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EX_ISLE OF STRANGERS at Mâtiu-Somes Island
reviewed by John Smythe 18 Apr 2010
Healing the hurts of history
Described as “the point of departure” for the work, Matiu Somes Island is where we arrive, via East West Ferry, to engage with the outcome of their devised theatre process. Spanning three and a half hours from leaving and returning to Queens Wharf, it treats us to a range of site-specific evocations of the island’s history expressed in forms inspired by the Michael Chekhov Technique, Te Whare Tapere (pre-European Maori performing arts) and Japanese Noh theatre ... [more]

MISS SAIGON at St James Theatre
reviewed by John Smythe 16 Apr 2010
Challenges met with alacrity
Having at last caught up with Miss Saigon I feel compelled to add my own accolade to the critical record. It is another astonishingly accomplished production from Wellington Musical Theatre. [more]

TAUTAI at Musgrove Studio, Maidment Theatre
reviewed by Katrina Chandra 15 Apr 2010
Strong Tokelauan hardwood still needs shaping
This script had a reading in Manukau in 2009 and this ‘fully family funded’ production brings to life the story of a keen young fisher-boy who is stuck in a 21st Century city but seems to be trying to get away from school and family worries to pursue bigger fish. [more]

BROKEN CHINA at The Basement, Lower Greys Ave
reviewed by Joanna Davies 15 Apr 2010
Truly desperate housewives
My partner was not thrilled to be going to “more feminist theatre.” “Where’s the misogyny?” he asked on the way. He shut up as soon as the performance began. [more]

ELIMINATION ROUNDS at BATS
reviewed by Lynn Freeman (Capital Times) 15 Apr 2010
Bold Binge Culture
This company of Gen Ys is producing the kind of theatre that speaks directly to its peers. [more]

THE MONSTER MONOLOGUES at Te Karanga Gallery
reviewed by Nik Smythe 14 Apr 2010
Fresh pickings of provocative fare from our energy-rich soils
Prolific Playwright/director Tom Sainsbury relinquishes his scripting duties this time, directing seven short one-actor plays written by seven young newcomers – some of them actors themselves. The result is an eclectic array of quirky, macabre and frequently amusing characters offering their takes on the intricacies of life, love, society, that kind of stuff. [more]

NZ Fringe Festival 2010
GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE QUEERS at BATS
reviewed by John Smythe 14 Apr 2010
High-camp theatricality overwhelms dramatic potential
Rather than draw on the rich resources of Wellington’s 1960s-70s underground gay culture (Carmen’s coffee lounge et al), Short Term Visitor Parking’s devised work vamps up a pop culture pastiche of San Francisco at that seminal time, albeit with a Momma Queer straight from the Bronx and Goldilocks from the Deep South Bible Belt. [more]

HIGH TEASE at SKYCITY Theatre
reviewed by Megan Smith 13 Apr 2010
All sugared out
I feel compelled to start this review in a rather pedantic and unfashionably sober manner, by providing you with a couple of relevant definitions: burlesque n. a mocking imitation, parody tease v. 1 try to provoke in a playful or unkind way. [more]

WUTHERING HEIGHTS at Fortune Theatre
reviewed by Terry MacTavish 13 Apr 2010
The heaven and hell of the heart
The Fortune has discovered the undying appeal of stage adaptations of great literary works, with productions of Jane Austen’s Emma last year and Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre the year before. But how successful is it to meld these two art forms? [more]

DREAM OF THE RED CHAMBER at ASB Theatre, Aotea Centre
reviewed by Bernadette Rae (New Zealand Herald) 12 Apr 2010
Rich carnival of vibrant colour is lacking in feeling
One of China's four most famous literary novels provides the inspiration. A tragic Romeo and Juliet-ish love story unfolds against the backdrop of a prosperous feudal family. The favourite son (Baoyu) is tricked into marrying the wrong girl (Baochai) while his true love (Daiyu) dies of a broken heart. [more]
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