Shows
Sequins on a shoestring
Can you do fabulous on a budget? Sequins on a shoestring? Diamonds at a discount? On the 3rd of June, the Great DIY BurlesKiwi will prove that yes, you can.
Down and birdy
Pōneke’s drag kings are looking to spread their wings and ruffle some tailfeathers in Peacocking – Thee Opulent Drag King Show at Ivy Bar and Cabaret.
What dreams may come
What does La Soupco mean? We don’t know, and neither does playwright and performer Abby Howells. What we do know is that you mustn’t miss this epic WWII romance written by an 11-year-old Abby.
A pirate’s life for me
Hoist the mainsail and scuttle the jib, Wellington Comic Opera is sailing through Wellington, Raumati, and Hutt Valley with their production of Pirates!
Fiercely fruitalicious
If you’re an ASMR-lover or just ASMR-curious, Amy Atkins is about to create it live on stage. Catch the Wellington premiere of RAW! ASMR at BATS Theatre from the 26th to the 29th of April.
Behind the sequins
Go behind the sequined curtain with RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under star Anita Wigl’it as she makes her Circa Theatre debut in Funny Gurl! this April.
Hell is for the comedians
Knock, knock. Who’s there? Well, hell of course! Welcome to our fiery abode, where 15 comedians are commanded to deliver three-minutes of fresh content for our entertainment. Muahahaha.
Heartbreak and healing
World-renowned poet Rupi Kaur will take the Opera House stage on the 23rd of March for an all-new spoken word poetry experience.
Broadway! Bellies! Bums!
Celia Macdonald is bringing A Fat Girl’s Cry, a curvaceous celebration of body positive diversity, to BATS Theatre this month.
Cheek, charm, chaos
Moonroe’s Happy Hour puts Kath & Kim, Country Calendar, and old-world Hollywood film stars through a blender of burlesque, circus, and cabaret this NZ Fringe Festival.
Water world
Footnote New Zealand Dance has partnered with Canada’s MascallDance to create a movement-based narrative exploring water’s role in our lives and in a world threatened by a climate crisis.
Practice, polish, and package
The first annual Drag Performer of the Year competition is coming in smokin’ hot. Death drops, stilettos, hourglass silhouettes, and more – this event showcases the best of the best of Pōneke’s drag scene.
How wonderful
This New Zealand Fringe Festival, Lady Hermione and her loyal butler Roberts fall head-first into the decadence of the roaring 20s in the cracking ‘drawing room’ comedy Wonderful.
A Schoenberg strudel
Convinced that today he will die, composer Arnold Schoenberg takes to his bed and reminisces on his life, losses, and loves in Circa Theatre’s newest production In Bed with Schoenberg.
Making her way to pride
In her tell-all stand-up comedy hour Lesbihonest, Canadian artist Laura Piccinin recounts a lifetime of coming out stories this New Zealand Fringe Festival.
The question of our time
Summer Shakespeare returns in February with an eco-ethical production of The Tempest, directed by Megan Evans.
Get your sparkle on
Billy Idol and SpongeBob SquarePants, bedazzled cowboys and chair-throwing antics… It’s all happening in Caburlesque: Rock & Rhinestones this February.
Love in the time of comedy
Comedy duo Patch and Fitz present two Valentine’s Day-themed shows at Hashigo Zake in preparation for their upcoming comedy taping.
Can fun save the world?
Fly to the future with The Birdmann and Egg in Birdhouse at Circa Theatre this summer.
We’re all doomed
UK comedy juggernaut Daniel Howell is bringing his brand-new live show We’re All Doomed to the Michael Fowler Centre on the 26th of January.
Terribly Funny
We talked to Jimmy Carr about his prolific career in comedy and what Wellingtonians can expect when he brings his new show Terribly Funny to our shores in January.
Milking the joke
The latest iteration of MILK arrives with a festive twist: A Milkmas Carol. Don’t miss this bonkers improvised Christmas extravaganza.
Edge-of-your-seat circus
The bizarre, the brilliant, and the hilarious will collide on stage as New Zealand’s surreal sketch circus trio, Laser Kiwi, brings their beloved variety show IDIOM to Te Auaha.
Guy Williams is moving his car
Kiwi comedian Guy Williams needs to move his car from Nelson to Auckland this month. What worse reason to book a national comedy tour?
A painting of a book unfolds
Red Leap Theatre is bringing Janet Frame’s landmark novel Owls Do Cry to the Circa Theatre stage from the 3rd to the 13th of November.
Old friends and sticky floors
The Wellington Comedy Club makes its return to San Fran, presenting some of New Zealand’s favourite comics including Billy T Award-winner Ben Hurley.
