BATS Theatre
April 27-May 5 | Reviewed by Melody Nixon

RICH WITH wide and complex themes, contemporarily relevant and historically informative, Tony Kushner’s A Bright Room Called Day is yet another excellent choice of production by Wellington’s Theatre Militia.

In A Bright Room Called Day Tony Kushner (Angels in America) has created a piece of theatre that examines, among many other things, how issues of the personal and political, the reoccurrence of ‘evil’ in the world, and the subjective nature of the ‘good-bad’ dichotomy can be explored through paralleling the present with the past, the USA/West with Nazi Germany, the covert murder of masses with the overt.

Maidment Theatre
April 27-May 5 | Reviewed by Imogen Neale

THERE’s an ad currently running on the quasi-national radio station George FM. Two hapless guys are looking for something to do and end up at Burgundy’s with the cabaret queen Debbie Dorday. Like a broken, but very enthusiastic record, Debbie keeps greeting the boys with “See you at Burgandy’s!” When they try and tell her that they’re actually already at Burgandy’s, Debbie just repeats “See you at Burgandy’s!”

Downstage
March 31-April 28 | Reviewed by Simon Sweetman

CHARLES WEBB’s novel (published in 1963) tells the tale of a self-conscious youth desperate to escape the boredom of his post-school milieu; his parents’ society friends bore him, everything bores him. Mike Nichols turned this material in to a counter-cultural classic, a landmark of modern cinema – one of the early anti-establishment Hollywood film works, signalling the end of the 1960s and spearheading the director-focused movies of the 1970s.

BATS Theatre
April 12-21 | Reviewed by Kate Blackhurst

IN THIS POWERFUL and moving piece of drama presented by the Wheelbarrow Group, Ronald Trifero Nelson directs a cast of eight young people to explore a seemingly pointless death and offer theatre as therapy. It contains violent content that may offend, and will certainly disturb, and notices in the foyer recommend counselling services to those who want to talk about issues raised by the performance.

Glen Eden Playhouse
April 15-21 | Reviewed by Imogen Neale

PETER SHAFFER’s 1973 play Equus poses two big performance questions: how to stage the horses and, how to handle the nudity?

For Jessie Peach the answers are big boots with horseshoe like plates nailed into the bottom and just doing it: letting Ashley Hawkes (who plays Alan Strang) be bare when it really counts.

Circa Theatre
March 17-April 21 | Reviewed by Melody Nixon

THOUGH framed as piece of political theatre about refugees, Two Brothers is less a discussion of refugee issues and more a psychological thriller meets examination of power relations. It is nonetheless a gripping and powerful tale. It goes someway to discuss the public apathy of wealthy nations and succeeds in illuminating the issue of power leading to corruption in today’s liberal ‘democracies’.

Downstage
March 31-April 28 | Reviewed by Melody Nixon

The Graduate is defined as a “classic cult comedy”, and the play we are presented with at Downstage is just that – a humorous cultural memento of a past American generation. It provides many a laugh and some wonderful performances, from Mrs. Robinson (Catherine Wilkin) and a befuddled Mrs. Braddock (Geraldine Brophy) to the incensed Mr. Robinson (Peter Hambleton). But at times this production fails to move beyond the archival nature of the script to make direct contact with the audience. There are moments of one-dimensional screenplay, rather than live, engaging theatre.

Circa Theatre
March 31-April 28 | Reviewed by Kate Blackhurst

AT THE RISK of gushing, I have to say this Tom Stoppard translation of Gerald Sibleyras’ Heroes is absolutely fabulous; a great script, superb acting and simple but effective staging, combine to make a perfect piece of theatre.