Seven days left to fire up on the best of NZ theatre at Fuel Festival 2010

The Butler - “In a word: Magnificent” – Waikato Times

Fuel Festival 2010 is well underway and we’ve already seen two top plays come through the theatres – The Butler and Le Sud were both well received, and we’re now into day five of the 11-day celebration of NZ theatre.
 

The most intimate theatre you will ever experience has also opened at Patrick’s Hairdressing Salon. SALON sold out at Taupo’s ‘Erupt’ Festival and is performed twice each day of the festival as audiences follow the stories of five characters – Hugh, Jimmy, Skarlette, Anne and Kate.

SALON is the second in a series of theatre pieces created by Site-Specific Theatre. The first, HOTEL, was set in a hotel room and the next in the series will be titled Undertaker.

Director Paul McLaughlin says he’s inspired by the everyday theatre of life. “There's theatre happening every day around you.” He adds that while people come along to SALON out of curiosity “hopefully they go away with a sense of experiencing theatre rather than watching some theatre."

“It is impossible to watch this and not care – this is how theatre should be.” – Waikato Times

SALON continues nightly until 4 July.

Opening tonight at Waikato University’s Telecom Playhouse is the rollicking play with music, Ship Songs. Written and performed by Ian Hughes (Bare, Shortland Street), the Hamilton season is only the second time the play has featured live performance with acclaimed New Zealand musician Don McGlashan and band members Chris O’Connor and Dave Khan.

This is one of those magical pieces of theatre where truth is sometimes stranger than fiction – at its heart is the remarkable true story of how Ian’s parents met and fell in love, merged together with epic tales of the sea, roguish folklore and rousing sea shanties.

Beautifully performed with superb animation, Ship Songs will leave you smiling and believing in the magic of life.

“Spellbinding ... beautiful .... funny ... moving and heart-warming” – Theatreview

And for the children – The Bubbles and Mustard Show opens tomorrow at Clarence St Theatre. Set in Maximillion Studios, home of the wackiest radio show in the world, it’s an hilarious and unpredictable adventure for children aged 2-12 years.
 

Later in the week we have more circus feats in Ooh Baby Baby, chilling tales with Hamil Town of Horrors, a searing love story and alternative energy in Heat and teen angst on a classic roadtrip in the beautifully-scripted The Intricate Art of Actually Caring.  

Fire up your winter and get your tickets for Fuel Festival 2010 now. Book at Ticketek outlets or by phoning 0800 TICKETEK (842 538) or at www.ticketek.co.nz

For full details of the programme, visit www.fuelfest.co.nz