Monica Moore - Page 5

Watching the groundlings interact with the cast on Saturday night was heartening. Young people fully engaged and wanting more - eager to participate in all the goings-on. Yes! Frivolity, flippancy and folly hit the mark with the full audience despite Auckland turning on it's coldest and windiest weather that could have easily distracted and derailed. But the weather was no competitor for the waves made from leaf blowers, the stylised french sailors, the stunning costumes (Valentine's was my new all time favourite ever) and the general tomfoolery highlighted within this great yarn of disguise and dissipation (whether calculated or heart-felt)

The manic physical shtick is perfectly delivered and both director and cast have hit the mark. This is not easy to achieve particularly within a static set but it is so well delivered that we were mesmerised and fully into all the goings-on. The laughs were hearty and came in the right places and the more I noticed each character's actions the more I laughed.

The vocals, particularly the sensational harmonies more than did justice to honour the music of Stephen Sondheim

Director Cian Elyse White assisted by Romy Hooper has captured the heart of this beautifully crafted story by NZ Playright John Broughton bringing together a young Maori man and a young Scottish woman in the commonality of appreciation of the beautiful views from the lush hillside of Ngā Puke in Hawke's Bay. Waru,(Kimo Houltham) a young Māori farmer, and Angie,(Simone Walker) a budding Pākehā artist of Scottish descent, accidentally meet and despite their vastly different backgrounds, they have an immediate connection. As the Second World War breaks out, Waru joins the Māori Battalion and Angie becomes a nurse. When their paths cross again on Crete, much has changed. Will the two make it through the horrors of war and back to the beautiful pastures of Pōrangahau?

Set in post-Nazi Netherlands, the story is delivered through the eyes of 9 year old Thomas and highlights his perspective on the domestic violence within his family headed by an abusive Christian fundamentalist. Underpinning the story is the great kindness that people are able to give despite their circumstances and the willingness to stand up for love even from a position of apparent powerlessness. I can't help but think of our own social problems here in New Zealand and how this play is an excellent reflection of how a community can overcome.

The story, music and delivery, takes one by surprise settling right into the middle of the heart and morphing raw emotion through the veins; simply 'taking over'. The daily norms of behaviour evaporated and I was 'in' the show. I was transported to a place of primal emotion that pushes past control to a place earthed in the rawness of connection and love. The very essence of human emotion, need and desire juxtaposed against 'how it should be' is brought to the fore in a beautiful simplicity. Jesse Peach's vision of simplicity and allowing the emotion to be 'enough' had to be cleverly crafted. Illumination of humanity within simplicity hard to acheive and he's done just that.

This is a great gift to your children in the holidays when you are looking for something to do- but it's only on until July 14th so book quickly!

This is great gift to your children when you are looking for something to do in the holidays; books, music, laughter and fun! This was our first trip to a Tim Bray Theatre Company show but it won't be our last! Bookings are filling fast so I'd recommend you get organised so you don't miss out!

After years of hard work and countless rejections, Eleanor's first book is finally published. Her closest, and rather up tight, friend, Addison - who has sworn not to throw a party in her honour - promises an event of conservative proportions and 'close friends' only. What ensues is an evening of dysfunction, drama and dismay as secrets are are outed, dreams are shattered and relationships stretched to their limits.

At times verging on the absurd, this production of the Threepenny Opera (in support of the Wellington Homeless Women's Trust) is thoroughly entertaining, at times unsettling and indicative of the work's continuing popularity and relevance although the purposeful crude scenes, caustic wit and dissection of the hypocrisies of the bourgeois morality may not be for everyone.

Navigating their way through the awkwardness of a blind date; where the quest for love is a combo of hopeful anticipation and the crushing reality of rejection Aaron (Jeremy Downing) and Casey (Kristen Paulse) to and fro - entering each other's zone, testing the water, retreating and retaliating, back and forth in a dance of 'lurve'. They're great. They illuminate their characters fully infiltrating them and then there's the bonus of the great singing.

This magnificent story delivers the message of the strength of the human spirit in the face of the inhumane. The investment in both hope and dignity is craftily woven between cast and audience capturing and connecting us to both the trauma and the triumph of the human spirit. This is a must see; a reminder of what happened in the not too distant past and a push to think about our present and future.

There are laugh-out-loud moments but the comedy comes mostly from the social commentary and sharp, British gallows humour that touches a chord with anyone who has ever felt overlooked, dismissed, humiliated or rejected.  These are the men that Donald Trump appealed to with the promise of bringing back the industrial boom.  They measure their masculinity by what they can provide and their lack of prospects (especially in the face of the capable working women in their lives) only exacerbate their feelings of failure.

Choreographers Lesley Bandy and Hayz Pincheira Rowe along with Conductor Chad Davenport, have collaborated to create 'Imaginarium' a fusion of story, dance, band and song. The 55 members of the West City Concert Band are front right and centre in this performance, becoming integral visual parts of the story as they move and infuse within the the dynamics of the choreography.

'The Audience' is an unexpected experience of an unrelatable life becoming relatable and of humanity meeting humanity. A life and rhythm is breathed into the script cleverly connecting 'she who is above' to the hearts of the masses, delivering this message: The Queen is a person, she feels and needs and at times her life is unrecognisably and stiflingly difficult. The theatrical value weighs heavily on talent both individual and collaborative; making refined nuances of timing and delivery, well, crucial.

There was just the right amount of scary to keep me on my seat and the use of lighting and sound was on point to deliver this. This was a crucial element to the play's success and succeed it did.

Written by Roger Hall it is a classic, cleverly crafted comedic social commentary of 1970's New Zealand middle class. Opening in 1978, Middle Age Spread is one of Hall's most successful social comedies, with an extended Wellington season, a New Zealand-made movie and  a West End production that ran for 15 months. This play stands the test of time and like Oscar Wilde who made frivolous fun of 'the dilemmas of the people at the time' Hall's work has evolved into an historical lens that pokes fun at 'from whence we have come'.

This high energy, 'sit on the edge of your seat' play is crafted written by Joni Nelson who has cleverly meshed a social commentary into rollicking great entertainment that you will enjoy and will make you think. There are loads of laughs and surprises (who exactly is in the bathroom?) amongst the pathos and this story had me engrossed from the beginning to the end. A sign of a great play is when time flies. Time flew.

Having been part of writer Leki Jackson Burke's 'south side' school experience I can validate that he has expressed the heart of the experiences of young Pasifika people as they negotiate their way through high school. A determined mother, empathetic teacher, the importance and relevance of performing arts and young people who are willing to overcome difference and find connection in their commonality are all relevant themes well represented in this contemporary piece.