The latest Theatreview Weekly includes reviews of The Journey of the Boundary Riders, Letters From the Front, and Singin’ in the Rain.

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

* * *

The latest Theatreview Weekly includes reviews of The Journey of the Boundary Riders, Letters From the Front, and Singin’ in the Rain.

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

* * *

LETTERS FROM THE FRONT: Strangely safe and benign
BATS Theatre, 1 Kent Tce, Wellington
- reviewed by John Smythe

Amid the welter of ways war stories are being brought to the fore amid WWI centenary commemorations, this improv format raises a number of questions.

Given hundreds of letters and diary entries are potential source material for a performance work that seeks to capture the essence of how it was for those on the frontline, and their loved ones, the first question is where do we start and how do we end?

------------------------------------------------------------------

A BOY WONDER: Frenetic action fun
The Basement -return season, Auckland
- reviewed by Bronwyn Elsmore

Ryan Richards plays Jacob, Tom, Jim, Glenda, Charlie, Billy, Zack – well, everyone actually. And he does it with enviable energy and vitality. This is a fast-paced piece in which the characters switch constantly – each one recognizable by changes in voice, stance, and mannerisms.

------------------------------------------------------------------

GOLF: A LOVE STORY: Genial company with wildly swinging moods
Centrepoint, Palmerston North
- reviewed by John Ross

Roger Hall’s enviable deftness with dialogue enables, with ease and humour, the passing on of bits of needful explanation – such as about what, in practice, ‘par’ amounts to. It also takes a deft actor to carry everything off and Stuart Devenie, in this premiere production, hits the spot with variations in his usual smile, shifting from hopefulness to genuine elation, or wry humour to stress, anxiety, desperation or outright horror.

------------------------------------------------------------------

WELLINGTON RAW COMEDY QUEST 2015: Five from 12 head to the final
VK's Comedy & Blues Bar, 60 Dixon St,
- reviewed by Patrick Davies

The second of two semifinals in the Humurous Trust’s competition is hosted by James Nokise and features another 12 competitors. The bar is packed and humming – VK’s is quickly becoming the go-to spot for comedy.

Nokise’s style is wonderfully relaxed, yet pointed: this man is as sharp as a tack.

------------------------------------------------------------------

GUY WILLIAMS - YOU CAN SENSE THE DESPERATION: Shines best as an observational comedian
Tararua Tramping Club, 4 Moncrieff St, Mt Victoria, Wellington
- reviewed by Simon Howard

Guy Williams is a man of many talents. He has become what he likes to call a “shit-lebrity” through being a regular on popular TV3 comedy shows Jono and Ben and 7 Days, as well as co-hosting The Xtra Factor and the afternoon show on commercial radio station The Edge. Yet as a stand-up comedian, he is still something of an enigma ...

------------------------------------------------------------------

THE JOURNEY OF THE BOUNDARY RIDERS: Interesting, rewarding, highly enjoyable
The Dark Room, Cnr Pitt and Church Street, Palmerston North
- reviewed by Joy Green

The culmination of Dawick's own four-year voyage of discovery, Boundary Riders explores women's place in the settling and history of Victorian New Zealand. Originally she was searching for songs written by female early settlers but when she failed to find those, she found stories and made her own songs from those to tell the adventures of six representative women ...

------------------------------------------------------------------

THE KISS INSIDE: A work of great intrigue
SKYCITY Theatre, Auckland
- reviewed by Jenny Stevenson

As always, Douglas Wright has assembled a group of compelling dancers who tackle the relentless physicality of his choreography with boundless energy and determination. But the undoubted highlight of the evening was to see Douglas himself performing - a non-stop fluid rendition of gestural brilliance, that conveyed its meaning subliminally, imparting multiple images in mere moments. Watched by a silent nurse, Douglas’s performance could well be perceived as paying homage to the great Vaslav Nijinski, himself a mystic, whose flashes of crystalline lucidity were ultimately subsumed by his horrific journey into darkness.

------------------------------------------------------------------

SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN: An exuberant, dazzling spectacle that explodes with excitement
St James Theatre, Wellington
- reviewed by Laurie Atkinson

Occasionally small gifts come with programmes. Ominously, a handy plastic poncho raincoat came with my programme for Singin' in the Rain. Luckily it wasn't needed in row J, but it might have been useful if I had been in the front two rows.

------------------------------------------------------------------

SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN: Wonderfully entertaining; beautifully true to the original film
St James Theatre, Wellington
- reviewed by Jo Hodgson

Right from the get go, this Lunchbox Theatrical Production is slick and full of energy. The ensemble hurry in and out during the excellently played overture setting the scene of the busy film set at the studio of Monumental Pictures.

------------------------------------------------------------------

THE KISS INSIDE: Shimmers rather than shines
SKYCITY Theatre, Auckland
- reviewed by Dione Joseph

Disruption is key to The Kiss Inside, not only in completely questioning any assumptions, preconceptions or attempts at solidifying the abstract; but more potently in laughing at the very notion of doing so.

------------------------------------------------------------------

MRS MCGINTY AND THE BIZARRE PLANT: Stakes need to be higher
Bruce Mason Centre, Takapuna, Auckland
- reviewed by Heidi North-Bailey

Freewheeling on their bicycles, Zoe and Zack wreak havoc with glee. They are then amazed to discover that Mrs McGinty has a bizarre plant that grows and grows. Not only that but it talks too, and they make friends with the plant and Mrs McGinty before the plant is taken away by botanists as it’s growing too big for the garden.

------------------------------------------------------------------

DAFFODILS [INSPIRED BY TRUE EVENTS]: Both bring charismatic pleasure to the songs
Meteor Theatre, Hamilton
- reviewed by Mark Houlahan

It is a fantastic home grown antidote to the pre-processed offshore megamusical. The play tells a strong, real story through words and through the power of popular New Zealand songs.

It is especially good to see this in Hamilton, as this is a Hamilton story, and the producers have worked hard with the Meteor to bring the show to us. There are not many stories that dare to take Hamilton seriously.

------------------------------------------------------------------

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

Further information:

What began as a glorified blog by John Smythe has now become a major organ of communication, interaction and information that has created an online performing arts community by recording, critiquing, celebrating and debating NZ’s professional performing arts activity.

If you value Theatreview, and want to see it survive and grow to further serve the interests and needs of the performing arts community and their audiences, please join the Performing Arts Directory or offer a donation/koha.