SORT OF, precisely, a Snapshot Of Real Theatre On the Fly, taken from www.nzlive.com, for Auckland, Monday May 19.1.The Honouring Theatre Festival of indigenous plays presents three plays, Sun 22 Jun 08 – Fri 27 Jun 08, at TelstraClear Pacific Events Centre, Manukau. Honouring Theatre provides a unique opportunity for New Zealand audiences to engage in indigenous issues through story-telling. It is also an opportunity to present high-quality New Zealand work alongside some of the best theatre in the world.
2.The Threepenny Opera: Silo Theatre combines with The Large Group for their second production of 2008 with a cast of 27, Fri 30 May 08 – Sat 21 Jun 08, at Auckland’s Maidment Theatre. Admission from $50-$20, plus booking fees.
3.The Auckland Theatre Company presents Blackbird, by David Harrower. Thu 04 Sep 08 – Sat 27 Sep 08, on Thu, Fri, 8:00pm; Thu 04 Sep 08 – Sat 27 Sep 08, on Tue, Wed, 6:30pm; Mon 08 Sep 08, 6:30pm; Sun 14 Sep 08, 4:00pm; Sun 21 Sep 08, 4:00pm. Maidment Theatre. Adults: from $54 – $49, Seniors: from $49 – $45, Concession $35 – $30 plus booking fees.
4.Auckland Theatre Company presents The Female Of The Species, by Germaine Greer. Thu 01 May 08 – Sat 24 May 08, on Thu, Fri, Sat, 8:00pm; Thu 01 May 08 – Sat 24 May 08, on Tue, Wed, 6:30pm; Mon 05 May 08, 6:30pm; Sun 11 May 08, 4:00pm; Sat 17 May 08, 2:00pm; Sun 18 May 08, 4:00pm. Maidment Theatre. Adults: from $54 – $49, Seniors: from $49 – $45, Concession: from $35 – $30.
5.University of Auckland’s Stage2 Productions present Suburbia, by Eric Bogosian. Wed 21 May 08 – Sat 31 May 08, on Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, 8:00pm; Wed 21 May 08 – Sat 31 May 08, on Sun, 6:30pm. Maidment Theatre. $18 Waged, $15 unwaged.
6.Niu Sila, Kightley and Armstrong comedy. Sat 10 May 08, 8:00pm; Wed 14 May 08 – Sat 17 May 08, every day, 8:00pm; Sat 17 May 08, 2:00pm; Wed 21 May 08 – Sat 24 May 08, every day, 8:00pm. Glen Eden Playhouse Theatre. Adults $22, Students/seniors $18 plus booking fees.
7.Les Miserables. Sat 03 May 08 – Sat 24 May 08, on Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, 8:00pm; Sat 03 May 08 – Sat 24 May 08, on Sun, 2:00pm. Hawkins Theatre, Papakura. Adult $39, Child $32, Senior $32.
8.Auckland Theatre Company present Who Needs Sleep Anyway? by Roger and Pip Hall. Thu 05 Jun 08 – Sat 28 Jun 08, on Mon, Tue, Wed, 6:30pm; Thu 05 Jun 08 – Sat 28 Jun 08, on Thu, Fri, Sat, 8:00pm; Thu 05 Jun 08 – Sat 28 Jun 08, on Sun, 4:00pm; Sat 21 Jun 08, 2:00pm; Thu 26 Jun 08, 11:00am. SkyCity Theatre. $40 – $30.
9.The Edge presents Steven Berkoff in One Man, as part of its International Arts Season. Fri 17 Oct 08 – Sat 18 Oct 08, every day, 8:00pm – 9:30pm. ASB Theatre. $69, concession $65, groups 8+ $59.
10.Auckland City Council presents Stephen Bain’s My Heart is a Beast. Wed 07 May 08 – Sat 24 May 08, every day, All day event. Various locations, K’Rd. & CBD. Free.
11.Auckland Theatre Company presents Ship Songs, actor/writer Ian Hughes’ homage to his parents. Fri 12 Sep 08 – Sun 14 Sep 08, on Fri, Sat, 8:00pm; Fri 12 Sep 08 – Sun 14 Sep 08, on Sun, 4:00pm. Glen Eden Playhouse Theatre. $49-$30. Wed 06 Aug 08 – Thu 07 Aug 08, every day, 6:30pm; Fri 08 Aug 08 – Sat 09 Aug 08, every day, 8:00pm; Fri 08 Aug 08, 11:00am; Sat 09 Aug 08, 2:00pm; Sun 10 Aug 08, 4:00pm. The Pumphouse, Takapuna. $40 – $30. Wed 17 Sep 08 – Sun 21 Sep 08, on Thu, Fri, Sat, 8:00pm; Wed 17 Sep 08 – Sun 21 Sep 08, on Wed, 6:30pm; Wed 17 Sep 08 – Sun 21 Sep 08, on Sun, 4:00pm; Thu 18 Sep 08, 11:00am; Sat 20 Sep 08, 2:00pm. Howick Little Theatre. $49 – $30. Thu 14 Aug 08 – Sun 07 Sep 08, on Thu, Fri, Sat, 8:00pm; Thu 14 Aug 08 – Sun 07 Sep 08, on Mon, Tue, Wed, 6:30pm; Thu 14 Aug 08 – Sun 07 Sep 08, on Tue, Sun, 4:00pm; Sat 23 Aug 08, 2:00pm. Herald Theatre. $54 – $30.
12.The Auckland Playwrights Collective presents Read Raw, rehearsed readings of the latest work from Auckland’s emerging playwrights. Mon 21 Apr 08 – Mon 20 Oct 08, on the 3rd Monday of every month, 7:00pm. Herald Theatre. Free.
13.Comedy at The Classic: May 19 – May 24. $10 – $20. May 26-31. $10 – $20.
14.The NBR New Zealand Opera presents the Genesis Energy Spring Season of Janáček’s Jenůfa. Sat 20 Sep 08, 7:30pm; Tue 23 Sep 08, 6:30pm; Thu 25 Sep 08, 7:30pm; Sat 27 Sep 08, 7:30pm. ASB Theatre. $159.50; $124.50; $99.50; $84.50; $69.50; $49.50.
La Boheme, Phantom of the Opera and Cinderella on Ice were left out. Not because they are not competing for the same change in the same pockets, they are. But that they are is already exactly what’s wrong with the picture above as it stands, without adding these three shows.
www.nzlive.com as the source for this sampling of what’s available in the performing arts to audiences in Auckland was recommended by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage.
There are several points of interest. Firstly, Auckland Theatre Company dominates, with three productions, including Ian Hughes’s tour of Auckland’s satellite theatres; secondly, the domination of the Maidment Theatre as the preferred venue, a product of the removal of the Silo from the picture, and an aspect of the broader issue of theatre’s identification with the building rather than the art-form; that is, nothing sticks out as being specifically theatre: whether it’s Stephen Bain’s free Council dance on K’Rd. or Berkoff’s return in his one man show, called, with trenchant let’s-just-get-the-f**king-job-done style, One Man, there appears to me to be very little differentiating the shows on offer; thirdly, price-structure: it seems that the key variable determining whether or not and how much one pays is snobbery, Eric Bogosian over “Auckland’s emerging playwrights,” CBD over Howick Little, the opera over Dreigroschenoper.
