Posts Tagged Theatre Review
Archive
June 14, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Stubs: # 257 – The Gaps Between, Wellington, 2016
It’s funny with reviewing – how a new gig starts. Just suddenly out of nowhere. And stops in much the same way. I was a theatre reviewer for about a year or so for The Sunday Star Times. Happened on a whim. They needed someone. I was keen. I had reviewed some theatre for the […]Archive
June 2, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
IT’S BEHIND YOU: Theatre
IT’S BEHIND YOU! (Livestream Recording) Direction: Hannah Smith (written by Ralph McCubbin Howell and Anya Tate-Manning) Livestream via Circa Theatre, TACT and Trick of the Light Theatre (May 28 – July 30) In its first post-Covid production for a post-Lockdown world Circa Theatre commissioned a new work (with support from TACT) called IT’S BEHIND YOU!Archive
February 14, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Wonderful: Theatre
Wonderful Direction: Conrad Newport (written by Dean Parker) Circa Theatre; Circa Two (February 12 – March 7) Wonderful is exactly that – a thrill to sit through, 80 minutes of focussed, virtuoso-level performance from actor Andrew Laing; utterly in service to the words of playwright Dean Parker. The direction from Conrad Newport is subtle and […]Archive
January 20, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
The Surprise Party: Theatre
The Surprise Party Direction: Conrad Newport (written by Dave Armstrong) Circa Theatre; Circa One (January 18 – February 15) In The Surprise Party – Dave Armstrong’s biting new satire – a minority party is elevated far beyond their station due to a series of scandals rocking the bigger players. We first join the action on […]Archive
January 18, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
A Traveller’s Guide to Turkish Dogs: Theatre
A Traveller’s Guide to Turkish Dogs Direction: Jonathan Price (written by Barnaby Olson & Company) Circa Theatre; Circa Two (January 17 – February 8) This is a repeat-season, but the play is retitled, reworked and though I didn’t see it 18 months or so ago in its earlier incarnation at BATS it’s clear that this […]Archive
October 13, 2019 by Simon Sweetman
Cock: Theatre
Cock Direction: Shane Bosher (written by Mike Bartlett) Circa Theatre; Circa One (October 12 – November 9) Cock is the story of two guys and a girl. John (Jack Buchanan), a gay man, isn’t so happy with ‘M’ (Simon Leary). He’s bossed around a bit and made to feel small, a bit thick. They break […]Archive
September 23, 2019 by Simon Sweetman
Peggy Pickit Sees The Face of God: Theatre
Peggy Pickit Sees The Face of God Direction: Giles Burton (written by Roland Schimmelpfennig/translated by David Tushingham) Circa Theatre; Circa Two (September 14 – October 12) After six years apart couples Liz (Rebecca Parker) and Frank (Gavin Rutherford) and Martin (Patrick Davies) and Carol (Fingal Pollock) reunite for a dinner party. That’s ostensibly our premise […]Archive
September 8, 2019 by Simon Sweetman
The Pink Hammer: Theatre
The Pink Hammer Direction: Conrad Newport (written by Michele Amas) Circa Theatre; Circa One (September 7 – October 5) The Pink Hammer is simply not very good. It pains me to say it as I’ve spent the last two or three years talking up almost everything I’ve seen at Circa (indeed the standard is high). […]Archive
August 14, 2019 by Simon Sweetman
Cringeworthy: Theatre
Cringeworthy Direction: Andrea Sanders (devised by Andrea Sanders) Circa Theatre; Circa Two (August 10 – September 7) Cringeworthy comes to us from Andrea Sanders – creator/leader of The Beat Girls. She’s created musical shows before (usually for The Beat Girls to act and sing in) here she stars alongside Tom Knowles, Carrie McLaughlin and Jeff Kingsford-Brown in a knowingly kitsch (but utterly clever and classy) tribute to the […]Archive
August 5, 2019 by Simon Sweetman
Burn Her: Theatre
Burn Her Direction: Katherine McRae (written by Sam Brooks) Circa Theatre; Circa One (August 3 – 31) Burn Her is the kind of must-see, thrill-ride, brilliantly written, acted, directed theatre we can now pretty much expect down at Circa. Every aspect of this production sizzles. Debbie Fish’s set-design is magnificent, standing there as if about to deliver a monologue of its own as we enter […]Archive
July 8, 2019 by Simon Sweetman