Latest news with #CircaTheatre
RNZ News
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
GIVE WAY! The musical about road rules
Photo: Roc Torio In 2012, a change to New Zealand's road rules caused a frenzy among some drivers who worried our roads would turn to chaos. As it turned out, the intersection turning rule reversal went down relatively smoothly. Thirteen years later, it has become the topic of an eccentric musical which is currently showing at Wellington's Circa Theatre. GIVE WAY! stars an idealistic young Ministry of Transport worker who leads the charge for the new rule and is met with a flurry of anti-change protestors. Producer Dave Armstrong and lead actor Jackson Burling speak to Kathryn.
NZ Herald
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Sir Roger Hall's End of Summer Time brings Dickie Hart back to the stage
'One of yours?' I asked, assuming it was a quote from one of his plays. 'I think so,' he said. 'I've just noted it down and thought I'd use it somewhere.' Hopefully, he'll forgive me for getting in first. Over the past five decades, Hall has written a roll call of hit comedies for the stage, TV sitcoms, a pantomime version of Cinderella and a radio show for the BBC. He's also had a few misses along the way. If there's no such thing as an overnight success – he'd been writing in one way or another for 15 years before bursting through with his first play, Glide Time – there's no such thing as an overnight failure, either. Both require dedication and a considerable amount of hard work. 'Writing can be a joy when it goes well,' says Hall, whose 41st play, End of Summer Time, opens in Auckland next month. Sir Roger Hall on Takapuna Beach where, in 2005, he staged a scene from Bruce Mason's play The End of the Golden Weather, a performance which has become an annual ritual. Photo / Dean Purcell Resurrecting one of his most popular characters, Dickie Hart, the one-man show is heading north after an extended six-week run at Wellington's Circa Theatre, where there wasn't a single empty seat in the house. 'Most of the time, you wouldn't swap this for anything. But sometimes you crave to go into an office where you know what the day's work ahead is going to be and you don't have to think, because there's somebody to tell you what to do.' It's comforting, somehow, to know it hasn't always come easy. According to Hall, he's 'not good at plot', isn't interested in description and keeps telling himself never to write another musical. So far, he's done four. 'Half the money for twice the work,' he jokes, although the odd royalty cheque still arrives for Footrot Flats: The Musical, which has been staged 130 times. Last month, he received a 'modest' sum for a new production by the Hopetoun Amateur Theatrical Society in Western Australia. Next year, Sir Roger Hall will notch up his half century as a playwright credited with transforming New Zealand's theatre scene. Photo / Dean Purcell Running through his playlist, he ticks off some of the wins and losses in his theatre career. The Share Club, inspired by the get-rich fervour of 'mum and dad' investors before the 1987 market crash, was one of the wins, becoming Downstage Theatre's longest-running play. I'd never heard of A Way of Life, the story of a multi-generational farming family, which he considers one of his best plays. 'No one else thinks so, because there's not enough humour. The first night [in 2001], it got a standing ovation at Tauranga, but a lot of people didn't want a serious play from me. I was hugely disappointed in that one.' Audiences stayed away from his more cerebral, political plays like The Rose, a thinly veiled attack on the Muldoon era. Then again, nobody wanted to know about golf (Golf: A Love Story), either. Well, I wouldn't go to a play about golf, I tell him. 'You're not alone,' he grumbles, good-naturedly. His weekly coffee group felt much the same. 'I did some research and asked how many of them would go to see a play about golf. No one? Okay, well, I'm still going to write it.' Of course, it's his remarkable string of successes that people do remember. No offence, I say, tongue-in-cheek, to the man typically described as New Zealand's most successful playwright. But if you're not much good at plot or description, what exactly are you good at, then? He pauses, considering the question seriously for a moment. 