug feeling to be reminded of how far we’ve come. Is it really only a couple of years ago we were freaking out over iPads? And now I read (online) of a school where every student is given one.
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Circa Two, Wellington - A PLAY ABOUT FEAR: Fear faced with eyes wide open
- reviewed by Laurie Atkinson
We are introduced to the show’s larkish but effective approach to its subject with a revue sketch called Freak Accidents which tells us about the nightmarish accidents we all sometimes privately imagine. The play then hops about all over the place (darkness, anarchy, strangers, monsters, loneliness, claustrophobia, moral dilemmas) but eventually it focuses on two young women, Lucy and Charlotte, who one dark night order a pizza while watching a movie.
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BATS (Out-Of-Site) Understudy Bar - return, Wellington - PUNDEMONIUM: Some pundas walk into a bar …
- reviewed by Deborah Eve Rea
There are two interwoven competitions: one for The Improvisors and one for the Comedians. One of each group will be crowned Pun King / Pun Queen. Carmody and O’Sullivan hand out party poppers to audience members for when a “spectacular pun” may leave one a tad over-excited. Any release of poppers grants the comedian /improviser bonus points.
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BATS Theatre (Out Of Site), Cnr Cuba & Dixon, Wellington - TIME TRAVELLERS: Leaves its audience humming
- reviewed by John Smythe
The boy – Niko Nash-Krippner – emerging from a shallow suitcase might not be too mystifying for those with an astute eye but when the long ladder follows … Yes, they’ve got me there.
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Matchbox Studios, 166 Cuba Street, Wellington - BREAK UP [WE NEED TO TALK]: A unique and powerful experience
- reviewed by James McKinnon
At 0100 on Sunday morning, when Binge Culture finally throws in the towel, the venue is packed. People are sitting on the floor in front of the seats and standing two rows deep behind them. As a person who typically shuns performances longer than 90 minutes, I am surprised to find myself and so many others still gazing on with rapt attention after six hours of watching Binge Culture perform a single action that people now often perform with a single text message: “breaking up.”
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www.cinemaindecline.com, Online - THE KINCAID WEEKENDER: Revealing the casual racism and rampant capitalism of an unchallenged hamlet
- reviewed by John Smythe
If for any reason getting out to Fringe shows is impracticable, fret not: Jonny Potts has crafted a show that you don’t need to leave home to enjoy. Actually he bills it as, “The Fringe show you can enjoy between Fringe shows!”
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Circa Two, Wellington - A PLAY ABOUT FEAR: A vital essence of humanity offsets the grotesque comedy
- reviewed by John Smythe
For all their relaxed and deceptively casual demeanour, the ensemble is fully focused on their dramatic purpose and play it all out in well-paced and seamlessly choreographed action. Their opening inventory of supposed “Freak Accidents”, ‘sold’ to us in a seductive promotional style, sets the dark humour tone.
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Fringe Bar, 26 Allen St, Wellington - RAW POETRY SLAM IV: The calibre is high
- reviewed by Phoebe Smith
All of these poets have grasped one of the important aspects of a poetry slam, which is that these are poems that are being performed. In a variety of styles – the semi-rap being the most common – each of these seven poets really do take to the stage and deliver a performance of their work and the calibre is high.
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Whitireia Performance Centre, 25-27 Vivian Street, Wellington - IMMACULATE DECEPTION: Soporific
- reviewed by James McKinnon
The key action in a murder mystery like Immaculate Deception is typically the search for the killer, countered by the killer’s evasive action. But in this play, the chief action of most scenes is not a clash between accusation and denial, but a congenial revelation of information from one character to the other. The plot is not advanced by one character’s intelligent detective work, but by the accidental discovery of a piece of evidence, which she then takes to another character so that they can explain its significance.
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Wellington Circus Hub, Newtown, Wellington - HOW TO UNIVERSE: Funny and captivating
- reviewed by Amy Tait
This is an original production, created by Zegge, Zane and Imogen and they have total ownership of it. This product of their imaginations is a unique concept, delivered superbly by the 3 performers. You will laugh at the cute robot-narrator, cheer at the skil,l and gasp at the physical feats.
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BATS Theatre (Out Of Site), Cnr Cuba & Dixon, Wellington - THE MARRIAGE: Good puppets poorly manipulated and characterised
- reviewed by Hannah Smith
The puppets themselves are interesting, with beautifully constructed faces. Unfortunately there are some basic tenets of their manipulation that need attending to. Often the puppeteers look at each other, rather than the puppet, breaking the illusion. The choreography is messy and chaotic – and when multiple puppeteers are working together with one puppet they are not giving the puppet breath, and therefore life.
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19 Tory St, Wellington - 4 TESTS AND 1 DOOD: Two Doods and Two Tests
- reviewed by Maryanne Cathro
What a delightful, engaging experience this show is! I arrive at 19 Tory St, as delightfully random a venue as you are ever going to get.
Two young blokes sitting on couches look at me and ask, “Vegetables?” Now being deeply suspicious as I am of experimental theatre ...
