City: Hawke's Bay

Suitcase Show

A traveller arrives at a border with a stack of battered cases. From within them, whole worlds will emerge…

“A masterful weaving of stories… Crafty as all hell” -Art Murmurs, Wellington

Suitcase Show is an eclectic box set of short stories. Dark, spiky, and comic, each one is told out of a suitcase. The staging is inventive, from lo-fi shadowplay to wireless projection, from dancing disembodied hands to narratives that crackle from a 70s stereo suitcase.  Tiny in scale, but expansive in story, it touches on climate change, love and death, travel, and secrets that we carry with us – an overthrown autocrat finds themselves on the run from their own shadow, an astronaut turns their telescope back on earth and back in time. The work was developed through a series of showings in unusual site-specific spaces, from a pub to a photography darkroom.  

Trick of the Light is renowned for crafting inventive shows and intricate narratives. Suitcase Show reunites multi-award-winning collaborators Hannah Smith, Ralph McCubbin Howell, Tane Upjohn-Beatson, and Filament 11 Eleven. 

“Weaves a bright, dark magic.” ★★★★ —The Scotsman, UK

 

Director - Hannah Smith
Writer - Ralph McCubbin Howell 
Performers - Ralph McCubbin Howell, Hannah Smith, with Anya-Tate Manning and Richard Falkner
Sound Design and Composition - Tane Upjohn Beatson with additional composition by Robyn Bryant
Lyrics by - Ralph McCubbin Howell
Production and Technical Design collaborators - Brad Gledhill & Rachel Marlow (Filament Eleven 11)
Videography - Dean Hewison
Craft & Prop Design - Hannah Smith, Ralph McCubbin-Howell, Rebekah de Roo, Romina Menses and Emory Otto
Poster Design - William Duignan

Produced by Trick of the Light Theatre and presented as part of the PANNZ (Performing Arts Network New Zealand) touring programme.

Running time: 55 minutes

This is an adult work but is suitable for audiences aged 12 and up. Contains haze, flashing lights, references to death and depictions of violence.

Shel We?

Shel We hero image

Le Moana's Shel We is being presented in Aotearoa as part of PANNZ's touring programme, Tour-Makers.

 

 

 

Creator: Tupua Tigafua
Designers: Lisa Maule and Spencer Earwaker
Featuring: Sean Macdonald, Tupua Tigafua, Chris Ofanoa, Kosta Bogoievski, Andy Faiaogo, Carl Tolentino
Producer: Le Moana

Image credit (hero): Image Credit – Pati Solomona Tyrell
Image credit (production photos): Celia Walmsley - Stagebox Photography

Inspired by American writer Shel Silverstein, Shel We? is an enchanting, playfully intriguing, and visually stunning dance show that can be enjoyed by the whole family and appeals to different generations from all walks of life. Created by Tupua Tigafua a highly accomplished dancer and one of the most ingenious storytellers of his generation.

Shel Silverstein a critically acclaimed writer of children’s books such as Where the Sidewalk Ends, Falling Up and notably The Giving Tree. He also wrote iconic ballads such as Sylvia’s Mother for Doctor Hook and A Boy Named Sue for Johnny Cash.

Shel’s off beat style and brilliant use of metaphorical imagery in his poetry and illustrations is what inspires Tupua’s choreography - ultimately, delivering a tribute to his parents, his family and the environment that has inspired him over the years.

"Humorous, wonderous, playful, polished, sharp, well timed, joyful, thoughtful, simple yet intricately layered." - Theatreview