Arts and culture in Ōtautahi Christchurch
Nick Harte reviews Lumen Ensemble: Colours of Time, with works by Holly Harrison, Maurice Ravel and Olivier Messiaen presented by Christopher's Classics at The Piano / Pīpīwharauroa: Kui-kui whitiwhiti ora, Friday 17 April 2026. The Lumen Ensemble’s clarinetist Lloyd Van’t Hoff proudly proclaimed that his favourite thing about Christchurch is PAK’nSAVE, which was not the… Continue reading Review: Lumen Ensemble’s Colours of Time – luminescence and catastrophe make for a revelatory combination
Ruth Agnew reviews The Addams Family, book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa, backed on characters created by Charles Addams, directed by Claire Clark and Phil Deadn, musical direction by Caelan Thomas, choreography by Catherine McHaffie, at CentreStage Rolleston, Wednesday 15 April 2026. CentreStage Rolleston has wholly embraced The… Continue reading Review: The Addams Family – ghoulishly good community theatre
Erin Harrrington reviews Skate or Die, written by Millie Hanford, directed by Grace von Huben, produced by Pretty Little Sweethearts, at Little Andromeda, Thursday 16 April 2026. One of the funniest things I have ever overheard happened about twenty years ago, while I was having a lunchtime cigarette (regrets) at the Hack Circle in Cashel… Continue reading Review: Skate or Die – a hilarious new comedy about thrashing the patriarchy, one trick at a time
Breeze Robertson reviews Macbeth, presented by the Royal New Zealand Ballet, choreographed by Alice Topp, with music by Christopher Gordon, at the Isaac Theatre Royal, Wednesday 18 March 2026. Bravo RNZB, Macbeth the contemporary ballet was a courageous concept, brilliantly executed. With social media influencers instead of witches, boardroom politics instead of royal intrigues, and… Continue reading Review: Macbeth – courageous, contemporary, and the future of ballet
Charlotte Thornton reviews Volcano: A Science Comedy Show, performed by Ben Miller, at Little Andromeda, Friday 27 March 2026. For most of us, science lessons end in adolescence. We get through the rest of our years with a few periodic table elements memorised, a bit of practical knowledge about the weather, and a firm opinion… Continue reading Review: Volcano: A Science Comedy Show – eruptions of laughter (and other such jokes)
Erin Harrington reviews Selene, written and created by Alexander Wright and Phil Clive Grainger for Wright&Grainger, made with and told by Megan Drury, in association Theatre@41 Monkgate, with tour assistance from A Mulled Whine Productions, at Little Andromeda, Tuesday 24 March 2026. There are different ways to have a moving and intense theatrical encounter. Sometimes… Continue reading Review: Selene – intense, intimate storytelling balancing darkness and light
Roving FCFN reporter John Armstrong heads south and reflects on some highlights from the Dunedin Fringe Festival, which ran from 12 - 22 March 2026. Dunedin Fringe has sadly come to an end. Yesterday marked the end of an incredible eleven days of stand-up, theatre, sketch comedy and live music, with morethan ninety shows all… Continue reading Wrap up: Dunedin Fringe is a chaotic and ambitious festival with incredible DIY energy
Charlotte Thornton reviews Motion Sickness, presented by a2 Company, at Little Andromeda, Friday 20 March 2026. Aussie-New Zealand production house a2 Company can’t help but blow us away. When I reviewed their multi-award-winning Running Into the Sun for Bad Apple back in September, I said that show had “an apocalyptic vibe because the world has… Continue reading Review: Motion Sickness – the nightclub at the end of the world
Steph Walker reviews the first night of Electric Bodies, presented by Performance Art Week Aotearoa and TINYFEST, at the Cloiters Studio, Te Matatiki Toi Ora The Arts Centre, Friday 13 March 2026. Performance Art is one of those forms that a lot of people haven’t actually seen, but probably have a view on. Like contemporary… Continue reading Review: Electric Bodies – eclectic performance works exploring body and sound
Erin Harrington reviews Feeling Afraid as if Something Terrible is Going to Happen, written by Marcelo Dos Santos, directed by Tim Bain, at the Court Theatre, Saturday 14 March 2026. The one-man show Feeling Afraid as if Something Terrible is Going to Happen is a one act black comedy framed as a stand-up set that’s… Continue reading Review: Feeling Afraid as if Something Terrible is Going to Happen – self-loathing, vulnerability, and debasement, but for laughs
Flat City Field Notes 