Review Archive
John Smythe has trained and worked professionally in New Zealand, Australia then back in New Zealand as a playwright, director, screenwriter (& screenwriting teacher), actor, theatre critic and book writer.
His formal qualifications include a Bachelor of Dramatic Art from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (Sydney) and a Certificate in Screenwriting from the Australian Film Television and Radio School. He has also completed honours papers and a range of script writing courses.
Theatre directing credits in Australia include plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, and Gorki, and world premieres of plays by himself, Len Radic, David Williamson, Louis Esson, Katharine Susannah Prichard, Jack Hibberd and David O’Brien. Back in NZ he directed his own trilogy of short plays – ENTRANCING EXITS: Ms Conception; Nothing Twisted; Used Heads, at Bats Theatre, Wellington International Festival of the Arts; Faulty (sic) Towers & Blackadder’s Banquet at the Museum Hotel.
Playwright credits include Entrancing Exits (BATS Theatre), Conundra (Ensemble Productions), Swaggy Mack and his Magic Back Track (Arena Theatre), The Seven Stages of Hugh Mann (Melbourne University Theatre), Party Games (Jane St Theatre; La Mama) and Making A Play (Melbourne Theatre Company; Central Theatre), Where There’s a Will (BATS Theatre). Unproduced plays include Thelma, Weather and The Virtues of Reality.
John has also written The Peace Monster (Vintage, 1991); Downstage Upfront: the first 40 years of New Zealand’s longest-running professional theatre (Victoria University Press, November 2004) and The Plays of Bruce Mason – a survey (VUP & Playmarket, November 2015).
Amid a wide range of acting roles on stage, television and film, John has played Polonius and the Gravedigger in Hamlet twice (2006 and 2011). In 2012 and with Arts On Tour NZ in 2013 he played James Joyce, Samuel Beckett and Carl Jung in Jan Bolwell’s Dancing in the Wake. In 2015 he played Barry Scanlan in his own play, Where There’s a Will, at BATS Theatre. (Since 2000 he has also played Birdboot in an annual VUW English Dept reading of Stoppard’s The Real Inspector Hound.)
Before becoming the founding Managing Editor of Theatreview.org.nz in 2006, John was a theatre critic for The Melbourne Times, The Australian, Theatre Australia Magazine, The National Business Review.
Welcome to the review archive.
Theatre and dance reviews since 2006.
A Tart on Tour
Auckland, Wellington
14/02/2023 - 16/09/2023
"Recommended to anyone who has ever dealt with rejection and kept going..
"A testament to her skills, resilience and capacity to survive where others have not..
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ONO
Wellington
07/09/2023 - 16/09/2023
"Superbly crafted stories brought to life in riveting performances..
I Want To Be Happy
Auckland, Wellington
18/08/2023 - 30/09/2023
"Leaves its audience very happy at having engaged with another Nightsong treasure..
"A transformative experience, a total delight, undeniably emotionally moving, gut-wrenchingly funny..
The Boy Who Caused 9/11
Wellington
23/08/2023 - 26/08/2023
"Bound to relate to your own experiences, observations and existential musings..
Music to Die For
Wellington
09/08/2023 - 12/08/2023
"A memorable, amusing and sometimes touching life story conjured out of improv..
DIRTY WORK - An Ode to Joy
Auckland, Nelson, Christchurch, Wellington, Tauranga, Hamilton, New Plymouth
16/06/2023 - 25/05/2024
"Joy is at the heart of this feel-good comedy and important social critique..
"Sisyphus myth hits home hard yet something doesn’t quite land..
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The Sun and The Wind
Tauranga, Auckland
28/07/2023 - 24/03/2024
"Perfect performances enable audiences to consider the effects of intergenerational trauma..
"Inspired writing, great performances, and totally committed storytelling..
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Prima Facie
Wellington, Hamilton, Palmerston North
24/06/2023 - 26/05/2024
"Cracking courtroom tour-de-force mentally and emotionally spellbinding..
"A stunning and challenging night of theatre..
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Jim Stanton – Bangwagon
Wellington
23/05/2023 - 27/05/2023
"Like a glittering explosion from a kaleidoscope with cracked and distorting mirrors..
Clarissa Chandrahasen – Flawless
Wellington
23/05/2023 - 27/05/2023
"A lightness of touch and excellent timing compel our smiles and laughter..
Johanna Cosgrove – Hi, Delusion!
Wellington
23/05/2023 - 27/05/2023
"Comedy of truth about delusion deserves a long life..
Barnie Duncan – Just Jolks
Wellington
23/05/2023 - 27/05/2023
"Enough said. You have to be there...
James Nokise – Right About Now
Wellington
16/05/2023 - 20/05/2023
"A superb show that uses comedy to explore a timeless human flaw and bring it home to now..
Nick Rado – Radology
Wellington
16/05/2023 - 20/05/2023
"Heritage, health and generational humour plus ‘the perfect joke’..
Melanie Bracewell – Forget Me Not
Wellington
13/05/2023 - 13/05/2023
"Presented with a delightful ease that belies the exquisite crafting of her thematically aligned comedic commentary..
Sanjay Parbhu – Dope-Amine
Wellington
10/05/2023 - 12/05/2023
"Clever premise and good stories could deliver more on the promise..
Kura Forrester – Here If You Need
Wellington
09/05/2023 - 13/05/2023
"Outrageous hilarity and a touch of poignance bring meaning to the cryptic title..
Abby Howells – La Soupco
Wellington, Hamilton
09/03/2023 - 25/02/2024
"Full of originality, disarming honesty and fanciful narrative..
"A lively and insightful ride, bouncing between two states of being..
WONDERKIND
Wellington
09/07/2022 - 05/05/2023
"Epic creative explorations – so much experienced in so little time!..
"Humour, surprises, artistic creativity and the joy of playful friendship..
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Taku Waimarie
Wellington
02/05/2023 - 05/05/2023
"Thoroughly enjoyable discovery of the value of cultural identity..
THE COVEN ON GREY STREET
Wellington
29/04/2023 - 27/05/2023
"Seasoned cast of veteran actors superb..
"A rich theatrical treat on many levels..
Cocked & Reloaded
Wellington
18/04/2023 - 22/04/2023
"Good comic timing and team-work generate 80 minutes of well-wrought fun..
THE KING OF TAKING
Dunedin, Nelson, Wellington
14/10/2022 - 25/03/2023
"Entertaining excellence that pricks the pretensions of those in power..
"Masterful miming and a theatre full of laughter..
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