Love Actually _{by Alessia Belsito-Riera}

Whenever you get gloomy with the state of the world, think about the arrivals gate at Wellington Airport. General opinion’s starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don’t see that.

Wellington is proof of that. Bursting with joy, creativity, and life, aroha is all over in our little corner of the world. With the Christmas season just around the corner, families reuniting, and friends coming together, that love is due to increase tenfold.

There is no better way to get into the Christmas spirit than by watching your favourite holiday movie. Love Actually in Concert brings Richard Curtis’ beloved festive rom com to the big screen at the Michael Fowler Centre on the 20^th of December accompanied by a full orchestra.

Performing Craig Armstrong’s score live, the orchestra brings the 10 intertwined stories to life anew, inspiring audiences to feel “hopeful and happy and inspired to have a wonderful and possibly messy Christmas”, producer Phil Bathols says.

“Scenes like Hugh Grant dancing through 10 Downing Street, Thomas Brodie-Sangster racing through Heathrow Airport, and Andrew Lincoln presenting cue cards to Keira Knightley are timeless. The film never pretends that love is simple but that is worth fighting for. It balances heartbreak with hope and captures Christmas magic without being cheesy.”  

It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it’s not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it’s always there... If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.