The lineup for next year's Auckland Arts Festival keeps growing with the announcement last night of more shows joining the March 2-20 programme, ranging from Black Grace's first international dance collaboration to the "worst restaurant in the world" setting up shop in Aotea Square.
The festival will open with a night-time family event in Auckland Domain - but with a warning: "no animals or deck chairs". Compagnie Carabosse of France's Fire Garden will transform the domain into a series of "Zen fire gardens", using flaming flower pots, musicians and story-tellers to lure visitors along pathways through the trees as night closes in. Compagnie Carabosse's previous triumphs include lighting up Stonehenge for London's Cultural Olympiad, the banks of the River Thames and the gates of the Kremiln.
The event runs though three nights of the festival's opening weekend, March 4-6.
Carabosse Fire Garden. Photo / Sylvie Monier
Performers from the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Europe come together in 360 Allstars, a fast-moving athletic show themed on multiple forms of spinning and rotation, from breakdance to basketball freestyle to circus performances, with music by Gene Peterson and vocals Sam Perry; The Civic, March 17-20.
Sadler's Wells of London celebrates the Argentinian tango in ensemble piece Milonga, choreographed by Sidi Larbi and tango superstar Nelida Rodriguez de Aure accompanied by a five-piece orchestra; Aotea Centre, March 18-20.
A huge hit at last year's Singapore International Arts Festival, The Chorus: Oedipus is a Korean work that re-imagines Sophocles' tragedy using four pianos, soaring choral performances, choreography and movement. It received a 10-minute ovation in Singapore when it debuted; Q Theatre, March 17-20.
A new New Zealand drama by The Conch, Marama is wordless theatre which uses the chants, dances and waiata of the women of the Pacific region to lament the fragility of their homelands. Directed by Nina Nawalowalo, with music created by Gareth Farr; Q Theatre, March 2-6.
Marama by The Conch production comnany. Photo / John McDermott
Flemish "multi-lingual powerhouse" Valentijn Dhaenens is renowned for his vocal shapeshifting, a gift he displays in an extraordinary show called BigMouth, in which he loops, sings and speaks his way through 2500 years of oratory and personalities, ranging from Goebbels to George W. Bush to General Patton; Q Theatre, March 16-20.
Black Grace choreographer Neil Ieremia collaborates with Kuik Swee Boon of T.H.E. Dance Company of Singapore in a two-part work, Changes. Ieremia choreographs Another Letter From Earth in which he explores death, "the bringer of change, liberator from pain and suffering", while Swee Boon's Change and Constancy looks at the parallels between Singapore society and the different cultures of the Black Grace dancers. Swee Boon is the first international choreographer invited by Ieremia to work with Black Grace; SkyCity Theatre, March 17-19.
For many years, the Spiegeltent has been a festival fixture, hosting a range of music and cabaret acts. The Spiegeltent will be back in March, but at the other end of the NZ Herald Festival Garden, Circus Ronaldo of Belgium will stage La Cucina dell'Arte, "the world's worst restaurant" where the candles and crockery have a life of their own and guests will be subjected to a kitchen with chaos on the menu; Festival Garden, March 2-20.
The lineup for the Spiegeltent includes Australian cabaret star Meow Meow performing Little Mermaids, American singer-songwriter Emily King, who has toured with Alicia Keys and John Legend, and Dust to Dusky, a tribute to Dusty Springfield performed by Tami Neilson, Bella Kalolo and Anna Coddington.
For the full AAF programme and ticket details, see aaf.co.nz.
