The Night Has A Thousand Eyes

The Night Has A Thousand Eyes was visually and audibly beautiful. Light, shadows and darkness were moved through and manipulated by two dancers to a series of piano tracks. Without a raised stage the audience had differing experiences based on their location; some could see dancers, others only their shadows. 

There were moments of pure enchantment as tiny lights spread across the stage like stars, voluminous fabric created flowing swirling waves, and tapping feet became raindrops. 

It lacked an overall storyline, and was more a collection of vignettes, something I would have preferred to realise earlier (rather than spend some time attempting to decipher what was going on).

The show relies heavily on stage smoke, if you're sensitive, sit further back. There is some (possibly unnecessary) nudity.

Performances: 6-9 March 9pm, 8th March 4:30pm

Tickets: $50

Reckoning

Another mix of poetry, politics and dance from Akeim Toussaint Buck, this time collaborating with an animator and using material from multiple refugee stories. The source of the stories is a research project out of the University of Manchester entitled Reckoning with Refugeedom.

It is somehow both on a larger and smaller scale than Displaced, which you could class as a sibling piece. The narrative still sounds personal but is drawn from many people's experiences. The landscape is smaller, the animation drilling down to mere movement in space. As a shorter piece it is more digestible than its sibling, though I think the other is more visually appealing. Both explore the experience of "othering" or being "othered" and how labels can cause people to lose track of individuals inherent humanity. The systems come under fire again too; surely everyone can't shrug and say "that's not my job." This feels more like a call to action.

Tickets: pay what you can

Performances: online, anytime

Displaced

 Displaced is a deceptively simple piece, mixing the personal with the public to tell a universal story through dance, poetry and film. Akeim takes us through his journey from Jamaica to the UK, from outcast to citizen - but perhaps never really truly dropping the outcast label. 

We have forgotten how to be human. We have forgotten our roots or they've been torn from us. Identity is more than skin deep. We walk with our ancestors in this modern world, the generational trauma heavy on our back.

Visually beautiful the landscape moves from beach to forest to urban parks, streets and interiors; Akeim dancing or interacting with others, sometimes it's like he belongs but sometimes he stands out. I imagine this is the point, that this is how his life feels. How life feels for many, even if they were "born here." 

You can watch this on the surface to enjoy the movement, music and poetry (couldn't find a word starting with M), or you can go deeper to really hear the message about decolonisation, about our humanity.

Tickets: pay what you can

Performances: online, 16 February-26 March 2024

Odyssea

You've heard of Odysseus, that questionable Greek hero, now meet Odyssea. She's the feminist counterpart to the myth. Instead of stealing, she barters and helps those she meets on her journey, who in turn help her.

It's a dance film with a twist, only one woman dances and we only ever see her highly painted hands. This seems impossible with the choreography spanning the screen and multiple hands appearing. The background music is always familiar but not quite the piece you think it is, making you question everything.

Fabric makes a landscape, a seascape, to host boats made from drift wood and other coastal pieces. It all appears so simple but it's obvious deep thought has gone into every choice. Odyssea is charming and somehow innocent - how is this possible? The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Part of Fringe's online offerings this film started as a pandemic project.

Tickets: $8

Performances: view online, anytime

The Emperor’s New Clothes

In recent years Circa has expanded from their base of traditional theatre to include the more experimental which previously was relegated to Bats theatre; The Emperor's New Clothes is an example of why this was a great direction.

We're greeted by a woman in sensible black heels, white pants and a black blazer who thanks us for making this investment. On the walls hang many more pairs of white pants and black blazers. Will she don these throughout the performance? Something about her demeaner as she hails new comers makes me fear this might be one of those very rich spiritual gurus.

She addresses the audience with a salesperson patter and I'm confused, isn't this supposed to be a dance show? The unexpected continues and within the first five minutes she's naked. We are taken on a spoken (occasionally sung) and danced journey through the value of our being, each system, organ and sense precisely calculated. This is a confronting kind of economics, figuring out exactly what you're worth.

