Aronui Announces The Return Of The Matariki Drone Show
Aronui Arts Festival - Latest News [Page 1]
The free outdoor event that will feature hundreds of drones painting stories across the night sky in a mesmerising blend of light, sound, and narration created by Ngāti Whakaue/ Te Arawa artists. More >>
Wednesday, 21 August 2024, 8:12 am | Aronui Arts Festival
The Voices in the Shadows will be held at Matangi Rau - Sir Howard Morrison Theatre on Thursday, 12 September, from 7pm to 9pm, and on Friday, 13 September, with performances at 11am to 1pm and 7pm to 9pm. More >>
Estimated 30,000 Gather To Celebrate Matariki At ARONUI Indigenous Arts Festival Drone Show
Sunday, 30 June 2024, 2:08 pm | Aronui Arts Festival
ARONUI has set the scene for telling our narratives in an extraordinarily creative way. Te Arawa have a saying 'Whatitiri ki te rangi, Te Arawa ki te whenua. More >>
Mākereti Papakura : 7 Story Mural Celebrating 100 Years Since Doctorate Completion At Oxford University
Wednesday, 27 September 2023, 6:38 am | Aronui Arts Festival
ARONUI Indigenous Arts Festival (ARONUI) has honored a Rotorua leader, Mākereti Papakura (Guide Maggie), with a 7 story mural. 2023 marks the 100 year anniversary since Papakura completed her degree, a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology at Oxford ... More >>
Musical Theatre Superstar returns to ARONUI ARTS FESTIVAL
Tuesday, 17 August 2021, 9:50 am | Aronui Arts Festival
Musical Theatre Superstar returns to ARONUI ARTS FESTIVAL with 'HARDCASE HORI HOUSIE ' Ready? Eyes down! Cos there's a flash new game in town! Join cheeky host and acclaimed entertainer Rutene Spooner ( Super Hugh-Man ) - backed by the ... More >>
Critically-acclaimed theatre show 'I AM KING, I AM QUEEN' to make its international debut at ARONUI in September
Tuesday, 17 August 2021, 9:45 am | Aronui Arts Festival
ARONUI 2021 will be host to an international act, as renowned dancer and drag performer Roymata Holmes returns to Aotearoa, bringing their brand new show 'I AM KING. I AM QUEEN.', described as 'an evening of soul, sexuality and a person's journey ... More >>
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RNZ News
6 days ago
- RNZ News
‘That was rude': why the new Broadway musical Death Becomes Her was ripe for TikTok memes
By Gregory Camp of Photo: AFP A few snippets of musicalised dialogue from the cast album of the new Broadway musical Death Becomes Her - with music and lyrics by Julia Mattison and Noel Carey, and a book by Marco Pennette - have recently become trending sonic memes on TikTok. In all sorts of situations, users are lip synching to audio clips of Broadway star Jennifer Simard, in the character of Helen Sharp (played by Goldie Hawn in the 1992 cult film on which the musical is based), saying things like "That was rude. That was pretty f**kin' rude" and "She stole my life. She made me cuckoo. She's why I spent four years locked in that health spa." Musical theatre fans love a good meme (scholar Trevor Boffone has written a whole book about the phenomenon) and Death Becomes Her is primed to create a lot of them: a show featuring two divas (played by Simard and Megan Hilty as Madeleine Ashton, Meryl Streep's role in the movie) based on a cult film about divas begs to be shaped and reshaped by fan culture. Helen and Madeleine are longtime rivals who both take a magic potion that makes them immortal. This leads them to find increasingly extravagant ways to try and do away with each other, with the help of Helen's put-upon husband Ernest (Christopher Sieber), a plastic surgeon who reluctantly falls into the role of restoring their bodies after each "accident". Some of Hilty's clips have also been TikTok-ified (notably Tell Me, Earnest) but Simard is winning the numbers game. Her "That was rude" clip alone has 321,000 videos and counting. There seem to be two main reasons for the attraction of these clips. First is Simard's delivery of the words. Simard is a longstanding Broadway star and an expert at musical comedy timing. Second is the rhythmic quality of the dialogue. Not fully sung, these bits are spoken in mostly strict rhythm over orchestral accompaniment. That they have become such earworms demonstrates it is not only melody that burrows into the brain, but also rhythmic contour. There is a long history of this style of speak-singing in musical theatre, notably popularised in the late 1950s by Robert Preston in The Music Man and Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady. Neither of those actors was a strong singer, but both had excellent timing and were able to deliver spoken lines above music with a strong sense of musicality. Simard is an excellent singer with a very wide range, but the comic role of Helen - ever the underdog to her rival famous actress Madeleine - lends itself to this style of heightened speech. Most effective rhythmically, and the most popular excerpt, is the "That was rude" meme, where Simard begins slowly without accompaniment; the bass comes in on "rude" and sets a groove for the rest of the short excerpt. This one has been used in every possible situation, from responses to nasty notes left on people's cars to complaints about incorrect drink orders. Some of the TikTokers refer to Simard in on-screen text, but this one seems to have become popular outside any specific reference to the show, in a truly viral moment. The lengthiest of the trending excerpts is the one that begins with "We talked about killing her before", which sets off a monologue about Helen's plan to do away with