'Funny dialogue, really. And good characters.' I t's easy to forget just how transformational Hall's influence has been on the New Zealand theatre scene, creating an appetite for local productions at a time when quality was still equated with (often mediocre) British plays. Next year, it'll be half a century since Glide Time affectionately satirised Wellington's public service bureaucracy. It sold out after the first night. Rehearsals for a production of Glide Time at Waipukurau Little Theatre in 2014. Photo / Warren Buckland The late John Clarke wrote of Hall's ability to identify 'the faults and follies that highlight small monsters in ordinary people'. Ironically, his knack for nailing the angst and aggravations of the Kiwi middle class was shaped by his own childhood back in England. Biffed out of school by his father for under-performing academically, he worked in insurance for a couple of years before setting sail for Wellington in the late 1950s to avoid being called up for compulsory national service. He'd just turned 19. His life came full circle, 20 years later, when he won Comedy of the Year with a production of Middle Age Spread on London's West End, starring Richard Briers and Paul Eddington from The Good Life. Hall, who was presented with the award by Sir John Gielgud, thought the original Circa show was just as good. A poster in Sir Roger Hall's office from the award-winning West End production of his play, Middle Age Spread, which featured two of the most popular British actors at the time. Photo / Dean Purcell Generally speaking, his foreign origins haven't been held against him here. 'Max Cryer used to say, 'Of course, you're English!' I'd tell him I may be English, but I'm a New Zealand writer because all my writing was done here. And I don't think like an English writer, I'm sure.' By the time Hall released his 1998 biography, Bums on Seats, he'd already recorded $20 million in box-office sales. According to Playmarket NZ, two of the most licensed plays in New Zealand this century were written by Hall: Four Flat Whites in Italy, about two retired couples on a late-life OE, and Social Climbers, where five high-school teachers get trapped in a tramping hut. It's true, there's a generation (or two) for whom the concept of a Roger Hall play dates back to the ark. Despite his reputation for supporting emerging playwrights, he is not – possibly never has been – considered particularly cool. However, older theatregoers remain staunch supporters of the arts in these straitened times and much of his audience has aged alongside him, remaining fiercely loyal. Since its opening season in 1993, the Auckland Theatre Company has averaged a Roger Hall play every two years, banking on the kind of box-office returns that allow riskier scheduling elsewhere on the programme. Mark Hadlow and Alison Quigan in Winding Up, described in one review as "a poignant lesson in undying love". Photo / Andi Crown Photography His 2020 show, Winding Up, revisited Barry and Gen from his 90s hit Conjugal Rites, as they bickered their way through retirement. End of Summer Time sees the return of another fan favourite, Dickie Hart, a Roger Hall kind of character name if ever there was one. The curmudgeonly cow cocky made his first appearance in the one-man show C'mon Black, about his life-changing trip to the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa (where the defeated All Blacks may or may not have been deliberately 'poisoned'). In the sequel You Gotta Be Joking, Dickie and wife Glenda had upped sticks from the farm and moved to Wellington. Now, much to Dickie's horror, they're relocating north to be closer to the grandchildren. Auckland! It's crowded, expensive… Traffic's terrible. All everyone thinks about is money. And they don't even have a decent footie team. Auckland! Over my dead body. It's a deal, Glenda says. Tickets are selling strongly for the show, following the massive success of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, which has been scheduled for a return season next February. Andrew Grainger will play Dickie, with Alison Quigan as director. Hall's long-time collaborator, she's worked on more than 20 of his productions, on and off the stage. With End of Summer Time, Hall wanted to write a play about someone close to his age – Dickie is in his 70s. It's also a love letter to Auckland, where he and wife Dianne have lived for many years now after moving up from Dunedin, where he had a long association with the Fortune Theatre. From the first day, he felt very much at home. 'It was warm, it was vibrant,' he says. 'Auckland is a wonderful arts city, but hardly anyone recognises that. In fact, it has a more diverse and more interesting arts scene than Wellington. The difference is Wellingtonians are proud of it.' Andrew Grainger plays cow cocky Dickie Hart in Sir Roger Hall's one-man play End of Summer Time, opening in Auckland next month. The title, End of Summer Time, echoes the late Bruce Mason's acclaimed one-man show, The End of the Golden Weather, which made a huge impression on Hall when he saw it in the early 60s. In 2005, he arranged for a scene from The End of the Golden Weather set on Takapuna Beach to be performed there on Christmas Day – a ritual that has since become a popular annual tradition. Another of his legacies is the recently established Roger Hall Theatre Trust, managed by the Arts Foundation. A $25,000 laureate is awarded every second year, alternating with five 'Out of the Limelight' awards of $5000 each, acknowledging vital contributions behind the scenes. Despite his many accolades, Hall's work has often been met by critics with muted enthusiasm. Being popular – 'getting 'bums on seats' – is looked down on by some with an element of snobbery that must have stung him at times. 