Wallflower and Shafted are two original New Zealand works that were handpicked to show as part of the two-week Fresh Produce season at The Basement. Marketed as “two fast-paced comedies, devised, written and performed” by graduates of Unitec’s School of Performing and Screen Arts, I was eager to assess the calibre of this up-and-coming talent.

Wallflower commences with a young woman casually crossing the floor and taking a seat, in what appears to be a waiting room. She – Charlie – is waiting to be interviewed for a promotion. But there is one wicked twist: she is audibly accompanied by her Emotions and Logic, and it packs one powerful black comedic punch. It’s candid, witty, well timed and the performance of Greg Padoa, Sarah Graham and especially Gypsy Kauta appears far superior to their recently graduated status.

The transition between pieces is swift. Gone is the waiting room and in its place, a makeshift elevator cab complete with light and irritating elevator music. This one metre squared box sets the scene for Shafted, a play that unimaginatively places three peculiar characters – a suicidal pregnant haemophobic, a nostalgic agoraphobic and a screechy American achluophobic* – in a small confined place.

Unfortunately for Shafted, the weaker of the two plays, a comedy requires more than an ironic placement of characters and progression of events to be successful. I was relieved when the lights dimmed on this particular performance.

It is a brief evening of theatre, clocking in under 50 minutes, that provides an insightful snapshot into the standard of New Zealand’s emerging theatre talent.

*[Fears of blood, open spaces/public places, and darkness respectively.]

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