Shows
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.