Latest news with #InternationalComedyFestival
News.com.au
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
ABC star's ‘obscene' Anne Frank joke sparks outrage
A Triple J radio host has been blasted for using a derogatory sexual term to describing Holocaust survivor Anne Frank during a stand-up routine at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Concetta Caristo, a co-host of Triple J's breakfast program, was telling the audience she was a 'girls' girl' who could get along with 'any girl in the world, even in history'. 'Put me in a room with Cleopatra and I'd be like, 'Oh my god, I love your eyeliner', or with Anne Frank and I'd say, 'Slut, I have a diary too! Congrats on the book deal',' she said. But Anti-Defamation Commission chair Dvir Abramovich said it was not funny, describing it instead as a 'brutal desecration' of the memory of the Holocaust. 'This wasn't just a joke. It was a brutal desecration of the memory of Anne Frank and the one-and-a-half million Jewish children who were murdered in the Holocaust – gassed, shot, starved, erased,' he said in a statement. 'When someone takes a victim of genocide and turns her into an obscene punchline, they don't just mock her – they violate her.' The 15-year-old girl died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945 after she was found hiding in Amsterdam. She gained posthumous fame after the publication of her diary, which shared her personal account of the Holocaust. 'Anne Frank … didn't get a book deal. She got typhus. She got starvation. She got a death sentence in Bergen-Belsen,' Dr Abramovich said. He also expressed shock at the use of the word 'slut', describing it as a 'term of sexual humiliation aimed at a girl who never lived long enough to become a woman'. Ms Caristo's management told NewsWire she was 'away and not available'. Her social media indicates she is currently travelling, including kayaking in Hamilton Island.
NZ Herald
17-07-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Opinion: The North Shore is Auckland's untapped opportunity to host big events
When councils invest in community events, they promote wellness and connections through shared experiences. It breaks down barriers in communities and brings them together for social cohesion. Small local businesses absolutely deserve this. They've been through a rollercoaster of challenges and triumphs over the past few years. Community events bring in people from different corners of the city, and they're arriving prepared to spend and support local. Funding is a direct way for councils to support their residents with social wellbeing, as well as support local businesses – it's a win-win. Auckland, in particular, needs more focus on supporting the North Shore with event funding and basing events there. We see millions being spent on events in the central city and South Auckland. For instance, the Moana Festival, Diwali, the Lantern Festival, music events, rugby, league, Auckland FC, theatre shows, arts festivals, the International Comedy Festival. They're all central and receive council funding and support. Meanwhile, the north of the Harbour Bridge has very little event support in comparison. At the end of this month, the Takapuna Business Association is staging the Takapuna Winter Lights Festival, a popular event that attracts people of all ages from all parts of Auckland. Since the first Takapuna Winter Lights Festival in 2019, event numbers have continuously soared. What started with a modest 5000 attendees in its inaugural year has grown to more than 50,000 attendees last year. This kind of growth signals the need for more events like these on the North Shore. Recent Kiwibank research revealed a shift in how Kiwis are spending, with many preferring to spend their hard-earned money on experiences over physical items. Last year, consumer spending in Takapuna over the four-day event was more than $2.5 million. Compared with the year prior, that's a 20% increase in consumer spending. Terence Harpur is the CEO of the Takapuna Business Association. It's the small local vendors and businesses on the North Shore that benefit the most from these events. Some 86% of local businesses said they felt the event had a very positive impact on the Takapuna region, and 66% said the impact of the event was very positive to their business. We're grateful to the council for providing some funding ($44,000) to the Takapuna Winter Lights event, but when you compare that to other events, it's not a huge amount and can only get you so far. We're lucky to have some incredible sponsors who see the positive impact this event has on the precinct. Over the summer, Tātaki Auckland Unlimited reported $31.9 million made from events between November and March. But when you look at the figures listed on their website, there are very few events listed in the North Shore, let alone funded to the same levels. Our North Harbour Stadium can host up to 25,000 people, but we rarely see any major events being hosted there. This is such a lost opportunity and is a prime place to host larger events on the Shore at a venue that already has the facilities and infrastructure ready and waiting to host them, and a North Shore population keen to attend. Recently, Auckland Council decided to continue with the same council operator at the North Harbour Stadium, despite community calls for a new direction – was this the right move? Only time will tell when we see what kind of events are programmed into this venue. With the governing body of council cutting funding to Tātaki Auckland Unlimited's events budget, going from $15m to $8m a year, and cuts to support for regional event funds and local board funding, the council really needs to be more considerate with the areas it decides to invest in. As I said earlier, it needs to 'spread the love' to all areas of Auckland, not just the central city. I encourage decision-makers to recognise the untapped potential that exists north of the bridge. The North Shore has the appetite and track record to host successful, community-driven events that deliver real economic and social benefits. We are a major part of this 'super city' with more than 400,000 residents (bigger than Wellington) and need to get our fair share of funding and support from the council.