Madeline once and for all. This is a tour de force for Simard's comic timing, as it begins in free rhythm and then gradually takes on a more consistent beat. TikTokers are tending to use this one primarily as a demonstration of their lip-syncing skills, as opposed to the other shorter clips that are applied in different ironic situations. This trend also shows the continuing importance of the cast album in musical theatre culture. The majority of TikTokers probably have not seen the show, currently only playing on Broadway with high ticket prices. Yet the cast album (easily available on all the main streaming sites) gives access. The fact these clips come from a cast album also more easily allows fans to create their own visuals around it. Unless they actually saw the show they only have production photographs and short publicity clips (and the occasional shaky bootleg or slime tutorial) to go on in terms of what it looks like. Audio from a source like the soundtrack of the Wicked movie has not led to so many lip-sync videos because the visual track is so readily accessible; as a film, Wicked's visuals define its audio while a cast album can more easily work the other way round. I saw Death Becomes Her on Broadway in January and enjoyed it. It's a fun show full of special effects and comic bits. The score is serviceable (it's not Sondheim), but it is catchy - very important for its use in these TikTok trends - and well performed by Simard and the rest of the cast. This whole phenomenon demonstrates that the current cultural sphere of "Broadway" extends well beyond the street itself. This has been the case at least since the rise of the cast album in the 1950s (My Fair Lady's was the best-selling LP of 1956), but now the reach is intensified by social media spaces like TikTok; you don't have to have actually seen Death Becomes Her to experience it.
Otago Daily Times
29-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Meet the 86yo sensei who can 'take someone's knee out'
By Eva Kershaw of Frank Film From her backyard in one of the poorest parts of Christchurch, 86-year-old Mary Patu teaches martial arts for $2 per class. The price of Mary's classes haven't changed since she opened her Okinawa te Aranui dojo (practice room) almost 40 years ago. In that time, she estimates having shared the art and discipline of Okinawa-te with about 3000 students. 'We do everything to help this community,' said Mary from her home in Aranui. 'They say it's a poor area, but it's what you want it to be.' Mary Patu outside her home. Photo: Frank Film Mary has lived on the same street for 60 years – 48 of them in her current home, which she renovated with her late husband, Rawiri David Patu (Putt). Along the front fence are painted metal sunflowers that Putt bought from The Warehouse. Inside the property, designs of butterflies, geckos and angels cover the sides of the buildings, the tops of the gates, and even the tree trunks. 'He just liked them,' says Mary. 'But sometimes he put too many up.' Just four years shy of ninety, Patu is sharp as a tack. She's bright-eyed, quick-witted, loves to tell a story and, with her soft face and a warm smile, she appears harmless. 'But I can take someone's knee out,' she told Frank Film. 'I can still take a person down.' Patu has seven children and picked up martial arts after two of her sons joined a karate dojo. 'I'd be sitting in the dojo watching, and I'm not a sitter. I can't just sit there and watch,' she says. 'So I said to sensei Lee is 48 too old to start doing karate?' Mary was told she would get as much out of the practice as she put into it. Mary Patu teaching a class last year. Photo: Geoff Sloan Two years later, she had saved enough money to take herself to America, where she spent three weeks learning with shihan (master instructor) Gordon Doversola – the founder of the Okinawa-te karate system. In Okinawa-te, a student becomes a sensei as soon as they earn their black belt. However, as a purple belt, Mary received a special letter of permission to teach classes for seniors in the Aranui town hall. After securing her black belt several years later, Mary realised she could offer cheaper classes if she built a dojo on her own property. 'We paid $50,000 for the materials to do it, and it took us about 15 years to pay off that mortgage,' says Mary. 'That wasn't from the class fees. We paid it off ourselves.' Photo: Frank Film Mary's husband Putt, who was a carpenter, built the dojo by himself with the help of his sons. Today, in the window of the office, a wooden sign hand-made by a student commemorates the man who brought the space to life. Putt's dojo – fitted out with an office, bathroom, and weapons room – welcomes students of all ages, starting at five years old. 'Big ones, small ones, you name it – they're here,' says Mary. In teaching Okinawa-te long after the age of 'retirement', Mary has found a sense of pride. 'You can see [students] slowly building confidence, but also a little bit of discipline, which will carry them through a lot of other things ... it helps with everything.' Donna Boese, who started out as a student at the dojo in 2016, says Mary's classes turned her life around. 'I used to be a self-harmer, until I came here. Mary is the one who made me stronger,' says Boese who has gained her black belt and now teaches at the dojo. Six other members of her family have also joined classes. Mary says enabling entire families to join the dojo is the reason she keeps her fees so low. 