Taking the audience on an ancestral trip
John Crick from Ngatimoti went on a journey to his ancestral origins and came back with an epic tale to tell. Crick’s show, Ancestor Voices: 1300 Years O’Yarns will be performed once only at the Nelson Fringe Festival on Sunday.
‘‘My Fringe promo photo has tuatara eyeing some Norse taniwha,’’ Crick says.
‘‘Here’s the secret background: This tuatara travelled the Scottish Highlands with me, checking out the local taniwha.
‘‘Performed with me, 2001, in my family’s ancestor-village in Scotland’s north.
‘‘My folks left there in 1854, gold rush. Never went back. No stories came down. I’ve gone seeking. The Scottish pull is strong.’’
Crick’s trip to his ancestral origins offered up a treasure trove of inspiration. He has been working on the show ever since.
‘‘This is the first time she’s all come together. I reckon the ancestors there are waking, ready, cranking.’’ Crick says,
‘‘I’ll take you there to meet them, with The Legendary Wan- derer Tours.’’
In a similar vein, Takaka’s KidznTeenTheatre is putting on a show during the Nelson Fringe Festival that takes the audience back to the dawn of time. Evolution Revolution depicts our evolution according to Maori mythology.
Director Ronnie Short says the journey takes the audience into darkness and despair before finding reconnection.
‘‘ Evolution Revolution is physical theatre, shadow-play, shapeshifting, backed by soundtracks and use of choral speaking and over-voicing to weave a story rich with universal archetypes and themes,’’ Short says.
Short encouraged Evolution Revolution’s young actors towards something different, ‘‘without any of the usual norms.’’
‘‘For me, as director, I found adding the icing to the cake exciting - coming up with the monologues, the choral overlays, the music and special effects, then the addition of lighting effects and - the birth
Revolution.’’
Ancestor Voices: 1300 Years O’Yarns, John Crick, Evolution Revolution, KidznTeens Theatre, the Nelson Fringe Festival, the Refinery ArtSpace, 3 Halifax St, Saturday to May 7. Information and tickets available at: www.nelsonfringe.co.nz of Evolution