Scoop
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Things Just Got Personnel: H.R. The Musical #2, A Provocative New Sketch Comedy
Silliness prospects just got exponential with Artsense Productions announcing a follow-up to its runaway 2024 hit, H.R. The Musical: the no-nonsense (which means all kinds of nonsense) H.R. The Musical #2. CEO Richard ('Dick') and his band of generic employees return to Q Theatre, from 25 Nov – 6 Dec, with a completely new show of riotous musical sketch-comedy. Says writer-producer Amy Mansfield, 'We're delighted to be back in front of Tāmaki-makau-rau Auckland audiences with the kind of work they told us they want: hilarious, relevant and relatable views into the mad work world we all make our way through every day.' Mansfield is a strong believer in the wisdom and voice of audiences, both in her artistic practice and as a producer. 'Everyone has a work story to tell, and the more absurd the better! For H.R. The Musical #2, I'm crowd-sourcing work stories from real-life human resources.' Like its predecessor, the show will include a range of musical genres, including Renaissance, pop, rockabilly, latin, and oonst-oonst. H.R. The Musical #2 will tackle up-to-the-minute workplace conundrums through the medium of the belly laugh. Fresh from performing a successful solo show at NZ International Comedy Festival, actor (and ex-HR executive) Mika Austin is looking forward to exercising her comedy muscles again in H.R. The Musical #2 's two-week stint to kick off the silly season. 'We're welcoming you back to the team stand-up along with your workmates, your clients, and even your boss. H.R. The Musical #2 is for anyone who's ever had a job, or thought about getting one.'
Scoop
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Tom Sainsbury And The Dynamotion Misfits Are Home For Christmas
Press Release – Elephant Publicity Auckland's baddest, booty-shaking, big-hearted dance-comedy maniacs, Dynamotion, are back to wreak merry havoc on your holidays with A Christmas Crisis — burning up the floor in Q Theatre from 10 – 20 December. It's festive season, baby — and everything's falling apart. Mr and Mrs Claus are headed for splitsville. Ashleigh's Christmas Cupcake Shoppe is teetering on the edge. The elves are cracking under the pressure of soulless consumerism. Oh, and the North Pole? Melting faster than a snowman in a sauna. Looks like it's time for a Christmas miracle — Dynamotion style. From the brilliantly twisted minds of Tom Sainsbury and Lara Fischel-Chisholm comes a full-blown, high-kicking, sleigh-sliding, disco-ball-drenched Christmas spectacular packed with interpretive dance, chaotic energy, and enough tinsel to choke a reindeer. Starring some of New Zealand's funniest, fiercest, and naughtiest performers — including Tom Sainsbury, Chris Parker, Kate Simmonds, Harry McNaughton, Liv Tennet, Karamia Muller, Lara Fischel-Chisholm, Jennie Robertson, and a whole sleighful of Dynamotion misfits — A Christmas Crisis is here to serve your silly season (or at least distract you from it for 90 minutes). Since bursting onto the scene in 2012 with Terror Island Dynamotion have been putting the 'fun' back in 'funk' — and also 'fundamentally questioning what dance theatre even is.' These legends invented dacting (dramatic acting + interpretive dance) and have built a cult following for their gloriously silly, ridiculously clever full-length shows that are part dance party, part fever dream, and 100% joy. They've been praised by Metro, Theatreview, Theatrescenes, and probably your mate from Pilates who went once and hasn't shut up about it since. 'A high-adrenaline production full of thumping dance tracks, inspired and very clever choreography and wall-to-wall laughter.' – Andrew Whiteside (The Children of Sacred Valley) 'The dance numbers are terrific… extremely clever and very, very silly.' – Theatrescenes 'Dynamotion is dynamite indeed.' – Theatreview Dynamotion's original dance comedy works have become a staple of the Auckland theatre calendar, with 10 full-length productions to their name. They've presented at the NZ International Comedy Festival, the Body Festival in Christchurch, and Tempo. Their last show sold out after one Facebook post! So get booking. Yule be glad you did.
RNZ News
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Fast Favourites with Fred Award winner Angella Dravid
Angella Dravid is this year's Fred Award winner for best show at the International Comedy Festival, taking home the iconic gumboot and a prize of 5000 dollars. She's only the third woman to ever win that prize. Her comedy show I'm Happy For You is a dark spin on deeply personal stories, traumatic moments from her life and the concept of being jealous. Angella has also appeared in films and television including BabyDone, The BreakerUpperers, Jono and Ben, Funny Girls and won Taskmaster in 2020. In 2017 she won the Billy T Award and now 8 years later has taken home the Fred. Angella speaks to Culture 101 as the Fast Favourites guest.