The timing is perfect, each move accompanied by live violin, keyboard and spoken monetary values. A body is a just a body, naked or clothed. Bare you see sweat form, muscles and tendons stretch. But not all things are easily accounted for and the show seems to lose focus towards the end, perhaps trying to do too many things at once. There is no grand end, just lights out and the audience pauses, uncertain if it's over.

Performances: 21 June–1 July (times vary)

Tickets: $38

CONTENT ADVISORY: nudity, strong language, sexual violence, economics.

The Yellow Wallpaper

In a "three course feast" the Yellow Cat Collective brings three performances a night over three nights to the Katherine Mansfield House and Garden of The Yellow Wallpaper. There are a lot of threes going on here; three parts to the night with three performers.

The Yellow Wallpaper is a severely creepy short story written in the late 1800s about a woman going mad trapped in a room with yellow wallpaper, it's been hailed as a feminist text. This isn't the first time the Yellow Cat Collective have tackled this story. They produced a piece in this years Fringe festival focusing on the experiences of the woman. But this time they've chosen to focus instead on the wallpaper itself, how it feels to be observed.

The evening starts with time to explore the house, you may not have been since the upgrades in 2019 so have a good look around, music pulses from behind a closed door. Then the audience collects in the "timeline room" where there are a handful of seats around the detailed walls for a reading of an extract from The Yellow Wallpaper. The reader is good but I'm distracted by her orange shoes and the quotes from Katherine Mansfield plastered on the wall behind her. Then the main event, we are led across the hall to what was once the grandmothers room, now an exhibition space, stripped of all furniture save another line of chairs along the wall. This is where the music has been coming from.

Dance is one of those difficult mediums where if you aren't told the story beforehand almost anything could be going on in front of you. This holds true here, but once you know you see the dancers emerging from the walls, writhing against them as you wonder if they're allowed to touch the highly decorated paper. You realise that dancers must necessarily be actors too, their faces impassive. I'm distracted again by odd things; how the calf muscles bulk as once dancer moves, the rib cage of the other as she arches, tattoos revealed on the first as her shirt lifts in movement, chipped nail polish on a hand as it sweeps through the air. There is beauty here and trust too - they rely on each other to hold the space and at one point to hold each other up as they both lean in. Modern dance becomes ballroom as the dancers circle each other then it disintegrates as they twist on the floor. 

In this intimate space there is no getting away from the performers, close enough you could reach out to touch them. The music is light, unintrusive, so much so that you wonder how the dancers know their place. But they do, it is perfectly timed. It ends and the dancers faces and movements change, they seem a little embarrassed by the praise and the thanks of the audience. The evening comes to a close, we are ushered out as the next group is arriving soon.

At just $10 a ticket it's very affordable but get in quick as spaces are limited.

Tickets: $10

Performances: 29-31 July, 6pm, 6:50pm 7:40pm

Strasbourg 1518

It took me a good hour to calm down after experiencing Strasbourg 1518. It was phenomenal, there is no other word for it.

The show is exquisitely choreographed immersive chaos that speaks to the current climate despite it being about a 500 year old dancing plague. There is music that isn't music but merely sound which may have you wondering if you've stepped somehow into a heavy metal concert.

Last year perched on the precipice of lockdown I think this show may have been even more powerful in it's one night that it was staged before the world closed down. But it is still a delightful mess - and a literal one, they do everything but set the stage alight.

I cannot recommend this highly enough and the audience agreed with a standing ovation from the packed theatre. This show deserves to be sold out every night of its short run.

Performances: 23-28 March, times vary

Tickets: $52

Onepū

It's not often Te Papa hosts anything on their stage other than conference speakers. Extra staff are on hand to direct people not accustomed to the venue, all museum parts are roped off and any hope of having a late night look around, or sneak peek at the new Te Taiao Nature exhibit are crushed.

A small crowd gathers waiting for the doors to open. Finally, we're allowed in. There are no allocated seats. Greetings are heard as old friends find each other, a hug, a kiss then a seat shuffle so they can sit together. Pretty soon the shuffling becomes harder as more people arrive.

