New Zealand Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 5

BWW Review: TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS at Howick Little Theatre
by Jake La Jeunesse - August 04, 2021

hlt studio offers a dramatized memoir of an advice columnist, who forges a connection of love, support, acceptance and forgiveness with hundreds of strangers by offering them advice from her own personal experience, opening up about her mistakes and flaws. A powerful performance available only for a...

BWW Review: THE MOUSETRAP at The Pumphouse, Takapuna
by Glenda Pearce - July 29, 2021

What would you expect from a classic murder mystery, written in 1952 that ran in London's West End continuously until 16 March 2020? And even then the stage performances were only discontinued due to the COVID-19 pandemic! Aren't you just a little curious about this phenomenon?...

BWW Review: LES MISERABLES at Wainuiomata Little Theatre
by Lindsey Rusling - July 18, 2021

Boubil and Schoenberg's musical based on the novel by Victor Hugo is a beast. Dramatic, passionate and a firm favourite with many Musical Theatre lovers for its emotional music, historical setting and tragic but redemptive storyline....

BWW Review: SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET at Te Auaha
by Lindsey Rusling - July 18, 2021

Audiences in Wellington were holding their breath to see if, much-anticipated, WITCH Music Theatre's version of Sondheim's musical thriller, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street....

BWW Review: THE VIEWING ROOM at Howick Little Theatre
by Glenda Pearce - July 18, 2021

 “Why did we wait a lifetime to speak?”...

BWW Review: AN APPOINTMENT WITH DEATH at Langley Theatre, Auckland
by Monica Moore - July 06, 2021

An all-female cast of clever young women delivered an intriguing and highly entertaining performance....

BWW Review: WONDERFUL at Basement Theatre
by Jake La Jeunesse - June 23, 2021

This one-man show portrays a professional clergyman-educator with a deep passion for film and theatre. The combined efforts of playwright Dean Parker and actor Andrew Laing portray a character who is subtle and complex, familiar and loveable. An excellent performance will allow the audience to feel ...

BWW Review: THE REVIVAL at Dolphin Theatre
by Jake La Jeunesse - June 07, 2021

The Revival focuses on a group of bickering actors who slowly begin to realize their show is haunted. Director Jan Saussey pulls together a witty script and some theatre magic to craft an experience that is both charming and frightening. A superb cast of actors adds life (and death) to some difficul...

BWW Review: A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM at Hamilton Musical Theatre
by Marty Wilson - May 16, 2021

Sondheim's A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum has burst into life with gusto on the Hamilton Musical Theatre....

BWW Review: THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN at Howick Little Theatre
by Glenda Pearce - May 14, 2021

Set in a suburban town in England in present time, 'THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN' is a contemporary and complex psycho-thriller, a 'whodunnit' with twists and turns, anticipations and numerous attempts to guess just who is guilty and who is not. Can we trust the 'storyteller' or she suffering from alcohol ...

BWW Review: LEGALLY BLONDE at Centrestage Youth Theatre
by Jake La Jeunesse - May 01, 2021

An impressive cast assembled by Centrestage Youth Theatre incited a standing ovation on their final performance of Legally Blonde. Performers displayed a range of nuance and talent worthy of respect. Review by Jake La Jeunesse...

BWW Review: SHORTLAND STREET: THE MUSICAL at Gryphon Theatre
by Lindsey Rusling - April 22, 2021

Shortland Street is an iconic Kiwi soap opera based around the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital. The soap first aired in 1992, has been broadcast all over the world and is one of the most watched programmes in New Zealand....

BWW Review: BLACKADDER ... IN LOVE at Playhouse Theatre Inc
by Marty Wilson - April 22, 2021

I was invited along to opening night of Playhouse Theatre's production of Blackadder ... In Love. So, I grabbed my 'proxy aunties' and we came along. As fans of Blackadder in general we looked forward to an evening of entertainment. ...

BWW Review: GREASE at Harelquin
by Monica Moore - March 27, 2021

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BWW Review: EVITA at Centrestage Theatre - Orewa
by Pauline Vella - March 22, 2021

Shortly before her death in 1952 at the age of 33, Eva Peron was bestowed with the title “Spiritual Leader of The Nation” by the Argentine Congress. ...

BWW Review: URINETOWN at Centrestage Theatre Company
by Pauline Vella - February 11, 2021

A joyous celebration of Musical Theatre that packs a powerful message!...

BWW Review: HAMLET at Shoreside Theatre, Pumphouse
by Glenda Pearce - February 07, 2021

Powerful performances and fresh new perspectives - the tragedy unfolded with well-focused emotionally charged performances full of clarity and conviction....

BWW Review: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING at Shoreside Theatre
by Glenda Pearce - January 31, 2021

Opening night of the second play of the Shoreside’s 25th Summer Shakespeare in the Park  – and it’s a comedy through and through. ...

BWW Review: CHRISTMAS WITH QUEEN_ST at Spotlight Theatre, Auckland
by Glenda Pearce - December 16, 2020

Queen_St are four talented significant soloists in their own right, but combine them into powerful duets, and commanding creative quartet arrangements – and we get harmonies and melodies delivered with effortless conviction, tonal glow and clarity of diction....

BWW Review: ITHACA at Central Energy Trust Arena, Palmerston North
by Monica Moore - December 09, 2020

Inside the cavernous Fly Palmy Arena, Greek legend collides with space opera via Cirque de Soleil in the epic human-powered gravity and vertigo-defying Dust Palace sci-fi reset of Homer’s Odyssey. It’s an audacious live mash-up featuring elements of Star Trek, Star Wars, Red Dwarf and Guardians of ...

BWW Review: THE SOUND OF MUSIC at Porirua Little Theatre
by Lindsey Rusling - December 04, 2020

Porirua Little Theatre revives The Sound of Music with phenomenally creative set, staging and lighting....

BWW Review: GARAGE PARTY at Wintergarden, Auckland
by Glenda Pearce - December 08, 2020

2020 has been a tough year for the arts in New Zealand, not only for those who appreciate the opportunity to enjoy imaginative and skilled live theatre and the power of music to stir the soul , but of course for the performers themselves. So – yes – when we get the opportunity to go to a real kiwi c...

BWW Review: THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES at The Pumphouse Theatre
by Pauline Vella - December 02, 2020

A Celebratory, Joyful, Funny, Vulnerable, Delicious & Devastatingmust see for all women and their loves!...

BWW Review: LE BASEMENT XXXMAS CABARET at Basement Theatre, Auckland
by Glenda Pearce - November 22, 2020

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BWW Review: ANNIE at Harlequin Musical Theatre
by Pauline Vella - November 18, 2020

If 2020 could be summed up perfectly in a show, that show would be ANNIE! ...