Fresh truths from the beach

25/01/2012 9:55:00 a.m.

The Polaroid Collective shows its teeth.

A good old Kiwi bach holiday is fun, but have you ever driven home with the feeling that you’re returning with a different group of people from the ones you set out with? While the holiday typically involves friends and family at the beach with good food and a bit to drink, there’s often a subtle tension below the surface of each conversation, and a slow leak of information that, in a situation removed from the everyday, causes you to see your nearest and dearest in a new light.
It’s those tensions that Wellington’s newest improv ensemble The Polaroid Collective wanted to explore when they presented their first show, The Long Weekend, at the New Zealand Improv Festival in October 2011. The collective, comprising Wellington actors and improvisers Brandon Brooks, Christine Brooks, Nicola Hill, Paul Sullivan and Karen Anslow, with Tane Upjohn-Beatson on music and Darryn Woods on effects, formed before the 2011 festival to create spontaneous theatre about New Zealanders. They tell stories that the audience will recognise, and use genuine emotion as opposed to throwaway comedy.
Five old friends go away together for, you guessed it, a long weekend - and director, producer and performer Christine Brooks says that’s all the improvisers really know about the characters when they get on stage.
“We discover each night who these people are,” says Brooks, who came up with the concept for the show when travelling overseas by herself, “You learn a lot about your friends in those situations. You have conversations you might not usually have. There are things going on below the surface. Things get said that might not normally be said and old scabs get picked off.”
To prepare for the show, the improvisers, all friends through the Wellington improvisation scene, went away for a weekend together.
“We went to a bach in Raumati and we lived the story we wanted to tell,” says Brooks, “We got a new view of each other. Things we didn’t know about each other came out. It built an extra layer of trust that you can see on stage.”
It’s exactly that trust that is so integral to a successful improv performance – having the confidence in your fellow players and being able to collaborate and build on others’ ideas on stage. Brooks says the group, despite being a new collective, have gelled well together, so well in fact that she describes the premiere performance of The Long Weekend as her “favourite improv performance yet.”
“We all came together and told a story that was really satisfying, with funny moments and sad moments that had the audience laughing and gasping. They really cared about and connected with the characters and that was exactly our vision [for the collective].”
At the New Zealand Improv Festival, The Long Weekend won awards for Best Concept and Best Ensemble.
The Long Weekend, Bats theatre, 6.30-7.30pm, January 31 - February 4.

Email This Print

0 Comments

No comments.

Cover Story

Best of Wellington 2011

Fringe Festival

Briefs

He’s the man
SIR Richard Taylor, co-founder of the special effects company Weta Workshop, was named New Zealander of the Year at an awards ceremony late last week. Sir Richard was knighted in 2010 for services to film and was part of the team to win four Academy Awards for the Lord of the Rings movies. The other finalists for the award were Auckland skin cancer specialist Dr Sharad Paul and World of Wearable Arts founder Dame Suzie Moncrieff.
Liquor battle over
BUSINESSMAN Luv Khattar has withdrawn his application to operate a liquor store opposite Newtown School after the community banded together in opposition to his plans. Khattar’s withdrawal came after the Wellington District Licensing Agency received a record 111 objections to his application for Vee’s Liquor Planet, and after a petition with 676 signatures was presented to the agency by community representatives.
Jamie’s coming
A scout is currently looking for a site for 200 diners to bring Jamie Oliver’s Italian restaurant to Wellington. Oliver’s Australasian licensee Pacific Restaurant Group will operate the restaurant, as well as two further sites planned for Auckland and Queenstown.
Mojo not lost
MOJO Coffee on Kent Terrace is to close at the end of this month.
After five years on its current site the lease on the building expires on February 28.
Those still wanting their Mojo fix are still in luck with 16 outlets in the Capital selling Mojo coffee and three new Mojo cafés set to open in the next six months.
Digital world
INTERNETNZ is hosting a free workshop later this month for legal, media and Internet professionals to discuss the Law Commission’s recently published News Media meets New Media report. InternetNZ CEO Vikram Kumar says the evolving digital landscape has presented challenges for traditional media regulatory models. Kumar is confirmed to speak alongside Law Commissioner John Burrows and blogger David Farrar.
Dowse goes green
GREEN technologies are being embraced by The Dowse Art Museum.
The museum has teamed up with energy reduction company Ecosystems to reduce energy use by 15 percent.
The savings will be made by refining building management and incorporating more efficient measures of heating, cooling and lighting.
Capital risk
WELLINGTON’S economy would take a $37 billion hit in the event of a large earthquake, according to a report released by Wellington City Council.
The report identifies 435 unreinforced masonry buildings in the central city which could pose a risk to occupants and block city roads.
Council is currently investigating ways to try and speed up earthquake strengthening work and making such work cheaper for building owners.
Sweet success
A taste of Greece
GREEK cuisine is being celebrated in Wellington on February 25 at the annual Greek food festival.
The festival, at the Greek Community Centre in Hania Street, will feature authentic Greek food with drinks from the bar or Greek coffee.
Duck degustation
THORNDON French restaurant Le Canard is going quackers.
Le Canard is offering a special menu on February 26 featuring duck in all its disguises, from Foie Gras Mousse and duck gizzard terrine to lemon and thyme crème brulee, duck profiterole and apricot pascal.
Gem of opportunity
A jewellery maker with an eye for turning used and unwanted materials into wearable art has become this year’s recipient of Toi Poneke’s Deblyn artist-in-residence.
Vanessa Arthur will receive a rent-free studio, business mentorship, and costs towards materials for a solo exhibition at Toi Poneke Gallery at the end of her residence.
Big ‘A’ awards
NOMINATIONS have opened for the six award categories in the 2012 Big ‘A’ Awards, presented by Arts Access Aotearoa.
The awards recognise the works of people with physical or intellectual impairments, users of mental health services and organisations involved in using art as a tool to support the rehabilitation of prisoners.
Nominations close March 23.

Reader's Poll

Do you think the Wellington City Council’s proposal to meter water is justified?