Must- see festival shows
Auckland Arts Festival announces its full 2018 programme on Tuesday, but a number of shows have already been revealed including six also playing at the International Festival in Wellington. So far, our picks for top nights out are:
Family friendly
We’ve had circuses from Canada and Australia, home- grown ones and European cirque artists but never one from Vietnam. The 15 acrobats from Nouveau Cirque du Vietnam depict life in villages and cities in a country changing rapidly. St James, Wellington Mar 8- 11; The Civic, Auckland Mar 14- 18.
Date night
Jazz singer Cecile McLorin Salvant was dubbed a “bright new star” by Wynton Marsalis and invited to perform alongside him at New York’s The Lincoln Centre. Michael Fowler Centre, Mar 13 and Auckland Town Hall, Mar 15.
Get a group together
It’s got to be The Naked Samoans Do Magic, but watch this space — there’s more to come next week which could make for tough decisions about what to see.
Dance lovers
It’ll be quite something to see a cast of up to 40 performers on stage at one time in Giselle, choreographed by dance world superstar Akram Khan — but how Czech choreographer Jiri Bubenicek transforms NZ film The Piano into a full length ballet also intrigues. Giselle Aotea Centre, Mar 1- 4; The Piano- The Ballet, Aotea Centre, Mar 8- 110.
NZ history re- told
NZ choreographer Michael Parmenter is back for the first time in 10 years with a large- scale work which tells the story behind the 1863 wreck of the Orpheus, our worst maritime disaster. It stars the NZ Dance Company, Latitude 37 baroque ensemble and US tenor Aaron Sheehan. The Civic, Mar 9- 11 and Opera House, Wellington, Mar 16- 17.
Take your parents
NZ Opera’s first show for 2018 has intergenerational appeal. Part opera, part musical, Candide is Voltaire’s satirical tale with a Bernstein score and will see the APO draw on everything from European operetta to Latin American dance rhythms.
Something different
It’s entertainment for those who like a helping of provocation. George Orwell’s terrifying masterpiece 1984 has been adapted for stage by a UK/ Australian theatre- making partnership and runs for the duration of the festival.