ESCAPING
BATS Theatre, The Stage, 1 Kent Tce, Wellington
02/04/2025 - 05/04/2025
Production Details
Writer / Performer: Adam Burrell
Produced by Tuatara Collective in collaboration TuWaiLu Productions.
ESCAPING is a gay exposé about living, loving, losing and learning – written and performed by Adam Burrell and his alter-ego Adeena Delights featuring monologue, poetry, song and of course drag with an inescapable lip-synch or two.
BATS Theatre, 1 Kent Terrace
2-5 April 2025, 8.30pm
https://bats.co.nz/whats-on/escaping/
Presented as a Double Bill* at BATS Wellington with Whose Memory Lights The Dark, a tale of self-discovery and survival after trauma. Featuring Natala Gwiazdzinski and Adam Burrell.
*Patrons can book for individual shows, or see both for a discounted price.
Presented by Tuatara Collective. The Collective provides space for artists to create and share stories with an authentic lens – focusing on Māori, Pasifika and LGBTQi+ communities. All projects are created to provide community participation and facilitate kōrero.
Tuatara Collective has developed the Rātā initiative, an innovative arts practice supporting mental health in the arts industry (for artists and audiences). This includes having mental health professionals present at every performance for the audience to engage with, as well as offering wānanga and training to the cast and crew during and after the project. This is a core value of Tuatara Collective, and informs their kaupapa and mahi.
Adam Burrell (aka Adeena Delights) is of Samoan descent and was born and raised in Auckland, New Zealand. He is a highly regarded and experienced actor, singer and live entertainer with over 20 years’ of professional experience.
A career highlight is his performance in K’Rd Strip – A Place to Stand, an original, devised Māori contemporary dance work that toured to Edinburgh International Fringe Festival in 2015.
He has performed in over 20 professional children’s theatre productions, including several nationwide tours with Capital E. Some other theatre highlights include The Incredible and Glorious World according to The Fitzroys, City of One Hundred Lovers. King Lear (ATC), and the award-winning play An Act of God (Centrepoint).
Adam has had numerous guest roles on television including Shortland Street, and has extensive experience in the world of drag entertainment where the formidable Ms Adena Delights is known for her quick wit, raucous laugh, and flamboyantly precise performances.
Production Management: Jason Te Mete, Tuatara Collective
Theatre , Solo , Music , Poetry ,
60 minutes
Joyous and also achingly heartbreaking
Review by Gin Mabey 03rd Apr 2025
The stage is set with a ladder and various trinkets sparkling here and there.
Adam Burrell bursts out and immediately displays his gift for physicality on stage. A little boy enraptured with his toy cars. Simple, transporting us, landing us in a place where we immediately care about this person in front of us.
We see this boy find joy and power as he dresses in sparkles and heels and experiments with different ways of moving his body. The use of voiceover effectively transports us to the family home of child Adam and what he is facing.
I love how Adam takes us through his life in a simple storytelling method, letting the light and shade flow through the highs and lows of his life. We learn about the genesis of Adeena Delights, Adam’s drag alter ego. And she is f***ing fabulous. Adam ad-libs and takes little breathers (solo shows with dancing, cycling, costume changes are tough stuff!) which only adds to the charm of the work.
I love the soundtrack, the frantic nature of the piece, and the very simple “let me tell you about my life…” nature of this joyous and also achingly heartbreaking piece.
Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer
Comments