Theatre buffs to stage first show
Onstage Wānaka will premiere Blood Brothers in August.
The group came together after some local performers felt there was no real community for performers and theatre enthusiasts in the Upper Clutha area.
The group's secretary and one of the founders, Andrea Beryl, said a committee of eight locals, most of whom were performers, came together after years of having to travel to centres like Dunedin just to be part of a production.
The group had already received a lot of support from the local community and had also recently been awarded a grant from Central Lakes Trust.
"Everyone's really enthusiastic because there hasn't been anything like this in Wānaka for quite some time," she said.
Ms Beryl could not yet disclose the amount the group had been allocated but said the generous grant would go towards its first production, Blood Brothers.
The musical was written by Willy Russell, and followed the story of twins separated at birth and raised in different environments.
Auditions for the musical closed a few weeks ago and the final cast has been finalised.
"We can't wait to get everybody involved," Beryl said.
"We've got a workshop coming up next weekend where we all meet each other . . . it's going to be great to get everybody involved on stage."
She was pleased with the cast and said that although some had not performed a full musical before, almost all had some performance or singing experience.
"They've been travelling to different parts of Central to perform, but to have it right here on their doorstep is amazing."
The enthusiasm expressed by the local community was positive and the group had already started looking for dates for its 2026 and 2027 shows.
The main goal at the moment was working on making sure Blood Brothers came together nicely to ensure the group could continue and become an integral part of Wānaka's art scene.
The group was also looking for backstage helpers to assist with makeup, wardrobe and set.
"We're just trying to get the show up and running and trying to have it as successful as possible. Obviously, it's the first one, so we're trying to make it a good one," Ms Beryl said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Spinoff
27-06-2025
- The Spinoff
‘She had mettle': Anne-Marie Te Whiu on poetry, weaving and whakapapa
Claire Mabey talks with poet, weaver, Atlantic Fellow and cultural curator Anne-Marie Te Whiu about her new collection of poetry, Mettle. Claire Mabey: Kia ora Ani, it's very nice to be talking to you about your beautiful poetry collection, Mettle. Why did you dedicate the book to your younger self? Anne-Marie Te Whiu: Because she's still here. You know that whole thing of you've got to be turning into the person that your younger self would have looked up to? I feel like now I'm 52 I'm just becoming that person, so I'm in conversation with her now, that little kid. It's taken all these decades but it's really beautiful. CM: And why 'mettle'? What does that word mean to you? AMTW: Being a poet, I love playing with language. So when I tell people I've written a collection called Mettle, I love seeing their faces. You can see they're thinking 'Oh so you've written about the periodic table? Is it from a science lens? It is about, like, heavy metal?' I love that. The reason I used 'mettle' is because when I was doing research on my whakapapa and the connection with Whina [Dame Whina Cooper], my great aunt, I looked at archival works, newspaper articles, that kind of thing. I found that one of the words that was used to describe her was that she had 'mettle' and that word just really struck me. CM: So your whakapapa is here in Aotearoa, and you were born in Australia. What is that relationship like for you? Is your collection working into that? AMTW: Exactly. It's working to understand myself. I use poetry as a vehicle and a platform to work out who I am. What does it mean to have whakapapa? How do I acknowledge that whilst being born on and living on these unceded, stolen lands? How do I reconcile that relationship? It's kind of reconciling with myself, really. It's also a vehicle for understanding my siblings, particularly my youngest brother – for him to further understand who we are. CM: I really like the poem 'Blood Brothers', where you're trying to have a conversation with your brothers and they're distracted by the stuff of daily life. AMTW: Totally. Don't you have that with your siblings? CM: Yes! Do you relate to the idea that there's always one