The spontaneity of stand-up
Catch award-winning comedian, actor, writer, and presenter Pax Assadi on the first nationwide tour of his new stand-up show Handsome Boy.
A sort of soft carnage
New Zealand actor and comedian Brynley Stent is bringing her sold-out, critically acclaimed solo sketch comedy show Soft Carnage to Wellington from the 11th to the 15th of October.
A comedy charcuterie board
Hayley Sproull describes the Best Foods Comedy Gala as a comedy charcuterie board. “If you don't like the pickles, don’t worry there’s plenty of salami. I like to think of myself as the quince paste.”
Busy on Wednesday?
Comedian Ryan McGhee is launching his brand-new weekly comedy show, The Comedy Attic, the first professional midweek comedy gig in the capital.
Guess who’s back
Award-winning Kiwi comedian Cori Gonzalez-Macuer is returning to San Fran for one night this August, the iconic venue where his celebrated 20-year career began.
The making of one’s self
From wild and earnest documentary to intimate live show, Man Lessons follows Adam Rohe’s life and gender transition in a multimedia experience at BATS Theatre this August.
Forcing people to laugh since ages ago
Multi-award-winning writer, MC, and comedian Nick Rado is looking forward to drinking his co-stars’ beers backstage in the next instalment of the popular Saturday Laughs series.
And the olive keeps rising
Fresh from their turn on TVNZ’s 60 Seconds, sketch-circus trio Laser Kiwi will celebrate the humble olive at Te Auaha from the 30th of June until the 2nd of July.
Sainsbury’s sassy satires
Wellington Paranormal and Snack Masters NZ star Tom Sainsbury will deliver his hilarious Snapchat parodies of New Zilunders to The Opera House and Te Raukura ki Kāpiti this May and June.
A blessing in the skies
Everyone’s favourite aunty from Bulls, one Ms Pamela Hancock, will start spreadin’ the news about the city that never sleeps in Pam’s Big Apple this Eat Drink Play festival.
Shameless comedy
Comedy fans are in for a treat when Samantha Hannah and Daniel John Smith take over Fringe Bar for another Friday Laughs. The two award-winning comedians will be joined by local talent as they look to treat audiences to a Friday night they will never forget.
A sparkly Easter fever dream
How do Easter and drag go together? Bunny Holiday reckons they kind of don’t, which is kind of great. Catch a diamante-studded line-up of drag talent in the Bunny and Her Honeys Easter Show.
A dance of wild abandonment
Award-winning contemporary performance company House of Sand brings Undoing, a visual spectacular of limbs, passion, and theatricality, to BATS Theatre this April.
With Dan Brader, nobody is safe!
Seasoned comedy veteran Dan Brader is known for his morally questionable storytelling and wild and hilarious personal stories. Expect this Kiwi-born comedian to have a go at you during his upcoming show at Moon Bar.
Secrets run in the family
Charlotte Brontë wrote one of the world’s greatest love stories, Jane Eyre. But how could an unmarried woman living in a secluded parsonage spin such a tale? On at BATS Theatre this month, Miss Brontë asks all this and more.
If a fruit bowl had a Mardi Gras
RAW! ASMR will see creator Amy Atkins perform comedic live ASMR with a focus on fresh food and eating this New Zealand Fringe Festival.
Pull up a chair
Eric is definitely not part of a pyramid scheme but he does need to sell you some chairs this New Zealand Fringe Festival.
A golden hour of crispy comedy
Jack Caldwell, Thomas Chapman, and Jaye Xu (who describe themselves as a nerd, a jerk, and a genuinely nice person) will perform Shoestrings at The Cavern Club on the 4th of February.
CHOP SHOP takes a side-step from stand-up
Meet The Birdmann and Egg, internationally infamous comic legends whose latest offering, CHOP SHOP, opens at The Fringe Bar on the 12th of December.
Green is the new black
In 1985, the world wakes to the discovery of the ozone hole over Antarctica… Lynda Chanwai-Earle’s eco-powered black comedy HOLE will have its world premiere at Circa Theatre this month.
Our secret wants and desires
Tessa Redman brings a redeveloped I’m Not Going to Lie to You to BATS Theatre, delving into female performativity, lust, and uncontrollable desire.
A whole lot of amazingness
Echolalia, a TAHI: New Zealand Festival of Solo Performance clown-theatre-dance show, puts social norms under the spotlight as a young woman on the autistic spectrum prepares for a much-needed job interview.
New troupe in town
Brand-new improv company Tiny Dog identifies with tiny dogs because they are very fashion forward and are only allowed to ride public transport if carried inside a bag, amongst other reasons.
