A theatrical take on the navy
Two plays about the Royal New Zealand Navy present its long history in a light-hearted way as part of its 75th birthday celebrations.
The Complete History of the Royal New Zealand Navy (Abridged) tells the story from Captain Cook to the present day, while an accompanying children’s pantomime, Commander Claire and Pirates of Provence weaves a tale around an imagined pirate attack on the Interislander ferry.
Kiwi entertainer and former navy man Mark Hadlow is directing the plays and said they are ‘‘not just informative, but fun’’.
‘‘Being involved with the Navy since leaving school I know how important it is to tell the story of the proud history of the Royal New Zealand Navy. The challenge was to engage the New Zealand public in realising how important the Navy is.’’
Written by Gregory Cooper, who also acts in The Complete History, the adult show also gets political over which New Zealand flag should be flying from Achilles. Cooper describes the play as a ‘‘fast-paced rollercoaster ride through 75 years, with song and dance with everything in between’’.
‘‘You have to hit that fine balance between education and entertainment. People could know very little about the navy, so we want them to come away thinking, ‘wow, I didn’t know that’. But also you don’t want to turn it into a lecture.’’
Cooper and Hadlow have worked together before on Hadlow’s one-man show MAMIL and have known each other for more than 20 years.
‘‘We got together about a year ago for this, when Mark got the green light. We understand each other’s sense of humour.’’
Cooper said the plays are full of comedy but there are quiet moments too – in The Complete History the crew correctly fold the naval ensign in respect to the fallen.
‘‘There has to be those moments of great stillness and reverence. We’re dealing with tragic losses of life.’’
The Complete History of the Royal New Zealand Navy (Abridged) will be performed at Palmerston North’s Speirs Centre from September 1-3 at 7pm and Commander Claire and Pirates of Provence will run from August 31 to September 2 at 11am and 1pm. All proceeds from the plays will go to local charities.