Theatreview Weekly: 24/11/11

A selection of reviews from Theatreview from the last week including Rita and Douglas, Making a Killing and Goodnight, Irene.

See more recent reviews at theatreview.org, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory.

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Concert Chamber - Town Hall, THE EDGE, Auckland - RITA AND DOUGLAS: Remarkably deep and revealing

- reviewed by Aidan-B. Howard

The famous artist Rita Angus (for a short time known also as Rita Cook and Rita McKenzie but actually born as Henrietta) and composer Douglas Lilburn (to some known as Gordon) for decades from the 1940s to 1960s had a relationship which was part friendship, part affair. It had profound effects on the lives and creativity of both of them.

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Musgrove Studio, Maidment Theatre, Auckland - MAKING A KILLING: Farce with potential aplenty

- reviewed by Janet McAllister

This farce in American Psycho territory has a great premise: a personalised Monopoly game between old friends - scoundrel merchant bankers who know where all the bodies are buried. The stakes are high – everyone has put $250,000 into the pot – but they're not going to let that get in the way of drinking, snorting and paying for sex.

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Theatre Downstairs, The Oval House, 52-54 Kennington Oval, London - TANIWHATHAMES: Snippets of history like flotsam and jetsam

- reviewed by Lyn Gardner

If Loch Ness has its monster, then maybe the river Thames can have its Taniwha – a shape-shifting creature of salty kisses and siren songs who lures the unsuspecting into the depths. The story of how this mythical creature mysteriously accompanied Captain Cook’s ship on his return from the antipodes is the starting point of this show from Shaky Isles, a UK-based company with strong links to New Zealand.

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Regent Theatre, Greymouth - GOODNIGHT, IRENE: A rich, multi-layered, significant work

- reviewed by Greg O'Connell

As their initial offering, Poison and Purity (inspired by 10-80) coincided with the Pike River mining disaster. On this first anniversary Kiwi/Possum Productions felt compelled to respond in a transformative way through the power of live theatre.

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Circa One, Wellington - ROGER HALL’S ALADDIN: THE PANTOMIME: Light-hearted festive fun

- reviewed by John Smythe

The revival is littered with such up-to-date topical jokes, including clever connection between oil and Tauranga (and, tangentially, Winston Peters), a pointed Terry Serepisos gag and various references to rugby (remember when that was at the centre of our universe?).

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Golden Dawn, Ponsonby Road, Auckland - MILLIONAIRE PRIME MINISTER: Politically relevant performances

- reviewed by Matthew Moore

Millionaire PM is honest, daring, funny, serious, dark and conceptually amazing. A lot of the ideas in the show fly over my head however I am satisfied with what I can piece together. There isis much to think about, and this is definitely not a bad thing.

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Fortune Theatre, Dunedin - A SHORT CUT TO HAPPINESS: Heart-warming entertainment

- reviewed by Kimberley Buchan

The appreciative and star studded audience is greeted by the sight of every community hall in New Zealand. It comes complete with honours boards, a zip, fire extinguishers and authentic touches of patchy paintwork around the plugs.

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Te Whaea, Wellington - NEW ZEALAND SCHOOL OF DANCE GRADUATION SEASON 2011: A nicely balanced box of choclates

- reviewed by Jan Bolwell

For the dance aficionado, attending a New Zealand School of Dance Graduation season is akin to being handed a large and sumptuous box of chocolates. If the classical ballet items are not to your liking then you can dig down a layer and sample a range of contemporary dance offerings.

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Q Loft, 305 Queen St, Auckland - INSTANT ANATOMY: Glorious soap-opera cliché

- reviewed by Nik Smythe

ConArtists, those veterans of thigh-slappingly hilarious long-form improv concepts, are playing a three-week season of a steamy, scandal-ridden medical soap opera “so hot they won't show it on television!” performed live on stage.

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Q, 305 Queen St, Auckland - THE PITMEN PAINTERS: Hall unearths gem in tale of artistic Ashington miners

- reviewed by Janet McAllister

Playwright Lee Hall (Billy Elliot) is in his arts vs mining element with this traditional fourth-wall play, inspired by the two dozen working class artists of the celebrated Ashington Group.

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Musgrove Studio, Maidment Theatre, Auckland - MAKING A KILLING: Zany, convoluted, black comedy thriller

- reviewed by Nik Smythe

Catalyst Theatre’s latest original production is a fairly ambitious piece set in the cutthroat, larcenous world of high finance (read ‘corporate piracy’).

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Q, 305 Queen St, Auckland - THE PITMEN PAINTERS: A performing arts connoisseur’s delight

- reviewed by Lexie Matheson

It’s fair to say that there are a number of parallels between Hall’s 1930s Britain and the Aotearoa/New Zealand today as Hall’s play is steeped in massive ideological and political change, namely the rise of socialism, which is perhaps paralleled today by the appearance of the revolutionary Occupy movement.

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The Pumphouse, Takapuna, Auckland - THE SECRET LIFE OF A BELLYDANCER: Feel-good fun

- reviewed by Joanna Page

By the time I’d fought my way through the madness of Auckland’s road works I was seriously ready for some escapism last night, but I wasn’t sure if bellydancing checkout chicks would cut it. Fortunately, it did.

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Te Whaea, Wellington - NEW ZEALAND SCHOOL OF DANCE GRADUATION SEASON 2011: Performers primed and focused

- reviewed by Greer Robertson

Putting their life and love of dancing on the line, the graduating students open their 10 day season with pride. After years of blood sweat and tears, these performances mark the end of a personal era with the performers primed and focused on a fruitful future career in the dance industry.

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Various venues, Wellington - THE TRAGEDY OF JULIUS CAESAR: Nothing could be more immediately relevant

- reviewed by John Smythe

“Nothing much has changed in 2000 years of politics,” claims the media release, and we only have to look at the news over the past few months to prove that’s absolutely true in Rome (vale Berlusconi) and pretty well everywhere else in Europe. And the Middle East. Australia and New Zealand are also ruthless with their leaders.

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CBS Canterbury Arena, Christchurch - THE MERIDIAN SEASON OF AURORA'S WEDDING 2011: Slendid triple bill warmly received by Christchurch

- reviewed by Toby Behan

The choreography of A Song in the Dark, the dancers performing it, and the organisation of the Royal NZ Ballet represents something for us all to be immensely proud of as New Zealanders.

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BATS, Wellington - WAKE LESS: Pushing the envelope

- reviewed by Lynn Freeman

There are some plays you leave shaking your head, wondering if you have just seen a work of great complexity or something that was just trying too hard to be different. After sleeping on it, Wake Less falls somewhere between the two.

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See more recent reviews at theatreview.org.nz, the NZ Performing Arts Review & Directory

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