Comedy meets cabaret meets drag
Drag queens Miss Manage, Miss Demeanour, and Miss Givings will sashay their way through a catalogue of hits at Te Auaha this July in the comedy-cabaret concert Les Femmes.
Chopper’s had enough
After a long wait, Heath Franklin’s Chopper will finally bring The Silencer, his latest stand-up show, to Wellington on the 10th of July.
Stripping nakedness to the bone
Hannah Tasker-Poland’s multidisciplinary performance work-cum-cabaret The Most Naked explores cultural mores around nudity, strip tease, and the flashing of skin.
A legend returns
Jimmy Barnes is coming back! The legendary solo artist and Cold Chisel lead vocalist comes to our shores with his new album Flesh and Blood and his eight-piece band, made up mostly of his family.
The best pies in London?
WITCH Music Theatre is bringing a dark, dank, and delicious production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street to Te Auaha from the 30th of June to the 4th of July.
A new twist on an old classic
For their first production of 2021, Wellington Footlights Society will explore the classic American 1950s musical Guys and Dolls from a modern perspective.
A charming celebration of simple pleasures
Elling, the quirky Scandinavian comedy by Simon Bent, based on the novel by Ingvar Ambjørnsen, is coming to Circa Theatre from the 26th of June to the 24th of July.
New Zealand Today: Live!
Volunteer journalist and comedian Guy Williams is touring with an infamous New Zealand icon this month. But Karen from Stokes Valley is not who she seems…
Fabulous on a budget
Now entering its seventh year, the Great DIY BurlesKiwi challenges competitors from all over the country to bring an award-winning burlesque performance to the stage for under $100.
Keep calm and carrion
Indian Ink brings the real-life mystery of India’s vanishing vultures to Te Auaha this month in Paradise or the Impermanence of Ice Cream, a brand-new play about the impermanence of life, love… and ice cream.
Tim Batt disarms us with laughs
The veteran stand-up and The Worst Idea of All Time co-host returns to the NZ International Comedy Festival with his latest hour, Classy Warfare.
Don’t ask Ray O’Leary about his dogs
We asked stand-up comedian Ray O’Leary possibly the worst question ever before his NZ International Comedy show Ray Against the Machine makes it to the stage.
Interviews with our leaders onstage at BATS
Transmission is drawn from verbatim interviews Stuart McKenzie and Miranda Harcourt conducted with epidemiologist Michael Baker, Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson, and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in the thick of COVID-19.
Chris Parker talks about himself
Comedian Chris Parker will host the next Wellington Comedy Club show. “It’s all going to be centred around me”, he says of his set. “I’m such a narcissist. So expect it to be loud, gay, and camp!”
Wellington Opera debuts
The new Wellington-based opera company looks to make its mark with Don Giovanni, playing at The Opera House from the 17th to the 24th of April.
Non-binary is the new black
James Hilary Penwarden is back in Wellington with a hot new identity and a brand-new solo Fringe show, Them Fatale.
All-woman collective of 11 artists create Wisdom of Waters
Dance between worlds with Wisdom of Waters this New Zealand Fringe Festival, a movement meditation on what weaves women together.
The Menagerie goes out with a bang
After seven years and 54 shows, Wellington’s beloved variety show will have its final hoorah at the Opera House.
The ultimate noughties party
Hey now! This 2020s-themed drag show is what dreams are made of.
Urzila Carlson tours brand-new show All the Rage
Comedian Urzila Carlson can’t remember a time when we as a people were ever this angry. Never mind the meditation and yoga… we’re mindful and mad, fit and furious!
Magic aplenty in Cinderella – The Pantomime
Playing Dame Fairy Godmother Rosie Bubble, Gavin Rutherford chats about this year’s joyful panto.
PlayShop brings Christmas cheek and charm to BATS
Meet the Turducken fa-la-la-la family with improv troupe PlayShop this silly season.
Melanie Bracewell hosts a rowdy night of comedy
Comedian Melanie Bracewell is pumped to be taking the stage for Saturday Laughs at the Garrison, “the hottest ticket in Featherston”.
Raybon Kan and Raybon will touch this in latest show
Raybon Kan first dipped his toes into stand-up in the 90s and has remained at the forefront of the New Zealand comedy scene ever since.
Full steam ahead for railway show
Kiwi musician Anthonie Tonnon will take audiences on a journey through New Zealand’s on-again off-again love affair with its passenger railway system in Rail Land.
Tim Burton films go from screen to stage in Halloween drag show
From Sweeney Todd to A Corpse Bride, this show will deliver all the iconic moments from Tim Burton’s celebrated canon this Halloween season.
Sisters share six decades of stories
Sarah and Catherine Delahunty will bring six decades of sisterhood to the BATS Theatre stage this October.