A dark stage. A tiny mountain of sand surrounded by a large ring (I do not envy the cleaners) are the only stage decorations. Breath, haunting, fills the large darkened theatre - a Goddess is on stage.

From flowing, sweeping costumes to throbbing beats, from lights that make water appear on stage to movements both jerking and fluid Opepū illustrates the six atua wahine (Māori Goddesses) who control the winds of the world.

The audience are enthralled, there's not even a whisper the whole performance in the packed theatre where everyone seems to know someone. As the stage lights go down at the end of the show there's a pause - is it over? - then one brave person starts clapping and the theatre erupts in cries and applause.

Contemporary dance can be a bit hit and miss, in my experience, as can culturally based performances. It might be too artsy and the audience may not understand. But with all the potential to miss the mark Onepū manages to hit it squarely.

Performances: June 28 - August 22
Check times, locations and ticket sellers here

Rushes

The newly renovated Circa is covered in paper, the walls at least, it's dressed up like a haunted house. The set up would have been better for a house of horrors. It had a slightly voyeuristic feel, encountering dancers trapped in their own thoughts, peering through doorways and peepholes. Even in the hallways, obstructing traffic, there are lithe young things gyrating. Some of it is beautiful but it doesn't seem to have a point or tell any story. Performers moved from room to room, it was disconcerting not to know if people were members or the audience or dancers. There were small moments of delight, of calm amongst the chaos, a quiet figure moving elegantly behind a peephole. The grand finale was a dance floor surrounded by plastic sheets, if it had been a haunted house that would have made an amazing party at the end of it - just add punch.

I would have preferred an actual tour backstage at Circa with stories about what had happened there, maybe a few vignette scattered around. I wouldn't recommend if you are at all Claustrophobic as it didn't seem like you could get out of there easily and the crowds and thumping music and confusion made it seem close.

Performances: 23 Feb-5 March (times vary)
Tickets: $42 

The Wholehearted

Wholehearted will start conversations, honest conversations. Told through what I can only call interpretive dance it's the story of all people, yet there is no storyline.

I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what the cast where doing, what the boxes represented, what they were trying to catch (their heart? love? memories?). It's almost a stream of consciousness across several people.

It is beautifully choreographed, each member participating in another's story so seamlessly. Sheer curtains create windows to interesting tableaux, all perfectly staged.

What is it about? It's about the human experience, how we open ourselves to others and it's lovely to watch.

Tickets: $30
Performances: (Wellington) 20-23 September, 7pm
Harcourts Hawke’s Bay Arts Festival (27 September)
Christchurch - Papa Hou (3 – 7 October)
Dunedin - Fortune Theatre (10 to 13 October)

https://www.massivecompany.co.nz/thewholehearted

Dódeka

No one could be quite as excited as two classics geeks to see a dance show about the Olympian Gods unless it's the young dancers supporters who screamed and hollered whenever someone they recognised came on stage [distracting but encouraged by the organisers].

A mix of hip-hip, contemporary and music you can feel in your bones is used to depict each God (a few mythological monsters are thrown in for good measure). There was reasonable diversity of age in the dancers though the boys were well outnumbered, others having not yet come to the conclusion that girls like a boy who can dance. Across the board there was impressive skill and energy shown by all the dancers.

Watching each dance was a little like greeting old friends. I'd say the Gods were pleased.

Pedal and Castles

Castles is an award winning show and Pedal is it's prequel. Like with most things, the original is better.

It's not what I expect from a dance performance. You can see why this new genre is award worthy. This one woman show exhibits a triple threat - she can sing, dance and act. Perhaps that should be upgraded to quadruple as she's written, arranged and choreographed each show herself (or am I up to six levels of skill?).

The little music there is mostly comes from the performers mouth, there is an unexpected talent, and even more impressive that she continues while dancing or contorted in strange shapes. I don't recognise the lyrics, has she written them herself? The other text is like spoken word poetry. The dancing, less than I would have expected, is melded with the words.

