Cat in Hat rides to rescue of theatre
One of Hamilton’s rising stars of the theatre world will star in and direct an adaptation of the much-loved children’s book
which will be staged in his home town tomorrow.
Nick Wilkinson will play the titular Cat, who intrudes on the life of a brother and sister who are being babysat for the day by their pet goldfish.
The surreal scenario is derived from the 200-word masterpiece written and illustrated by Theodor Geisel under the pen name Dr Suess in 1957 and this production, which has toured New Zealand and Australia extensively.
This new tour – which begins a two-week, 14-city school holiday run at the Clarence St Theatre with three performances tomorrow – features sets and costumes based on many of the outlandish designs Geisel included in his book. The sets were shipped from Australia to New Zealand during the lockdown, which was a calculated gamble by the production company Showcase Entertainment Group, in the hope they would be able to tour the show during the July school holidays. The gamble paid off, and the six-strong cast headed by Wilkinson will launch the tour in Hamilton.
Wilkinson is a familiar face to the city’s theatre-goers, and has directed and starred in productions of
and
The show will be staged three times tomorrow, 10.30am, 1pm, and 3.30pm. Tickets are available through Ticketek. The show will tour Napier, Wellington, Timaru, Dunedin, Invercargill, Christchurch, Nelson, Palmerston North, Whanganui, New Plymouth, Tauranga, Auckland and Whangarei.