We recommend a performance of Romeo and Juliet, an exhibition featuring Aroha Gossage and Lisa Reihana, and a wine bar that’s hosting a party (specialty hot dog menu and fancy dress theme included).
Go to a live podcast (and see a performance)
Flying Nun artist and Taite Prize nominee Vera
Tour an exhibition
Homestead Galleries is currently showing Ngā Whetū, an exhibition that brings together a group of Māori artists, each showcasing works that respond and speak to ngā whetū, Puanga and the Matariki cluster. The artists featured in the exhibition include Atareta Black, Tony Brown, Aroha Gossage, Lisa Reihana, Siniva Williams, Ann Uerata and Louie Zalk-Neale, among others. The exhibition includes pieces from many different mediums, including sculpture, photography, videos, paintings and interactive installations. On June 24, curators Penny Howard and Melina Payne will also invite visitors on a guided tour. Ngā Whetū closes on July 13.
See the ballet from the comfort of home
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is set to screen Romeo & Juliet as a part of their digital season offerings, bringing the drama and emotion of the show to a wider national audience. The show housed intricate, stunning sets and costumes from Oscar-winning designer James Acheson and was choreographed by Andrea Schermoly. Ahead of the performances in May, Schermoly expressed her delight in working on the performance. “Romeo & Juliet is one of the ultimate romantic tragedies and a choreographic dream to embark on. It incorporates intense romance alongside ferocious family drama, luxurious glamour and heart-wrenching tragedy.” Digital access runs from June 16 to July 6. You can book the recording through the RNZB website.
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Advertise with NZME.Attend a fancy dress party
To celebrate six years of Annabel’s Wine Bar, the restaurant is hosting an anniversary party throughout the day on Saturday. There will be coffee specials, a flea market, hot dogs, DJs and, to top it all off, a fancy dress party. You’ll want to dust off the cringiest and most daring pieces from the back of your wardrobe for this one — maybe those skinny jeans need another runaround? The party starts at 6pm on June 17.
See a show
After receiving a standing ovation at Te Pou Theatre in Tāmaki Makaurau last week, The Haka Party Incident has set off on a nationwide tour. Tonight, the theatre piece will land in The Opera House in Pōneke, showing for one night only as a part of the Kia Mau Festival. The award-winning verbatim theatre piece sees the actors voice the exact dialogue provided through documentary records, collected by director Katie Wolfe (Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāti Tama, Ngāti Toa Rangatira). The play is a moving and impactful account of an event that is so crucial to understanding the history of Aotearoa. After the show in Wellington, The Haka Party Incident will travel to Rotorua, Ngā Motu (New Plymouth), Te Tairāwhiti Arts Festival (Gisborne), Tauranga Arts Festival and Otautahi. The Performing Arts Network of New Zealand, which is supporting some performances along the tour, have also announced that those showings will offer a touch tour and audio descriptions. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.co.nz
Tour the art gallery
The run of Light From Tate: 1700s to Now is drawing to a close on June 25. The exhibition, hosted at Toi o Tāmaki Auckland Art Gallery, brings together works from many different eras all ruminating on the theme of light. There are striking depictions of biblical scenes, curious impressionist paintings and innovative contemporary installations. There are nearly 100 pieces included within the exhibition and, as the title might suggest, they have come from the collections of the Tate London. Tickets start from $21.50.
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Advertise with NZME.See an exhibition
Artist Marissa Healey will share new works in a solo exhibition at Shop 5 in St Kevins Arcade along Karangahape Rd. Painted spoons and smaller canvas works, which seek to explore the absurdity of “everydayness”, will fill the gallery. Every Day, Every Night includes playful, yet thoughtful pieces, with a dreamy otherworldly feeling. The opening of the show will be celebrated on June 21 from 5:30 to 7:30pm in the cosy gallery. The show will close on June 25.
Book ahead
Take a tour
Marie Warsh, art historian and co-director of the Estate of Rosemary Mayer, will welcome keen art fans to Artspace Aotearoa for a guided tour of the works of Rosemary Mayer. Mayer was a prolific artist working within the New York art scene from the late 1960s. Her pieces, often considered to be related to the work of artists within the feminist and conceptual art movements, experimented with sculpture and installation (often with the dramatic draping of fabrics). The tour will highlight the Mayer pieces that are featured within Scores For Transformation. That exhibition brings together a wider collection of artists who have played with the notion of score. Warsh’s tour begins at 2pm on June 24 and is free for all to attend.
Get familiar with a festival lineup
With the full lineup of the Elemental Nights 2023 festival now announced, it’s time to become familiar with those new acts set to rock venues in Tāmaki Makaurau. One major talent on the ticket is indie artist Fazerdaze (aka Amelia Murray), who put out the EP Break! late last year. The sound is a blend between shoegaze grunge and bedroom pop, with serious but fun tunes that get better with every listen. After the festival, she’s set to play a tour through Europe and the UK, so it will likely be one of her last shows on home soil for a while. Fazerdaze will play Mt Albert War Memorial Hall on August 3. Idles, Loyle Carner, Tove Lo, Bic Runga and Georgia Lines are also set to play in venues across Auckland. Elemental Nights starts July 20 and ends August 6.