sibling who seems to lead the family 'work' so to speak? I've observed over the years that there often seems to be one in the family who works on whakapapa and makes the connections and reconnections. Does that ring true for you? AMTW: 100% relate. I think that's exactly right. I have three brothers, one who sadly passed away – but growing up I was always the fourth wheel. Like, we need to play handball and need a fourth, might as well be her. CM: I was really also struck by your poem, the Letter to Keri Hulme that you've dedicated to essa ranapiri. Is it a fictional letter? AMTW: You're the fourth person to ask that! Like, what? No, it's totally fictional. That was a gift of a poem that was written because essa, who edited Mettle, invited me to be part of a journal dedicated to the legacy of Keri Hulme. We were asked to create whatever we wanted. But how awesome that you think that there's the potential there for the letter to have been real. It brings me back to the question of 'why poetry?' Poetry is a portal. It allows us to stretch and play. CM: I love that. It feels like so many roads lead back to Hulme. Is there anything in particular about her work that you love? ANTW: Her relationship to water. Watching tides, watching waves, reading waves; that's what I really related to. The writer Melissa Lucashenko embodies something of the way Hulme's work enters into your blood. There's something incredibly sacred about the way all the parts work together. There's a power in Hulme's work, and in Lucashenko's too. CM: You're a weaver as well as a writer. There's a poem in the book about having a 'weaving hangover'. What does that mean? AMTW: Have you been a weaver before? CM: Never. But I used to paint a lot. AMTW: Perfect. Here's the comparison. Would you paint until 4am and then go, how did that happen? Then the next day what you did is still with you. That's the kind of hangover I'm talking about. The number of nights I've had where it's got to four, five in the morning just weaving. CM: How does weaving relate to poetry for you? Or does it? AMTW: It compliments poetry rather than that they definitely meet. But I lean on one and then the other, and throw in a couple of dog walks in there as well for physicality. They're both practices that require being still so you gotta balance it with that physicality. CM: Mettle is out in both Australia and New Zealand and I imagine they're two really different audiences, in some ways. AMTW: Massively. I don't know if you got the little insert in the book when it arrived? It has this message explaining that Mettle delves into my whakapapa and then in brackets it says 'Māori genealogy'. Obviously that's so patronising and so unnecessary for the Aotearoa audience, and so imperative if I want to connect with this audience here in Australia. I've had a couple of moments of 'how do I bridge this?' But that's the work. That's our work as writers, producers, artists. We're bridge builders. CM: Have you had feedback on the book so far? ANTW: I got a beautiful message on Instagram from a gorgeous Australian-born wahine, about a poem I have in the collection about understanding and not understanding in a te ao Māori space. To have feedback from someone that gets it is so sweet. I've had feedback from the most important people who are my whānau. The book is for my younger self but we always write for those we love, too. Hopefully all my family will look at it and go, yeah, that's great. CM: In your acknowledgements you talk about a class you did at the IIML at Victoria University with Victor Roger. What was the impact of that class? AMTW: It was so significant being in a room with other Māori and Paskifika writers. Nafanua [Percell Kersel] was there, Nicole Titihuia Hawkins, Kahu Kutia, and a whole bunch of amazing writers. Victor led our waka in such a joyful and challenging way. It was a very, very profound experience. Blood Brothers i recite a karakia for my brothersthey would prefer i bring kebabs i tell them about the Hokianga they tell me about their bills i explain tangata whenua they turn up the TV i dream of Tāne Mahuta they roll a cigarette i summon the names of our ancestors they take their medication i miss our marae they put out the bins – Anne-Marie Te Whiu Mettle by Anne-Marie Te Whiu ($30, University of Queensland Press) is available to purchase from Unity Books. The Spinoff Books section is proudly brought to you by Unity Books and Creative New Zealand. Visit Unity Books online today.
