Dad (and Daughter) Jokes: Irish comedians Pat and Faye Shortt
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NZ Herald
an hour ago
- NZ Herald
Trump names Stallone, Strait among Kennedy Centre honourees
US President Donald Trump announced country music artist George Strait, actor Michael Crawford, actor Sylvester Stallone, singer Gloria Gaynor and members of the rock band Kiss as the first nominees of the annual Kennedy Centre Honours. Photo / Getty Images Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech. US President Donald Trump announced country music artist George Strait, actor Michael Crawford, actor Sylvester Stallone, singer Gloria Gaynor and members of the rock band Kiss as the first nominees of the annual Kennedy Centre Honours. Photo / Getty Images US President Donald Trump has named Rocky star Sylvester Stallone and country music great George Strait among the recipients of the Kennedy Centre Honours, as he pursues a controversial overhaul of the storied arts institution. Disco diva Gloria Gaynor, rock band Kiss and British theatre star Michael Crawford, known for his indelible turn in the lead role of Broadway staple Phantom of the Opera, will also receive the Honours, one of the nation's highest arts awards. Trump announced he himself would host the honours gala, which usually takes place in early December. 'I did not insist, but I think it will be quite successful,' he told reporters at the stately white marble complex overlooking the Potomac River. He also joked that he wanted an honour himself but was 'never able to get one'.
Otago Daily Times
5 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
‘Chicago' role a dream
For some of New Zealand's top performers, the opportunity to tread the boards in a New Zealand production of the musical Chicago directed by Michael Hurst is one they could not turn down. Rebecca Fox talks to some of the cast and crew on opening night. With a cup of tea in hand, her hair slicked down from her wig, Jackie Clarke sinks into the couch with a sigh and rubs her feet. She has just come from the final dress rehearsal for Chicago the musical, a high-intensity production, which sees her strut the stage baton in hand, wearing leather and fishnets, belting out tunes such as When You Are Good to Mama . "You know glamour is a lot of work." It is a dream role for Clarke — known for her work with the Lady Killers, solo show "Jackie goes prima diva" and stints in musicals ( Mamma Mia! , Shirley Valentine ) — who had given up on the thought of ever getting to perform in popular musical Chicago — the longest-running musical revival in Broadway history and the second-longest running show of all time after Phantom of the Opera . "Honestly, I've spent my whole life wanting to be in it. I thought I would never be, because it's a dancer's show and I'm not a dancer." She admits, now looking back, she probably could have played the lead roles of Roxy or Velma when she was younger as she can move but just did not have the confidence to try. "Now I've got old lady bravery, you know, the ability to go 'I can do anything'." So the role of Mama Morton is a gift she has grabbed with both hands even if the costume is so tight — and yes, they are her boobs — she cannot sit down and her feet ache from the high-heeled boots. "I'm just thrilled to be doing it. I really love the Mama look we've developed." It has the added attraction of being a slightly different character to those she normally plays, as it is darker and more calculating. "She abuses her power a lot. It's interesting to play. I generally go for the crack and the light but I have to actually lean into the darkness, which is not something that I'm used to doing but I'm actually enjoying it — a little too much." Mama Morton's vocal range is also a lot lower than she is used to singing. "I'm kind of a bit of a screamer, a belter, so technically it's a real good exercise for me. That's why I'm still in the business, because I'm still finding things that keep me on my toes." With a cast of 17 choreographed by Shona McCullagh, Chicago also has a different vibe to her solo shows or her work in musical groups The Lady Killers or When the Cats been Spayed. "My natural habitat is being surrounded by other women and creating our own little slumber party vibe, for want of a better word. The vibe when women are in a room together, unfiltered, the humour and the energy that comes from that, I'm addicted to. I love it." Although there are some similarities with Chicago and she is enjoying doing a big-cast show, especially seeing the younger generation of performers come through and being really "fierce". "This show has a real female energy to it — they just happen to be murderers." But there are foils to that female energy in the slick lawyer Billy Flynn, played by Joel Tobeck, in his first musical in 20 years. Tobeck, a 35-year veteran of stage and screen in New Zealand, Australia and the United States, says finding that side of himself after so long has been challenging but the attraction of the show and working with director Michael Hurst was too great to turn down. "But I've got there with some great support from everyone else. And the songs, you know, there's some notes in there that I wouldn't usually sing, they're quite high, but I've had to really work at getting them. Just finding the singing muscle again, you know?" Having most recently been working in television on shows such as Brokenwood Mysteries and Spartacus , he says it has also taken work to find his "theatre voice and body" again and play to a large audience rather than just a camera. "No matter how long between theatre shows, it's always there to be reinvigorated again. I've had to be reminded of what I should and shouldn't do, you know, because you need to just be sort of triggered into that world again." But he is enjoying the character who is a bit of a charlatan, pretty suave and a fast talker and is looking forward to touring with the show. "It'll be fun to take it on the road and get some different eyes on it." Clarke also knows these sort of opportunities in New Zealand of a fully professional production and one that is going to tour is very rare these days. "I'm fist-pumping with joy that they're doing it. We have amazing creativity in this country and we have a really unique approach to things so its not cookie-cutter theatre — we've put our own spin on the show. Every number is a banger, you can't believe all of these songs are in this one show." It is also just as relevant now as it was when it was first written in the 1970s, she says. Musical director Paul Barrett agrees. Another veteran of theatre and music, Barrett has nothing but praise for the score of Chicago , written by John Kander and Fred Ebb. "The same people who wrote Cabaret , and they obviously had a proclivity for writing pastiches, in the case of Cabaret , the early 30s in Berlin, and in the case of Chicago , the mid-20s in America, and they've just captured that sound of the jazz age ... there's not a dull number in the show. That's one of the reasons it's endured." The show, which is based on the true stories of two women facing murder trials and explores the way the media can turn murderers into celebrities, is 50 years old this year. Barrett is physically on stage for the show, as the first keyboard player, as well as conducting the 12-piece band, which in Dunedin will include 10 members of the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra. All performers are also on stage during the performance. "We're doing the version where the first keyboard is also the conductor, so I have to somehow combine the two, and I haven't done that for years and years, it's really tricky. It takes enormous concentration because I've got to be listening to the stage, I'm in charge of my band, I've got to bring them in on cue, but I've also got to play my own part, and there are very specific timings." It is Barrett's second experience of Chicago having subbed in for a keyboard player in a 2001 version of the show so he knew what he was in for. "That's the challenge of the show for me and it's wonderful music." Chicago 's producer Ben McDonald, who grew up in Gore, says it is important to support New Zealand's professional cast and crew in these times. "It's great to be able to bring all these clever people together to make a piece of art." To see: Chicago , Regent Theatre, August 29-30.