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Various fountains, Wellington - THE FOUNTAIN LIFEGUARDS: Fountain guards take it all swimmingly
- reviewed by Deborah Eve Rea
The Fountain Lifeguards (Ian Harcourt and Jen McArthur) arrive with ladders and flags and diligently set out to find the best possible viewing spots of the Albatross Fountain and, of course, the safest area for swimming which they duly mark out with flags. It is important to our lifeguards that we all understand the dangers of fountain swimming before we enter the water. In case you didn’t know, you can drown in 5cm of water- so it’s very serious business
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BATS Theatre (Out Of Site), Cnr Cuba & Dixon, Wellington - THEY SAW A THYLACINE: Free-flowing poetic language
- reviewed by Laurie Atkinson
One could have thought Samuel Beckett had a hand in the prize-winning Australian production of They Saw a Thylacine what with two seated women in a wire cage who barely move for 45 minutes as they alternate in telling their stories.
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BATS Theatre (Out Of Site), Cnr Cuba & Dixon, Wellington - CITIZEN GEF: Trundles along amusingly
- reviewed by Laurie Atkinson
Citizen Gef is a comedy about two playwrights collaborating, arguing and going on a road trip as they attempt to write a play (actually a documentary) about Gef, a talking mongoose. Gef is really just a peg on which to hang the showing of the process of artistic collaboration.
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74 Ghuznee Street - look for the door, Wellington - A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM: Sure-footed comedy
- reviewed by Hannah Smith
This dance party atmosphere carries through the high energy, sexy production. A thirteen-strong cast powers the action with liveliness and enthusiasm, filling what could be a cavernous space with limbs and squeals and lots of laughter.
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Beyond Chaffer's Car Park, behind Te Papa, Wellington - RIDING IN CARS WITH (MOSTLY STRAIGHT) BOYS: Empathy assured
- reviewed by John Smythe
What a clever idea, to solve the problem – and expense, I presume – of finding a venue in a fully-subscribed Fringe by staging your play in a car park. Not that inner city car parks are inexpensive, but then the area behind Te Papa, just round the corner from the Chaffer’s car park, is not an official parking area. And it does boast a handy grassy bank for the audience to sit upon – out of the evening sun and in the teeth of a biting southerly on this opening night, however, so be warned and do dress for the conditions.
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TAPAC Theatre, Western Springs, Auckland - MACBETH: Like a cultural volcano bursting with flashes of potential power
- reviewed by Johnny Givins
Macbeth, Shakespeare’s masterpiece, is brought to life in an original and bloody fashion by Auckland’s Young Shakespeare Company at TAPAC. It is a treasure trove of theatrical gems and a volcano of creative potentiality.
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TAPAC Theatre, Western Springs, Auckland - MACBETH: Scot problems
- reviewed by Matt Baker
Shakespeare wrote for an aural audience; he doesn’t show, he tells. Accordingly, an actor’s vocal articulation is as an integral element of their performance as much as their understanding of the text. Fortunately, I know Macbeth as a text. I say fortunately, because had I not, I doubt I would have understood much of what was going on in the Young Auckland Shakespeare Company’s production.
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Fringe Bar, 26 Allen St, Wellington - HOW TO PICK UP WOMEN: Sociopathic and self-serving so-called artists revealed
- reviewed by John Smythe
Billed as “a world class seminar on seduction” and a “perfect post Sevens show”, Alexander Sparrow’s multi-character solo performance, How to Pick Up Women, draws multiple shrieks from women in the audience at its Fringe Bar debut.
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19 Tory St, Wellington - NECROPOLIS: Admirable ambition
- reviewed by James McKinnon
Unfortunately, Necropolis’s ambitions are more admirable than successful. The play – like any play that combines poetic language, characters drawn from classical mythology, and metaphysical inquiry – needs us to use our imagination to soar above and beyond the material world, but Necropolis’s staging relentlessly drag us back down to earth.
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The Basement, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - JUST ABOVE THE CLOUDS: Cirrusly Funny
- reviewed by Sharu Delilkan
As we entered the theatre we couldn’t help notice the set’s striking resemblance to Roger Waters’ legendary concert's Berlin Wall setting, the only difference being that it was the “paper sky” version.
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The Basement Studio, Lower Greys Ave, Auckland - THUMPER: Unanimous decision
- reviewed by Matt Baker
The inciting incident that rings the bell in Simon Ward’s play is, unfortunately in today’s society, by no means a fanciful subject matter. However, the lesser reported, and unaccounted, consequences are a source of great dramatic material.
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BATS Theatre (Out Of Site), Cnr Cuba & Dixon, Wellington - THEY SAW A THYLACINE: Gripping, witty and insightful
- reviewed by John Smythe
It starts with smoke and mirrors – the haze of stage smoke also permeates the Bats auditorium and a mirror ball pierces it with shafts of light – as 1930s big band swing jazz blares from the speakers. On stage there’s a cage within which two women lurk eating fruit, the skins and husks of which litter their prison.
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See more recent reviews at theatreview.org.nz, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory
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