THE DIVE
BATS Theatre, The Dome, 1 Kent Tce, Wellington
15/10/2021 - 15/10/2021
Production Details
It’s closing time at the shadiest bar in town, but the bartender ain’t kicking anyone out, the piano player still has music to play, and the last few patrons still have money to spend. Someone has something to celebrate, someone is drowning their sorrows, and someone is searching for answers at the bottom of a glass. Will they find them before the bartender calls last drinks?
The NZ Improv Festival returns with its annual celebration of improvised theatre in all its forms. From comedy to drama, musicals to mystery, and plenty of mischief, there’s something for everyone. Eighteen unique shows over five days at the wonderful BATS Theatre – don’t miss a moment!
BATS Theatre, The Dome
15 October 2021
9pm
The Difference $40
Full Price $20
Group 6+ $18
Concession Price $15
BOOK TICKETS
The NZ Improv Fest takes place at BATS Theatre
Performance programme 12-16 October 2021
Workshops 8-16 October 2021
Learn more at www.improvfest.nz.
Theatre , Improv ,
1 hr
Excellent rapport and chemistry
Review by Emma Maguire 16th Oct 2021
The Dive is truly a show for these times. Cozy, mildly melancholic, full of ennui and nostalgia for pre-COVID life – the piece rolls along gently. It feels just like we’re voyeurs onto the simplest premise: five strangers get a drink at a dive bar close to closing time.
They’re nameless to each other, and to us, but it’s late enough in the night and they’re drunk enough to take the conversation to myriad places, from wearing socks in bed, to Cobb & Co and North Korea.
Bartender Matt Powell brings a little sobriety to the conversation, offering the patrons water and a seemingly endless knowledge of random facts. The other four characters are somewhat lost in life. Ben Zolno’s social media manager wants to find love, Jen O’Sullivan’s character is getting married in the morning, Marea Columbo’s character is a little adrift at sea, and Alayne Dick has a lot of life questions to ask.
At moments during the piece, they all go up to sing, underscored beautifully by Liam Kelly and Roger Sanders, with Tristram Domican on the lights. From desires to go corporate, to the delight of taking socks off in bed, all performers take a grounded approach to the music, filling the song with a lot of nonsensical heart.
This is improv at its best: actors who get on well, who have excellent rapport and chemistry, and a format that isn’t janky or overly obvious. It is a yearning for a time past but, in BATS last night, surrounded by the warm glow of bar lights and with patrons around me, I almost relive those moments. I liked The Dive very, very much.
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[Janky is a North American slang term for something run down, of poor quality, or unreliable – ed.]
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