'Yes, certainly,' he admits. 'But then you think, 'I'm a bit hurt, but gosh, look at the bookings!' That's better than the other way around: wonderful reviews but nobody's going. So, it is a consolation to think the public seem to like it. 'Woody Allen says something about how writing comedy means you never get to dine at the top table. In other words, it's never really regarded by critics as worthy of a 'serious' play. Yet the message can be almost more important and it certainly needs the most skill.' His great inspiration, British playwright Alan Ayckbourn, is just a couple of months younger than Hall and still writing the kind of comedies both men love, with an underlying sense of pathos. As an older Pākehā man, Hall is aware the ground is shifting to make way for a new generation of writers with different views and different things to say. He's been dabbling with another play, but so far it's not leaping off the page. 'I dutifully tap away a bit, hoping that it'll catch fire and it hasn't. But I can hardly complain. After 50 years of playwriting, if the muse decides it's done with me, then that's fair enough.' Roger Hall's End of Summer Time is on at Auckland's ASB Waterfront Theatre from June 17 to July 5. A season at the new Court Theatre in Christchurch, starring Ross Gumbley, runs from June 21 to August 16. Joanna Wane is an award-winning senior lifestyle writer with a special interest in social issues and the arts.
The Spinoff
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Spinoff
Give Way the Musical is an ode to the mid-2010s millennial hardout
Claire Mabey reviews 'a very Wellington comedy about love, war and who rules the road' – inspired by an article on The Spinoff. Those who know me well might question the logic of deploying me to review a show called Give Way The Musical given I am not well educated in either road rules or musicals (my favourite is Jesus Christ Superstar the TV version; and my understanding of give way rules is vibes based at best). And yet, there I was in Circa Theatre eager to understand how this 'very Wellington comedy about love, war and who rules the road' was going to work. First of all, Circa Theatre is sort of flash now. I walked in the door as if onto the set of Stars in Their Eyes: dry ice billowed around the foyer, giving the new cafe called Chouchou the hazy air of a 90s soap opera. Circa's formerly 70s-era cafe has been transformed into a dream of pink neon and tidy pastries and $7 lemon, lime and bitters. I half expected Carrie Bradshaw to toddle up and order a Cosmopolitan before heading into the theatre for some legislative hijinks. I sat in my theatre comfort zone – right up the back, where I can get a full view of the stage set which, on this night, was both arresting and funny. Road cones demarcated the stage area while a cluster of traffic lights hung above, a chandelier fit for the foyer of the Ministry of Transport building. Panels hugged the circumference of the stage and were printed with images from road rules tests (which I found triggering given I failed my licence not once, not twice, but thrice). At first I thought the audience was going to be sparse (many empty seats) and I pre-cringed, imagining a smattering of forced laughter as the energy of the cast far overpowered the energy of the audience. But then, in the nick of time, a flood of students tumbled in and took their seats all around me. The volume of the theatre immediately rose and I was able to relax. The show started with a bang. Or rather, a banger. The cast burst onto the stage with a five-part harmony, a give way sign and a tune that indicated that this was a musical that was going to enjoy leaning hard into the power ballad. We're introduced to Sophie (played by Lily Tyler Moore), a 24-year-old policy analyst at the Ministry of Transport who is disenchanted with her lack of influence and busting to make her mark. Sophie's uncouth ambition is the engine of the show: she's a caricature of the pre-burnout, millennial hardout; the type-A student in need of therapy to unravel the influence of her 70s-core parents (amazing cameo scenes with those two in kaftans and on the wines, lamenting their daughter's career choices and personality flaws) who has emerged from the raw freedom of student days and marched into the workforce as a determined kiss-arse earnestly trying to implement a legacy project before she moves on to bigger, better policy jobs. Tyler Moore is perfect in the role: small but mighty; her tremendous effective facial expressions conveying Sophie's unhinged commitment to work over all else. Her best and funniest scenes reveal her loathsome inner fantasies: in one surreal moment she dances with a pair of Count Dracula-like incarnations of the