Shows
Wicked, wonderful, weird
In a cautionary tale, giants, foxes, trolls, and the obnoxious king of the land collide. Step into The Kingdom of Bling from The Rocky Horror Picture Show creator Richard O’Brien at The Opera House on the 31st of October and Te Raukura ki Kāpiti: Performing Arts Centre on the 1st of November.
Music
Movies
Aotearoa’s first ever Scandi film festival
Three Wellington cinemas are set to showcase a variety of Scandinavian films during the inaugural Volvo Scandi Film Festival. The festival’s carefully curated programme includes award-winning international festival favourites from an exciting filmmaking region.
New short film encourages connection
What would happen if a hopeful eight-year-old encountered someone who had let go of hope altogether? Screenwriter and director Hannah Marshall addresses this very question in Frankie Jean & The Morning Star, a short film premiering at the Show Me Shorts Film Festival.
Art
Playful and puzzling
Julian Hooper’s newest exhibition, which is the first of a series of installations from City Gallery Te Whare Toi that will take place within the National Library of New Zealand Te Puna o Mātauranga o Aotearoa, celebrates and interrogates the alphabet until the 16th of November.
To cultivate, care, and control
The invention of the Wardian Case meant settlers could bring plants from home to the far reaches of the globe. Exploring the impacts of this global plant movement, creatives Mark Smith and Felicity Jones present Case Studies III at Bowen Galleries until the 15th of September.
Events
Personalities
Wellington Silver Screeners: Lola McLeod-Riera and Flynn Biara Allan
Following two girls trapped in a war zone who are suddenly confronted by a film crew wanting to exploit their trauma, Tuned Out was awarded the overall winner of the 2023 New Zealand Youth Film Festival. I caught up with the filmmakers of tomorrow, Flynn Biara Allan and Lola McLeod-Riera.
How music feeds the soul
This September, Music Therapy New Zealand will celebrate their 50th anniversary with a two-day conference. We caught up with speaker and music therapist Carlos Riegelhaupt Landreani about his journey to the profession – and the intersect between music and psychedelic therapy.
Wellington Silver Screeners: Adi Parige
During the pandemic, filmmaker Adi Parige dove deep into a rabbit hole about Indians in the Antipodes. This led him to reconnecting with his birth country of Aotearoa and embarking on a journey across the Pacific to shoot his short film The Lascar along Wellington’s South Coast.
Every athlete is an artist
In 2020 Wellingtonian Zakea Page won the Winter Youth Olympic Games medal design competition and did a live painting performance at the opening ceremony. This year he is part of the judges panel, while his film about his experience is winning awards in the international festival circuit.
Getting to the heart of a culture
Judith Geare MNZM has been at the Goethe-Institut for 38 years and is currently the Leiterin der Sprachabteilung (head of the German Language Department). We caught up with the lover of languages about her passion for teaching and her time at Goethe, which will come to a close when she retires at the end of March.
Burlesque dancer seeks surgery for rare syndrome
Jayne, also known as Courtney L’amour, describes burlesque as “a sparkly, fabulous artform all about body positivity, creativity, and confidence.” In June 2018, Jayne’s world changed when she felt an intense pain in the side of her ribs during a workout.