My companion described Castles as 'an exorcism of popular culture.' Compared to Pedal it's comic, energetic and more accessible. There is less blank space. In a cold theatre, with a production that was difficult to follow, I found my mind wandering from Pedal.

Props to the costume-prop designer. Those creations were ever surprising.


Pedal
Performances: 17 - 21 May 7pm*
Tickets: $20**


Castles
Performances: 18 - 21 May 7pm & 8pm*
Tickets: $20**

*I admit these seem confusing, check the Bats site for specific performance times and dates
**Special pricing for attending both shows

Don Quixote - Royal New Zealand Ballet

Last night’s dress rehearsal of the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s Don Quixote was a show stopper, literally. In my twenty years of being involved with dress rehearsals, either watching or on stage, I have have never witnessed a director actually stop the performance. Most directors treat it as a dry run for opening night; taking notes and, if necessary, restaging scenes after the final act. I like to think this is an indication of director Francesco Ventriglia’s wish for perfection for his first New Zealand production rather than a sign of unpreparedness.

A lot of the elements of the production were reused from the 2008 show including; set, costumes, dancers and, although I can’t be certain, choreography. The real scene stealer (as she was in the original production) was a little mechanical dog. I have it on good authority that at each performance last season an audience member enquired where they could get one.

The dancing, which after all is what you go to see, was beautiful, although there were often too many dancers hanging around the edges, that it was difficult to know where to focus. Twitter was brimming with appreciation for men who can dance attempting to show their ability to not dance.




Strange pauses between passages in the third act may have been due to earlier restaging of dances. The orchestra was excellent but subject to the exactness of the choreographer, and at times I felt they could’ve used a bit more volume. 

Don Quixote is director Francesco Ventriglia’s first show for the Royal New Zealand Ballet. It opens tonight at St James Theatre. After a short season in Wellington the show will visit other cities (listed below).

Performances: 7:30pm 4-7 March, 1:30pm 7 March
Tickets: $35-145
Venue: St James Theatre
Other centres: Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Invercargill, Palmerston North

Weight Loss: Personal Trainer

I feel incredibly lucky that Julia from Kiwi Pole Fitness and Kaos has agreed to be my personal trainer. Julia is an amazing pole dancing teacher and performer as well as a qualified personal trainer. I'm going through some major upheavals in my personal life and the great thing about Julia is that she gets it, she's been there. Working with her feels like she is more my life coach than just my personal trainer.

We've been working together a month or so and starting things off slowly. We haven't done any of the stuff that I think of doing with a personal trainer - no exercising, no yelling. It helps that Julia knows me quite well so probably knows how best to handle me. I've been tracking my mood, food and exercise. This helps me to identify my own behaviours and take responsibility for them.

Following on from the diary was little things I had been neglecting about myself; looking after myself, making space my own. And then finding some exercise that I could enjoy, be passionate about. I've started ballet classes with a scary Russian woman who yells at me (I found the yelling!). It's not exactly difficult but the positions feel a little like contortion. I enjoy how beautiful it feels; each movement starts with my arm fluttering from my side. But it's also hard, my feet and legs hurt every time  My teacher wants me to go twice a week but basically I don't want to, she was insistent so I'm not sure how long I will continue with ballet. But, I did find the class and have actually attended, so that's something. I hope in the future to motivate myself to go back to pole dancing  too (there goes my last New Years resolution).

The best thing about working with Julia is that she understands what I'm working on isn't just about losing weight; it's about finding me, whoever that turns out to be (more about that in my next post).

Other updates:
- I've met with a new dietitian and discovered that I haven't gained any weight (93.1kg) since my first appointment about 6 months ago
- After meeting with a specialist my medication has been reduced so hopefully I will start to see some weight loss soon (if you don't remember, my medication makes me put on weight and won't let my body release it either)

Coming up:
- I'll tell you about my time with Sally-Ann Moffat doing wardrobe therapy
- (and later) you'll get to read about the course of weight loss treatments I'm undergoing

Special thanks to: Kiwi Pole Fitness

If you are interested in personal training from Julia you can contact her through either of her studios

Fringe: Footnote Forte

We Have Been There (Cloud in Hand)


I thought going to see Footnote Forte would be an enjoyable experience as I have a background in music and dance.