NZ Herald
a day ago
- NZ Herald
Bay News: 3D printed models aid archaeological research in Northland
Since releasing his first popular album 'Your Average Australian Yobbo' in 1984 and with hit songs like 'Hey Santa Claus', Kevin Bloody Wilson has become a global comedy institution with an extensive multi-generational fan base. 'I love being on stage when every bugger in the audience knows every word to my songs,' he said. The subject matter of his stage delivery means the shows are R18 and while they may not be to everyone's taste he has enjoyed entertaining a lot of Kiwis since he started touring here in the mid-80s. He has toured consistently ever since. 'I didn't realise so many Kiwis had my recordings, I had no idea it had taken off in New Zealand without ever having any radio airplay, exactly the way it started for me in Australia.,' he said. He thinks audiences are as funny here as they are around the world, and that we have a similar sense of humour. 'It seems we are what you would call belly laugh brothers.' 3D technology unlocks archaeological features Technology is increasing an understanding of the way landscapes shape archaeological features. Plastic models made using a 3D printer and publicly available data are proving to be a valuable tool for archaeologists to interpret landscapes and test theories about how people may have lived hundreds of years ago. It also provides information on where they lived. The technique has been used by Jofe Graham-Jenkins, senior surveyor for Simpson Shaw. He used topographical information incorporating Lidar held by Northland Regional Council to generate a small 3D model of Moturua Island. The model is about 30cm square and cost about $20 in materials. Jofe Graham-Jenkins with the 3D model of the land near Oromahoe owned by his family. More recently he used the technology to produce a 3D model of land near Oromahoe which his family has owned for more than a century. 'Using this available data I have been able to produce a model of our family's land and cross-check the physical features of the model with known archaeological sites,' he said. 'The model's an invaluable tool for identifying places where archaeological features are likely to exist, enabling very targeted ground investigations that are likely to assist in identifying and recording these sites.' The innovation has the potential to shed new light on an understanding of the archaeology of places according to Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga Northland manager, Bill Edwards. 'These models take topographical information and transform it into three dimensional renderings that enable people to see clearly what may not be immediately apparent in a two-dimensional topographical map,' Edwards said. 'The model of Moturua Island for example clearly shows features like water courses. Once you know where water flows, you can then make some fairly strong deductions about places that were used for gardening or for habitation.' New kerbside waste collection Following the withdrawal by Waste Management of recycling tags and bags in the mid-North and Kerikeri areas, Northland Waste has stepped in and introduced a new kerbside recycling scheme. The scheme will give households the opportunity to continue to recycle. It is not council-funded or part of any contracted service but a voluntary initiative which chief operating officer, Andrew Sclater, said is not a council requirement. 'When we heard the previous service was coming to an end we felt it was the right thing to do to step in. 'We simply wanted to ensure that people still had a way to recycle,' he said. The company will collect from 60-litre crates left at the kerbside. The recycling material will at first be separated at the kerbside on the truck with the operator separating into four categories. Northland Waste is starting a new kerbside recycling service in the Mid North, Kerikeri and Waipapa areas. Photo / Northland Waste Then a secondary separation process occurs in Kerikeri where plastics and glass colours are graded and tin, aluminium, paper and cardboard separated. Sclater said the process is very manual for the staff. Each separate material stream is then baled. The baled material is then transported to recycling processing facilities to convert the material into a secondary use. 'Staff are checking different containers and products which takes time and effort,' Sclater said. This is similar to what council Resource Recovery Facilities and Community Recycling Centres require and the same principles apply to kerbside recycling. He said affordability was a focus for the company and they have worked to keep the cost down with weekly crate collections starting from just $1.75 per week. Towns included in the kerbside recycling scheme are just about every town in the Mid-North and the arterial routes to and from those towns. Russell and Rawhiti, though, are not included at this stage. Sclater says that's because of the high uptake of recycling done by residents at the Russell Resource Recovery Facility, which is located close to the township. He is encouraging people to look at their website Then go to the Mid North Recycling page and enter an address to check kerbside collection availability. From there you can choose the payment option that suits, either monthly direct debit, six-monthly or an annual payment.