Minister for Transport (who was Gerry Brownlee in 2012) that dance in capes and top hats and sweep her into slow dances that end in an unsettling air-pashing sequence. For me, the star of the show is Ben: Sophie's nerdy colleague and doomed love interest, played by Jackson Burling. This is a show that plays into stereotypes to make its points and it works. Ben is happily complacent in his work and instead focuses his energies on being romantically optimistic: his camp tantrums and Flight-of-the-Conchord-esque fails provoke much of the show's regular laughs. With its core of office comedy, Give Way is a gentle pisstake of those whose working lives are dedicated to manipulating niche interest areas to improve our lives no matter how inconsequential to the vast majority; or alarming to a vocal minority. Steven Page (writer) obviously had a gleeful time using the machinations of 2012's change to the give way rules (intricately reported by Toby Manhire in The Spinoff) to foreshadow the events that came 10 years later, in 2022 (the same year as Manhire's article was published), when a Covid-plagued government implemented vaccination rules and brought down upon them the ire of the anti-mandate convoy that camped out on parliament's lawn. In Give Way, the vocal minority is represented by Nick (played by the magnificent Bronwyn Turei) who can't cope with change and who sees any attempt to update our lives as a betrayal of the country, of our Kiwi ways. In response to Sophie's proposed changes, Nick rouses a rabble, plants viral videos titled 'alien child traffickers are melting our brains' online (to which Sophie reacts: 'why is nobody looking at the research!') and plans a convoy to protest the changes that he's convinced will lead to chaos and death. At half time (which arrived fast: a good sign) I talked to some of the students sitting around me to check what they thought of the show so far. Quinn, who is second-year at Victoria University studying English literature as his major (*teary eyes emoji*) and politics as a minor said he thought the range of the actors was incredible. 'Not just their vocals but their physicality – how they can switch so fast. It takes a lot out of you just playing one role, let alone several.' Quinn was six years old when the give way rules changed so found that aspect super interesting. 'I've had to google who the minister was and what the road rules were before.' Students from Whangamata Area School (visiting Wellington to tour parliament and Te Papa) were enthusiastic. 'I'm enjoying all of it!' said Ethan. 'It's really good. I like the stage and the piano,' said Josh. 'I like Randall,' said Eric. 'He's better than everyone else.' It was Krishna's first time seeing a live show, and a musical, and he loved it. 'The way the songs are written flow so seamlessly into the script,' he observed. And Lachie thought the humour was properly funny. I agree with all of them. Particularly Quinn's observation about the actors' range: the character and costume changes were so fast I found myself imagining just how they did it. Layers? Backstage help? And Ethan is bang on about the live music. Pianist (and musical director for the show) Hayden Taylor is on stage the entire time, tinkling the ivories and adding a welcome self awareness. The live pianist – like the character's personal musician and life-event composer – heightens the main character syndrome that Sophie, Nick and to a lesser degree, Tanya (played by Carrie Green who is superb in all her roles) suffer from. Randall (played by Alex Greig), as Eric indicated, is an intriguing character. He's an older man, a former public servant who suffered for his efforts to change the road rules back in the 70s. We first encounter him in a medical institution being treated for hallucinations (it's thanks to Randall we get dance scenes with panda and sloth heads). Randall is a wise fool; a Shakespearean apparition there to both inject whimsy and counsel Sophie. While not the strongest singer (perhaps on purpose – a weaker voice reflects his vulnerable state of mind and body) I can see why the students liked him. He's a kooky counterpart to youthful optimism: a been there, done that sage whose point of view gives the show an off-kilter perspective that is both surprising and bittersweet. All in all, Give Way the Musical is a jolly good time. It's rare to see an original New Zealand musical which means it's rare to hear our lovely New Zealand accents singing about New Zealand stuff. As it happens, Give Way is one of two original New Zealand musicals playing in Wellington at the moment: down the road at Te Auaha, Amy Mansfield's I did not invite you here to lecture me is bringing the house down with its university-based comedy. If this convergence signals the start of a homegrown musical renaissance, I'm here for it. Give Way the Musical (written by Steven Page) is playing at Circa Theatre until May 24. Information and tickets are online at Circa Theatre.