The stage was empty which gave an atmosphere of being closer to the dancers as there was nothing to distract from watching them.

The first ‘dance’ began with music that sounded like an untuned radio. Noise. There were long periods of silence. The dancers walked in one at a time to this music and formed poses. Many of these poses were simple, every day stances but others looked awkward and alien-like (think arching back, bending arms around the wrong way and creating claw like hands). As the performance developed there was some more synchronised movement where the positions flowed together and times when the dancers grouped together to wrap their arms around each other whilst moving in an often unnatural way.

Lisa Densem mentions in the program that they are aiming to create a ‘state of heightened "attention" that can occur while dancing, improvising or performing’. She also points out that the way in which the ‘performer perceives and responds to the action around them’ creates a ‘charged space’ that can be experienced by the dancer performing and the audience watching. As an audience member I felt confused and awkward; I was on edge and uncomfortable the whole time.

Maybe I'm just uncultured, or I don't get it but after half an hour I decided to leave rather than stay and continue to experience what I was feeling at the time. I appreciate dance is a form of art, but unfortunately this style of dance was not my cup of tea. I can only hope that the performance developed as it went on, and that the majority of the audience enjoyed their experience.



Footnote Forte Cloud in Hand 7&8 March 2013 8.00pm
Wellington Opera House

Choregraphic direction – Lisa Densem
Choreographic assistant – Melanie Hamilton
Performance and Choreography – Lucy Marinkovich, Manu Reynaud, Emily Adams, Olivia McGregor, Alice Macann, Levi Cameron
Music – Andrew Thomas

Fringe: How to Make Friends and Still Appear Normal

Can anyone or any medium truly show the human condition successfully?  Our fears and our joys, self-awareness and also confidence, our moods and our feelings towards ourselves and towards others.

What at times seems a daily battle to survive and other times when we are ‘on top’ and winning life over others.

These and many other human emotions and situations were very ably presented in music and movement, particularly movement by a talented group of young women.

Their timing, dance moves, agility and energy was superb.  This was all shown with a sense of humour which gave the entire performance an extra touch of class.

May we see more of Natalie Maria Clark’s work in Wellington.

Look out for this show at Dunedin Fringe 14-16 March.

Diwali Wellington (Diwali Mela)

The second day of the Wellington celebrations of Diwali was called Diwali Mela and was held on Sunday 16 October at the TSB arena. The event included retail stalls, speeches, dances and food.

The event was well organised; there were signs up listing the timing of performances, security controlling the flow of people into the food hall and a separation between the retail and stage area. It would have been useful to see the programme beforehand but information about the Diwali events was difficult to find. I think the door charge was fair but, considering the experience we had, I would not have been happy to pay any more.

There was a huge selection of food in Shed 6 including (confusingly) Mrs Higgins Cookies amongst the many Indian restaurant stands. Unfortunately we managed to buy from a stall that didn't have very good food and ended up throwing most of it out. The small stage in the food hall had an area in front of it for people to sit on the (concrete covered in tarpaulin) floor. The kids were looking forward to the puppet show but weren't that interested in it though I thought that having the puppet stall next to the stage was a great idea. We missed any performances on the main stage as the speeches seemed to drag on for quite some time.

Obviously the event was well patronised as it was a squash to get to see anything of the retail stalls. The kids were happy to look at the shiny things, they were particularly enamored of the 3D pictures, but didn't have much patience to wait and push through a crowd. I would have liked to see more of the stalls but it was too difficult.

For the Festival of Lights it was lacking in the lights department, there were fireworks in the evening but reports were that they were far from spectacular. I think perhaps the best way to sum this up was something an Indian acquaintance said; "We used to go, but we don't anymore. It's not worth it." Sadly accurate.

Venue: TSB area
Date: Sunday 16 October
Price: Gold coin donation