Shows
The chosen one
Do Star Wars and Star Trek have beef? They do now, thanks to the latest Caburlesque show that will see a lineup of stars perform burlesque, pole, cabaret, and belly dance acts to determine the top wookie of space travel at The Fringe Bar on the 7th of February.
William who?
Stagecraft opens its 2026 season with a production about one of the greatest playwrights of all time – and how we nearly didn’t know him at all. Catch The Book of Will at Gryphon Theatre from the 4th to the 14th of February.
Spinster
At The Fringe Bar on the 30th and 31st of January, Christchurch-based comedian Snap explores his newfound self-determined status of spinster.
Help save Christmas!
‘Twas A Spell Before Christmas, when all through the house, all the wee elves were stirring… for a pantomime blast! The Pantoloons bring their Christmas show to Greater Welly this silly season.
A quirky take on a classic
Go, Go, Go Joseph to Gryphon Theatre for 1st Gear Productions’ Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, starring a cast of eight young performers from the 17th to the 20th of December.
Ranting, raving, and ROFL-ing
Comedian James Nokise is coming to Wellington’s Fringe Bar on the 28th of November with One Night Rant, a show that rips into the news cycle while mixing big laughs with bite-sized truths.
Home, I’m Darling
Catch the thought-provoking Home, I’m Darling, Greytown Little Theatre’s first production in the newly renovated Studio 73, from the 19th to the 29th of November.
Afternoon Tease
Edible delicacies with a generous helping of delicious burlesque? C’est bon(bon)! The Pinot Sisters are bringing an afternoon tea with a twist to The Fringe Bar on Saturday the 8th of November at 2pm.
Music
A record of reinvention
Wednesday the 11th of February is the day you’ll need to brace for when American rock band A Place to Bury Strangers detonates their explosive new album Synthesizer at Meow.
Two tickets to Wheatus, baby
25 years on from the release of colossal hit Teenage Dirtbag, we catch up with Wheatus as they gear up to make their Aotearoa debut.
Two GOATs, one night
After Down With the System delivers an epic lineup of System of a Down’s best and most beloved tracks, Insecure Delusion will rip through Tool’s rapturous catalogue at San Fran on the 16th of January.
Thunderstorms and margaritas
Throwing Muses, one of the most acclaimed alternative rock bands of the 90s, will play San Fran on the 9th of December. We catch up with founding member and frontwoman Kristin Hersh about their new album Moonlight Concessions and more.
Heavier than ever
With their new EP I Think Therefore I Am Exploited, Wellington band Melondrone sought to create something “wild, hypnotic, and heavy”. Catch the release tour at Moon on the 22nd of November.
Seaside sound scientists
Cartoon hip-hop and dance band Seaside Sloths will drop lunar licks and interstellar basslines heavy enough to shake the craters of the Moon (Bar) on the 14th of November in One Giant Leap for Slothkind.
Close, but…
NO CIGAR will make waves with their third album Under The Surface at Meow Nui on the 7th of November. Don’t come close to missing the magnetic gig.
Smashing songs from Sloth
30 years since releasing their debut album Sloth, Christchurch rock quintet Pumpkinhead will reunite for a “never to be repeated” tour that hits Meow on the 10th of October.
Movies
Wellington Silver Screeners: Matthew Mawkes
With a journey full of ups and downs, Matthew tells Alessia about his past and his future in film, as well as his newest Wellington-made film Blind Panic.
Wellington Silver Screeners: Jason Stutter
With Warren’s Vortex currently streaming on TVNZ, co-director Jason Stutter and I embark on a journey through the past, present, and future of how he made his dream of becoming a filmmaker a reality.
Wellington Silver Screeners: Emma Duncan and Ashlee Stevens
Emerging filmmakers Emma Duncan and Ashlee Stevens’ short documentary Home by Three Kea Pictures follows Teiti Nepia, a mana wahine who reclaims her autonomy by living on public land when she becomes priced out of Wellington’s rental market.
20 years of Show Me Shorts
Show Me Shorts explores with creative storytelling as part of their 20th anniversary festival, taking place at Light House Cuba between the 10th and 15th of October.
Frantic filmmaking fun
In a feat of furious filmmaking, 173 Wellington teams brought stories to life over just one weekend during the Vista Foundation 48Hours. See the Regional Finals and the Grand Finals on the big screen at Embassy Theatre on the 18th of September and the 25th of October respectively.
Wellington Silver Screeners: Ross Payne
Having recently brought to life The Nukes’ music video for their new song Max the Musical Mosquito, Wellington-based creative Ross Payne talks to us about all things animation.
Silver screen sorcery
For 10 days in August, the world comes to Wellington as part of Whānau Mārama: New Zealand International Film Festival. Catch films from around the globe and right here in Aotearoa between the 14th and 24th.
Wellington Silver Screeners: Verity Mackintosh
As new Kiwi film Kōkā takes New Zealand cinemas and festivals by storm, I sat down with producer Verity Mackintosh to get the inside scoop.
