Isaac’s Eye; The Pitman Painters
October 29, 2014
At Circa, Lucas Hnath’s chirpy and off kilter portrait of Isaac Newton, plus Lee Hall’s inspiring true story of coal miners turned amateur artists.
Archives by Contributor » Samuel Phillips
Tut; God-belly; Everything is Surrounded by Water
October 29, 2014
New plays by Alice May Connolly, Andrew Gunn and Rosie Tapsell, and Hannah Banks and Uther Dean at BATS.
The Mountebank
September 11, 2014
Long Cloud Youth Theatre’s innovative, immersive take on interactive theatre.
All Your Wants and Needs Fulfilled Forever
June 18, 2014
Playground Collective’s new thrilling, provocative play.
Pasefika; Paniora!
March 8, 2014
A review of Stuart Hoar’s re-imagining of French artist Charles Meryon’s life, and Briar Grace-Smith’s passionate family odyssey at the New Zealand Festival.
Bullet Catch
February 24, 2014
A review of Rob Drummond’s theatrical magic show at the New Zealand Festival 2014.
The Year in Review:
The Best of Wellington Theatre in 2013
December 30, 2013
Wellington Theatre Editor SAMUEL PHILLIPS selects the best plays and performers to grace the capital’s venues and festivals in 2013.
The Current Theatre:
January/February/March 2013
March 19, 2013
A wrap-up of the main-stage productions in Wellington so far in 2013. In this edition: Kings of the Gym, Coriolanus, Perfectly Wasted, You Can Always Hand Them Back, Talking of Kathryn Mansfield.
Doomsday and Christmas at the theatre
December 28, 2012
A quartet of seasonal stage-plays: The Island Bay Loners’ Doomsday Christmas Sing-Along, The ImpoSTAR, A Christmas Carol, Eschaton.
The Tigers of Wrath
November 14, 2012
Dean Parker’s bold work is the story of a love triangle, the evolution of the international relations between New Zealand and China, and a social history of New Zealand.
Into the Uncanny Valley
November 14, 2012
Scale is taken to the extreme in this theatrical adventure into the enchanting truth hidden within every particle of existence.
The Truth Game
October 23, 2012
Sex, lies, and the Fourth Estate.
Clybourne Park; Manawa
September 18, 2012
Bruce Norris unpacks how race and racism inform the way we use property and the function of communities; Jamie McCaskill explores the ironies of how New Zealand perceives crime, and the flaws of our media and legal system.
Holding On; Sophisticated Sinner
September 7, 2012
Gavin McGibbon’s tragicomedy reveals counseling can be as dramatic as the events that send people there; Karen Anslow delivers a musical celebration of the great divas of the last century.
Young Guns Comedy Show
August 17, 2012
A series of 10 minute sets prove the comedy-chops of the next generation of stand-ups.
West End Girls
August 13, 2012
Circa’s fun and detailed exploration of life in a brothel in post-WW2 London, based on the recent Barabra Tate autobiography of the same name.
Nuclear Family
July 31, 2012
By Desiree Gezentsvey Circa Theatre | July 24-August 4 The nuclear family, supposedly the most recognisable configuration of the family unit, is best watched on stage through the filter of our own family experiences. This task becomes difficult, however, when the on-stage family of said play is nigh on impossible to follow. Desiree Gezentsvey’s Nuclear Family, directed by James Hadley, suffers from a very fundamental problem; it is hard to know what is going on.
Magnolia Street
July 23, 2012
Capital E’s quick fire history lesson of a fictional street, an epic tragic-romance story, a rebel youth’s relationship with an elderly neighbor, and a delusional woman’s decline into dementia.
Young and Hungry 2012
July 14, 2012
The Young and Hungry Festival of New Theatre has arrived, and is home to some impressive work both on and off the stage.
Ivy, Saviour of the Dinosaur
July 4, 2012
Capital E’s epic adventure for young audiences.