August 1, 2018

NEW ZEALAND THEATRE MONTH 2018 – update

30 DAYS OF NATION-WIDE ELEVATION AND CELEBRATION 

NZ Theatre Month coming this September. From Whangarei to Invercargill, more than 450 shows and events will be staged by more than 70 different organisations including professional theatre companies, community theatre groups, schools and other institutions around the country.  

From professional companies such as Auckland Theatre Company bringing premiere NZ works such as The Giltrap Audi season of Stuart Hoar’s Rendered, to distinctly Māori company Taki Rua’s Hine Kihāwai, to grassroots theatre like Theatre Whakatane’s Hang On a Minute Mate, each show will bring its own special magic to the stage. Hundreds of Kiwis will participate in the creation of shows, while thousands more are set to enjoy the festival as audience members. Appealing to New Zealanders from all walks of life, the festival will cater for the most committed theatre-goer to those who will be drawn to step foot inside the theatre for the first time.

NZ Theatre Month is the brain child of iconic New Zealand playwright Roger Hall aided by arts figure Malcolm Calder. The festival is the culmination of the duo’s years of championing for a month of celebrations dedicated to New Zealand theatre, with the ethos behind the month being to ‘celebrate and elevate’ Aotearoa’s theatre. The programme umbrellas all theatre which is ‘conceived in NZ’, and open to the public in September.

The festivities will include a range of productions created by all kinds of artists with countless creative visions. In addition to theatre shows, a wide range of ancillary events will be held at theatres, libraries, and schools around the country. These events, from performances to open days, talks, discussion panels and displays, will address an enormous range of content matter to serve New Zealand’s unique culture.

NZ Theatre Month will kick off on September 1^st at Takapuna’s Bruce Mason Centre with a tribute to Bruce Mason, the Godfather of NZ theatre. This will be followed shortly on Monday September 3^rd by an official launch by the Hon Grant Robertson, Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage at Parliament in Wellington.

Aside from highlighting all New Zealand theatre, the festival will hone in on several significant themes unfolding in our current theatre landscape. Women in Theatre will place wāhine the centre of the frame, with plays such as Modern Girls in Bed, Medusa, Kororāreka, Orientation, Mrs Krishnan’s Party, Promise & Promiscuity, Sightings, Valerie, Jane and Mum’s Choir all either focusing on women’s stories or being shaped by female creatives.

Generational will focus on showcasing the shifting forms of what defines a theatre show. From top shelf text-based theatre from cherished playwrights such as Carl Nixon, Oscar Kightley and Alison Quigan to the inter-disciplinary work of contemporary theatre makers like Nisha Madhan, Chye-Ling Huang and Benjamin Henson, this theme covers the changing face of theatre in contemporary New Zealand.

Jam packed with a diverse showcase of works that hail from Aotearoa, NZ Theatre Month is set to be 30 days of celebrating ambitious theatre that is made by the people, for the people.

NZ THEATRE MONTH IS CELBRATED NATIONWIDE FROM 1-30 SEPETMBER

Opening weekend
Saturday 1 September – Tribute to Bruce Mason at Bruce Mason Centre
Monday 3 September – Official launch at Parliament supported by Playmarket.

Website with all events live from early August.
Check out https://www.theatremonth.nz/

[Link to earlier announcement]