Art
Searching and painting
Acclaimed Vietnamese artist Đặng Mậu Tựu explores memory, identity, and belonging while offering an intimate perspective on living between Vietnam and Aotearoa in Những Miền Đất Nhớ | Lands We Remember, an exhibition at Te Whare Manaaki o Toda until the 7th of February.
Remembrance and resistance
Whai Wahi reopens at Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery on the 20th of January until the 29th of March to explore works from the 1970s to present day that articulate expressions of mana motuhake, dissent, and an enduring will to engage in critical dialogue about our shared colonial past.
Stitching stories
From the 7th of December until the 8th of March, Tīpurepure ‘Au Vaine will transform the gallery at Pātaka Art + Museum into a living, breathing space where communal making collides with a rotating display of tīvaivai or traditional Polynesian quilts.
Shared futures
New Zealand Portrait Gallery Te Pukenga Whakaata’s exhibition Reclaimed Land: Tāngata, Tiriti, Taiao brings together bold new artworks that explore deep and enduring connections between people and the land until the 8th of February.
Expanding the boundaries
GLASS, at James Blackie until the 22nd of November, redefines the material in the context of fine art and reframes it as a medium capable of profound storytelling.
Botanicals and beyond
Spring has spring, and artworks of all kinds and colours have blossomed in Wellington Cathedral of St Paul. The New Zealand Academy of Fine Art’s (NZAFA) Spring Exhibition blooms until the 9th of November.
Flecks of life
Holdfast, an exhibition from Kate Stevens West (Kāi Tahu, Pākehā) at Bowen Galleries until the 18th of October, channels the tension between holding on and drifting free.
Tiny universes
Pōneke-based Japanese artist Yae Takahashi presents her solo exhibition The Art of OTOGI at Thistle Hall from the 23rd to the 28th of September to explore the stories of everyday life.
Events
Love Actually
This Christmas season, fill your cup at Love Actually in Concert, where you can catch the timeless classic on the big screen at Michael Fowler Centre accompanied by a live orchestra on the 20th of December.
Star-studded skirmish
Following three heats of jaw-dropping outfits and show-stopping spectacles, the Rising Star finale at Ivy Bar & Cabaret on the 29th of November guarantees fierce competition for the crown.
Do you like piña coladas?
Make genuine face-to-face connections at Sapphic Speed Dating Dinner Party and enjoy a four-course meal while Pōneke performer Ginger Velour jumps on the mic.
All things bird
Come one, come all to Explore Omnibirding with Giselle Clarkson, where the author and illustrator will guide readers through the inner workings of her new book and the wonders of the avian world at Tawa Library on the 3rd of October.
Embrace the chaos
Eyegum Music Collective’s multi-venue music and arts festival Great Sounds Great will take over Cuba Street Precinct on the 6th of September. We get the sneak peek from co-curator Ben Jones.
Hard hills and high fives
Brad Coleman created the Tip Track Marathon in 2017 as a joke that is still going even though no one is laughing. The ninth edition of ‘Wellington’s least favourite trail running event’ takes place on the 6th of September.
Bookmark this!
The inaugural Bookmark Kāpiti – an exciting and diverse festival of 25 events celebrating local people, stories, and places – will be held up and down the spine of the coast on the 9th and 10th of August.
Hear ye, hear ye
Huzzah, fellow reveller! Joust and jest at Sweet Axe Throwing Co’s Medieval Fight Night on the 26th of June, where trained warriors clad in gleaming medieval armour unleash flying axes and clashing swords.
Personalities
A Few More Slices of Heaven
Whether you’ve seen him tearing up stages across Aotearoa with his band DARTZ or you get his YeeHawTheBoys comics delivered straight to your inbox, Daniel Vernon (Ngāti Kahungunu ki Te Wairoa) is a creative force who is thrilled to have just released his new book A Few More Slices of Heaven.
Keep curious
We talk to science communicator, homeopath, and first-time author Vanessa Young about her debut, The Reluctant Homeopath: An unexpected science story.
Cue the confetti!
We round up the year that’s been and look forward to the next 250 issues. Merry Christmas from us to you!
The artistry of public bathrooms
Recently becoming the inaugural recipient of the $40,000 Fair Trust Art Prize, Wellington creative Emily Hartley-Skudder will present an immersive installation that examines everyday objects, gendered spaces, nostalgia, and Palmerston North’s Ladies Rest at Te Manawa Museum.
Counter-culture connoisseur
An ode to Aotearoa and the people who call it home, An Eccentric History in Batik by Wellington creative powerhouse Dinah Priestley also serves as her legacy.
Laughing is enough
Comedy superstar John Bishop catches up with Regional News about his Aotearoa tour, which reaches Michael Fowler Centre on the 23rd of November in celebration of 25 years in the biz.
A continuation and a new beginning
Brian Wood says it felt incredibly special to return to the role of director at New Zealand Portrait Gallery Te Pūkenga Whakaata this year. We chat about his future plans for one of the nation’s most preeminent creative spaces.
Confluence and collision
Marc Feldman’s illustrious orchestral career has spanned four decades in some of “the most stunningly gorgeous places in the world”. Now living in Wellington, we caught up with the new chief executive of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.