Scoop
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
The Tīwhas Return With A Stellar Celebration: A Matariki Spectacular At Circa Theatre
This June, the stars align as The Tīwhas return to Circa Theatre with a dazzling new edition of their much-loved cabaret – The Tīwhas: A Matariki Spectacular. Running from Wednesday 18 June – Saturday 28 June, this unforgettable theatrical experience, dinner and drag show brings together kai, waiata, remembrance and joy, wrapped up in a sparkling celebration of te tau hou Māori and mana takatāpui. New year. New foyer. New show! In true Matariki fashion, audiences will be treated to a celestial cabaret journey over dinner led by the radiant queens of the cosmos: Dame Jthan, Pania, Slay West, and Tina Coco Couture. Expect a powerhouse performance featuring waiata Māori, pop anthems, and nostalgic hits, all delivered with signature Tīwhas flair – glitz, glamour, and a whole lot of aroha. They're joined on stage by the dynamic Ngāti Tīwha ensemble – Hayden Taylor, Tom Knowles, Kree Matthews – blending kapa haka, choreography, storytelling, and live vocals that will get you dancing out of your seat. Audience members will also be among the first to experience Circa Theatre's newly renovated foyer space, alongside a bespoke Matariki-themed menu crafted by Chouchou Brasserie, Bar & Restaurant. Main meals are included with your ticket, with entrees, desserts, and drinks available to purchase throughout the evening. Just choose your kai when you book! 'We share beautiful Kai prepared by Circa Bar and Restaurant and we meet as strangers and leave as friends. But this is no dry history lesson! It's party time too!' – Theatreview 2024 'Being in a space that uplifts queer Indigenous stories makes me surge with pride and hope.' – 2024 'The Tīwhas is a four-piece drag queen Māori beat girl collective who sing and dance lineups of bangers, often translated into te reo Māori, whose shows also include lip-syncs, storytelling, comedy sketches, karakia, kapa haka, and direct address to the audience.' – The Spinoff 2024 So grab your whānau, bring your appetite, and come celebrate Matariki in style on Wellington's waterfront. The Tīwhas are hosting a hākari that will feed your wairua and your puku - are you coming? Show Details: The Tīwhas: A Matariki Spectacular Circa Theatre – Chouchou Café, Bar and Brasserie Wednesday 18 June – Saturday 28 June Tues – Fri, Sat at 8.00pm | Sun at 6.00pm $85 – $95pp (Includes main meal)
Scoop
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Crack Up, Reflect, And Rebuild With Re-Engineered — A New Solo Work By Regan Taylor
Circa Theatre is thrilled to present the world premiere of Re-Engineered, a hilarious and heartwarming new solo show written and performed by celebrated artist Regan Taylor (SolOthello, Ngā Rorirori), directed by Natano Keni (O le Pepelo, Le Gaoi Ma Le Pala'ai – The Liar, the Thief and the Coward). Armed with a toolbelt full of wit, humour, and hope, Re-Engineered follows 40-year-old Reg, a Māori builder navigating the complex construction site of life. Seamlessly blending comedy and drama, Taylor takes audiences on an unforgettable journey through identity, trauma, and redemption — with plenty of laughs along the way. Re-Engineered was first conceptualised as a part of the Barbarian Productions 'Rukus' Programme in 2023, and further developed with the funding support of Creative New Zealand. On why now is the right time to write this show, Taylor shares: 'I've become more aware that we may be in a time of 'Self Help' Theatre. Theatre that exposes and shares individual or group growth through acknowledgment, accountability and vulnerability. It's been an important part of my reconciliation with my past and to have the courage to accept my past, continue to sit in the present with faith that the future will be better for me and everyone connected to me.' Re-Engineered premieres at Circa Theatre and the season will run from 10-24 May. Tickets are on sale now and can be booked at or 04 801 7992. Praise for Regan Taylor: — Theatreview "A skilful metatheatrical and charismatic performer." — Theatreview CIRCA TWO | 10 – 24 MAY 2025 Tues – Sat 7.30pm | Sun 4.30pm Tickets: $25 – $60 Special Events: Preview Night: Friday 9 May Sunday Special: Sunday 11 May Choose Your Price Nights + Q&A Sessions: Tuesday 13 May & Tuesday 20 May Venue: Circa Theatre, 1 Taranaki St, Wellington Bookings: 04 801 7992 | Presented by Maunga Tay-Tay Productions.
