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.
IVY – SAVIOUR OF THE DINOSAUR!
Wellington, Christchurch, Wanaka
30/06/2012 - 06/09/2013
"Accessible and imaginative..
"Cleaning lady polishes off disaster..
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Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Wellington
30/06/2012 - 14/07/2012
"Fresh and invigorating..
"An ideal family show..
SUNSET ROAD
Wellington
20/06/2012 - 07/07/2012
"Tale of family rift has roots in reality..
"Insightful, delightful and powerful drama..
FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS TOUR OF NZ!
Wellington, Auckland, Hamilton, Hastings
13/06/2012 - 21/06/2012
"They leave us wanting more..
"Basking in glow of big-time Conchords..
STANDSTILL
Auckland, Wellington, Hamilton
09/03/2011 - 07/07/2012
"Irreverent, bizarre, compelling..
"Treadmill of life presents novel and engaging theatre..
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ALL MY SONS
Wellington
02/06/2012 - 07/07/2012
"Invaluable describing..
"Career best performances..
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ASSISTED LIVING
Wellington
23/05/2012 - 09/06/2012
"A work in progress..
"It’s like a present I cannot open..
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS: THE BUDGET SHOW
Wellington
16/05/2012 - 19/05/2012
"Much-needed gap-filler..
"See Winston save the world!..
MISS FLETCHER SINGS THE BLUES
Hamilton, Auckland, Tauranga, Wellington
15/05/2012 - 21/02/2014
"An excruciating delight..
"Traditional issues feel fresh and novel..
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Chekhov in Hell
Wellington
12/05/2012 - 09/06/2012
"Chekhov adrift in the modern world..
"Hell for him is delight for us..
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QUANTUM SHEEP AND THE ANIMAL ORCHESTRA
Wellington
09/05/2012 - 12/05/2012
"Undisciplined and aimless..
"Space junk..
Interviews with the Universe
Wellington
17/02/2007 - 20/02/2007
"Nothing of value..
"Nothing of value added..
YETI IS DEAD/I AM TOM
Auckland, Wellington
28/04/2012 - 12/05/2012
"Exciting and eccentric..
"A romp for the initiated..
VANCE FONTAINE in COMMAND PERFORMANCE
Auckland, Wellington, New Plymouth
08/04/2012 - 23/08/2013
"Amazing talents..
"A commanding performance..
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IAN MCKELLEN ON STAGE – with Shakespeare, Tolkien and you!
New Zealand wide
05/05/2012 - 24/06/2012
"A genial, waggish giant of the theatre..
"A rare opportunity, not to be missed..
JOSEPH HARPER in MARCHING TOWARD DEATH WITH WOBBLY LEGS LIKE A VELOCIRAPTOR
Wellington, Auckland
03/05/2012 - 11/05/2012
"A generous giving of self..
CONSTANTINOPLE
Auckland, Nelson, Wellington, Tauranga
02/03/2011 - 26/10/2013
"Serious silliness delivered with a goofy humility..
"Crazy, zany and off the wall slapstick..
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TJ MCDONALD in MY LIFE HAS BEEN A SERIES OF POORLY MADE DECISIONS
Wellington, Auckland
01/05/2012 - 19/05/2012
"Relaxed, casual, self-effacing yet quietly confident..
JAN MAREE: HAIRY TODAY, GONE TOMORROW!
Auckland, Wellington
01/05/2012 - 19/05/2012
"'Lost and Found' odyssey of self-discovery amuses and moves..
BOMBS AWAY! A MUSICAL
Auckland, Wellington
01/05/2012 - 19/05/2012
"Who you [not] gonna call?..
"Goodies-grade silly..
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IN SPITE OF HIMSELF
New Zealand wide, Christchurch
30/04/2012 - 30/06/2012
"Innovative and challenging work plants seeds of further enquiry..
"Much to enjoy and ponder..
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A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant and A Prayer: Writings To Stop Violence Against Women and Girls
Wellington
28/04/2012 - 30/04/2012
"A curiously uplifting 'entertainment'..
THAT'S SO GAY
Wellington
26/04/2012 - 28/04/2012
"Prejudice explored..
"Some good discussion-starters but could be more entertaining..