Scoop
27-06-2025
- Scoop
Dunedin Brothers Dominate 2025 Wildlife Photographer Of The Year Competition
The results are in for Tūhura Otago Museum's 2025 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition and Dunedin brothers Sam and Monty McGee have swept the top awards. Seventeen-year-old Sam McGee has been named Overall Winner for his striking image Water Wings, which captures a white-faced heron in mid-motion with remarkable timing and atmospheric tones. The same image also earned him Wildlife Youth category winner. Sam's photo Lone Lion was named Runner-Up in the Wildlife Youth category, cementing his dominance across the youth section of the competition. 'This stunning image of the heron in its breeding plumage impressed us with its excellent composition and moody, almost monochromatic tones,' the judging panel said of Sam's winning Water Wings. 'The patience in waiting for the heron to dip its beak into the water really paid off, the droplets add dynamic movement to the photo.' Fifteen-year-old Monty McGee was awarded Runner-Up in Wildlife Youth for his image Pūteketeke Yoga, a beautifully composed portrait of the native crested grebe. This photo also earned Monty Youth Photographer of the year, with judges praising the detail and technical skill in his debut submission. Exhibition Manager and competition judge Shanaya Cunningham said, 'Even with an anonymous judging process, the McGees' images stood out. Finding out it was Monty's first time entering took us all by surprise due to the detail and expertise in his image.' As Sam now moves from the youth category into the adult division, there's excitement across the photographic community about what this talented brother duo will create next. Their achievements are a proud moment for Dunedin and a strong example of youth photography excellence in Aotearoa. The annual competition drew over 4,450 entries with images captured from across the globe and saw a major increase in submissions from Queenstown, Wānaka, and Oamaru, highlighting the growing strength of nature photography in the Southern Lakes and North Otago regions. Marketing Manager Charlie Buchan said, 'This competition is growing year on year. It's becoming increasingly popular, not only as a competition but as an exhibition. We're seeing tens of thousands through the doors, and this year looks to be our biggest yet. It's a brilliant showcase of photographic talent and a celebration of nature from New Zealand's wildlife capital.' The 2025 exhibition, Otago's Lens on the Wild World, opens on Thursday 26 June and runs until Sunday 12 October at Tūhura Otago Museum. Entry is free. The exhibition will showcase the best from the competition across four key categories: Wildlife, Landscape, Botanical, and Natural Abstract. Visitors can explore all finalist entries on an interactive digital display, vote for their favourite in the People's Choice Award, and enjoy wildlife-themed crafts and up-close encounters with native species. Otago's Lens on the Wild World is developed by Tūhura Otago Museum with support from The OPERA – Otago Peninsula Eco Restoration Alliance, and in partnership with Wild Dunedin, Jonathan's Photo Warehouse, and Canon New Zealand.
Otago Daily Times
25-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Show aims to raise funds for musical playground
For its 31st year, Wānaka's Stars in Your Eyes show is fundraising to help build the town's first musical playground. The musical show, organised by Wānaka Musicians Incorporated, began three decades ago and took inspiration from the British television series, Stars in Their Eyes. Wānaka's version of the show is not a contest but has consisted of locals dressing up to imitate famous people and later reveal their real identity to the audience. Audition registrations recently opened in preparation for the musical show to be held towards the end of September. The show has been a community favourite and has helped fund youth music programmes across the region, such as the Jamie Robertson scholarship at Mount Aspiring College. This year organisers have decided to aim for something different by planning to create a designated outdoor space into town for people of all ages to enjoy musical instruments. Chairwoman Janet Dolan said they had always given money to local music education but this year they wanted to do something the whole community could enjoy. "We're talking about a full musical playground that adults, children, families, anybody can play," she said. "There'll be percussion instruments, there'll be bells, there'll be keyboard, and it's all outside." The group already had $30,000 put aside for the playground and was working with the council to get an estimate of costs and find the right location. Currently the show is gathering interest from the community and will be holding its auditions on the weekend of June 14. Ms Dolan said as the town's population grew, a more diverse range of people had been auditioning, something she felt gave the show strength. "We're aware that the audience represents the whole of Wānaka so we don't just want the pop music sort of thing, we want something that appeals to the whole audience," she said. The show has been open to a range of abilities and welcomed experienced and first-time performers. The show's team has also experienced a change with local musician and Festival of Colour performer Anna Shaw taking over as the director. The opening night for the musical show is set to be September 24 and will run until September 27 at the Lake Wānaka Centre.