'I look at other places – they're charging $15 a class, and it's only for one person. But, you see, ours is about the community,' she says. 'It's never been a money-making thing.' Mary Patu demonstrates the dragon claw. Photo: Geoff Sloan Mary says taking classes has kept her mentally sharp and physically fit. She has never had to use the skill for her own self-defence, but says the effect of Okinawa-te on her reflexes and bracing has been worth its weight for 'self-protection'. 'Because you're trained to be able to fall, when you do slip over, it comes straight to your head,' she says. 'It stops you breaking bones.' Mary plans to continue running classes for years to come, and doubts she will ever increase their price. 'At my age, you have to adjust to what you can do,' she says. 'As long as I can give the right instructions, I think if I had to be in a wheelchair I'd still teach. I'd get a ramp made into the dojo. 'Do you know what was one of the last things Putt said to me? Dear, I'm so glad I built that dojo for you.' -Frank Film
Otago Daily Times
29-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Meet the 86yo sensei who can still 'take someone's knee out'
By Eva Kershaw of Frank Film From her backyard in one of the poorest parts of Christchurch, 86-year-old Mary Patu teaches martial arts for $2 per class. The price of Mary's classes haven't changed since she opened her Okinawa te Aranui dojo (practice room) almost 40 years ago. In that time, she estimates having shared the art and discipline of Okinawa-te with about 3000 students. Sensei fighting to keep 'kids off the street' 'We do everything to help this community,' said Mary from her home in Aranui. 'They say it's a poor area, but it's what you want it to be.' Mary has lived on the same street for 60 years – 48 of them in her current home, which she renovated with her late husband, Rawiri David Patu (Putt). Along the front fence are painted metal sunflowers that Putt bought from The Warehouse. Inside the property, designs of butterflies, geckos and angels cover the sides of the buildings, the tops of the gates, and even the tree trunks. 'He just liked them,' says Mary. 'But sometimes he put too many up.' Just four years shy of ninety, Patu is sharp as a tack. She's bright-eyed, quick-witted, loves to tell a story and, with her soft face and a warm smile, she appears harmless. 'But I can take someone's knee out,' she told Frank Film . 'I can still take a person down.' Patu has seven children and picked up martial arts after two of her sons joined a karate dojo. 'I'd be sitting in the dojo watching, and I'm not a sitter. I can't just sit there and watch,' she says. 'So I said to sensei Lee is 48 too old to start doing karate?' Mary was told she would get as much out of the practice as she put into it. Two years later, she had saved enough money to take herself to America, where she spent three weeks learning with shihan (master instructor) Gordon Doversola – the founder of the Okinawa-te karate system. In Okinawa-te, a student becomes a sensei as soon as they earn their black belt. However, as a purple belt, Mary received a special letter of permission to teach classes for seniors in the Aranui town hall. After securing her black belt several years later, Mary realised she could offer cheaper classes if she built a dojo on her own property. 'We paid $50,000 for the materials to do it, and it took us about 15 years to pay off that mortgage,' says Mary. 'That wasn't from the class fees. We paid it off ourselves.' Mary's husband Putt, who was a carpenter, built the dojo by himself with the help of his sons. Today, in the window of the office, a wooden sign hand-made by a student commemorates the man who brought the space to life. Putt's dojo – fitted out with an office, bathroom, and weapons room – welcomes students of all ages, starting at five years old. 'Big ones, small ones, you name it – they're here,' says Mary. In teaching Okinawa-te long after the age of 'retirement', Mary has found a sense of pride. 'You can see [students] slowly building confidence, but also a little bit of discipline, which will carry them through a lot of other things ... it helps with everything.' Donna Boese, who started out as a student at the dojo in 2016, says Mary's classes turned her life around. 'I used to be a self-harmer, until I came here. Mary is the one who made me stronger,' says Boese who has gained her black belt and now teaches at the dojo. Six other members of her family have also joined classes. Mary says enabling entire families to join the dojo is the reason she keeps her fees so low. 'I look at other places – they're charging $15 a class, and it's only for one person. But, you see, ours is about the community,' she says. 'It's never been a money-making thing.' Mary says taking classes has kept her mentally sharp and physically fit. She has never had to use the skill for her own self-defence, but says the effect of Okinawa-te on her reflexes and bracing has been worth its weight for 'self-protection'. 'Because you're trained to be able to fall, when you do slip over, it comes straight to your head,' she says. 'It stops you breaking bones.' Mary plans to continue running classes for years to come, and doubts she will ever increase their price. 'At my age, you have to adjust to what you can do,' she says. 'As long as I can give the right instructions, I think if I had to be in a wheelchair I'd still teach. I'd get a ramp made into the dojo. 'Do you know what was one of the last things Putt said to me? Dear, I'm so glad I built that dojo for you.' -Frank Film
