Review Archive
Donna Banicevich Gera is a writer, writing tutor (creative, academic, and business), and script advisor. Her creative work has been produced for radio, page, stage, and screen, in New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, Spain, Austria, USA, and Alaska. Her scripts include Anton’s Women, Land Without Sundays, Hunterville, My Name is Ruhi, Come unto Me, The Captain’s Curse, Baby Face, Ella and Will, Tarara Child, Longing and Rip. In 2015, she worked as script advisor on six New Zealand short films. Her main area of interest is in telling migrant stories, exploring themes of lost identity, and developing work with a strong multi-cultural feel. She has held artists’ residencies in Spain and France, and presented at workshops, seminars and conferences in New Zealand, Croatia, Italy, Austria, USA and Alaska, enabling her to acquire knowledge and write outside her New Zealand framework. Donna trained as a dancer, and has been involved in performance since childhood. She also holds an MA in Creative Writing (Scriptwriting), a BA (Hons) in English, Theatre, Film & Media Studies, Graduate Diploma in Creative Writing, Certificate in Writing for Documentary and a Diploma in International Theatre Directing. Her current research is based around exploring storytelling through performance art. She joined the Theatreview team in 2016.
Welcome to the review archive.
Theatre and dance reviews since 2006.
Bee Gees Night Fever
Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland
04/10/2024 - 02/11/2024
"Ensures their music is Stayin’ Alive ..
UnReel
Wellington
18/12/2023 - 13/10/2024
"Playful, high energy show designed to provoke discussion, outrage, activism, social change..
"‘The House Always Wins’ key take-away in unforgettable production..
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Poets Before Me
Wellington
09/03/2024 - 09/03/2024
"Emotional, funny, moving, hypnotic, lyrical and profound ..
BILL BILL BILL
Wellington
08/11/2022 - 12/11/2022
"The Power of Three: compelling, slick, thought- and smile-provoking..
THE WEDDING SINGER
Wellington
10/06/2022 - 19/06/2022
"Hits all the right notes..
"Sprightly, energetic, sweetly melancholic..
CRINGE WORTHY 80s!
Palmerston North, Wellington
06/11/2021 - 11/06/2022
"Cringeworthy and so much fun..
"A unique blend of warmth, humour and spirit..
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Navarasa
Lower Hutt
02/07/2021 - 04/07/2021
"This cosmic dance..
"A shining beacon in the city’s annual dance program..
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I DON’T KNOW HOW TO DANCE
Wellington
09/03/2021 - 12/03/2021
"A show about being brave..
Back of the Bus
Christchurch, Nelson, Wellington, Edinburgh, Scotland, Dunedin, Hamilton
23/09/2008 - 28/02/2021
"Riding the bus will never be the same again..
"Fantastic!..
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Whairepo Lagoon Dance
Wellington
05/02/2021 - 28/02/2021
"Fascinatingly detailed and real..
UNDERCURRENT
Raumati, Tauranga, Auckland, New Plymouth, Christchurch, Wellington
24/10/2020 - 12/11/2020
"Blistering new dance works..
"Wariness, disconnection, and partying with careless abandon..
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THE CLEARING
Nelson, Wellington, Palmerston North, Auckland, New Plymouth, Christchurch
31/07/2019 - 02/11/2019
"A perplexing shadow world..
"Perplexing, intriguing, ambiguous, unknowable..
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SHAKTI THE UNIVERSAL ENERGY
Lower Hutt
28/06/2019 - 30/06/2019
"The Art of the Dancer..
THE GOBLIN MARKET
Tauranga, Auckland, Wellington, Nelson
22/10/2016 - 18/04/2019
"'Can I Touch You?'..
"Entertaining and sublimely moving..
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NO LAUGHING MATTER
Wellington
20/03/2019 - 23/03/2019
"Imaginations untapped..
THE BOY GEORGE
Wellington
19/03/2019 - 23/03/2019
"Compelling concept a true box of delights..
BLUEPRINT
Wellington
20/03/2018 - 24/03/2018
"The web we weave .....
SHE WOLF
Wellington, Dunedin
20/03/2018 - 24/03/2019
"A witty whirlwind..
MILEY, MOON UNIT & ME
Wellington
13/03/2018 - 17/03/2018
"Evocative and richly imagined..
THE TRAVELLING SISTERS – TOUPÉ
Wellington
12/03/2018 - 16/03/2018
"Brilliant in conception and execution..
FA’AAFA
Wellington
06/03/2018 - 09/03/2018
"Seductive, contemporary and beautiful..
A GUY, A GIRL AND A LAWNMOWER
Wellington, Palmerston North
03/03/2018 - 07/10/2018
"Needs more work..
"Quality aerial work; other elements could go higher..
Die Hard Rock Cafe Müller
Wellington
22/02/2018 - 03/03/2018
"Weirdly delightful mash-up..
"‘Now I have an artwork. Ho. Ho. Ho.’..
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