Join the world’s only, unabashed, olive fuelled, award-winning comedy circus power trio on a wild ride as they bring people closer together, one olive at a time.

Rise of the Olive features World Record Bounce Juggling & Jenga Stunts (as seen on TVNZ’s recent season of 60 Seconds talent show), and a whole host of other high caliber left field skills and comedy. 3D glasses and morph suits will make a comeback, a heart stopping innovative Aerial Rope act.. and more... so much more in fact, you’ll be given a run sheet on arrival so you can keep up!

Having toured all over the world to critical acclaim, this show is a perfect balance of joyful, existential, hilarious and incredible. Expect high-level circus, bizarre ideas and a bloody good night out.

"Fall-down funny, absolutely top shelf." ★★★★★ Advertiser (AUS)

"Jaw-dropping physical prowess... and LOLs. A lot of them." - Theatreview, NZ

Age 16+. Strong language, references to nudity.

Supported by: BlueBerry IT

Age 7+

A brand-new show from acclaimed physical comedy performer Thom Monckton (The Pianist), The King of Taking boasts circus, mime and a whole lot of velvet.

Allergic to normal flooring, a childish and petulant King can only walk on red carpet - and cannot move without an effective fanfare. You are hereby summoned to the royal grounds where this King callously barrels towards his own destruction.

The King requests wrapped gifts from his subjects (you). Gifts can be old or new and will feature on stage.

NZSL Interpreted Performance
There will be a New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Interpreted performance of The King of Taking on Wednesday 26th of October, featuring a trained interpreter from Platform Interpreting New Zealand.

To book reserved seats close to the front of the stage for a good view of the interpreter, email [email protected] or call the Theatre Royal Box Office on 03 548 3840.

Created & performed by Thom Monckton and Kallo Collective
Produced by A Mulled Whine Productions

Come join the country's greatest jugglers, acrobats and circus artists in the New Zealand Juggling Association's annual gala show. The Aotearoa New Zealand Juggling and Circus Festival is in Nelson for 2021, this is the night where we show off for each other and now for the whole town! Ground breaking artisty and side splitting hilarity will be on offer for this one night only special event.

AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND

The Dust Palace

From New Zealand’s leading circus company comes a tenacious all-wombs troupe whose breath-taking performances are wrapped in an all-knowing nod and cheeky wink.

The WonderWombs is a chance to investigate and celebrate physicality, delve into the mysteriousness and wonder of our minds, and maybe even have a laugh at ourselves. This is physical circus at its best, with all the multi-skilled performers using theatre, acrobatics and comedy to present a night of risk, splendour, story and hilarity.

With its soundtrack a range of buzzing beats, rap, poetry and more, The WonderWombspromises a night of acrobatic athletes, whose risqué hustle explores and celebrates strength in its many forms.

"Dazzling talent with true, and utterly genuine meaning... The WonderWombs is a slippery and devilish performance." THE CREATIVE ISSUE

"A sparkling, juicy, feminist manifesto that laughs and mocks and brawls and riots all the way to the finish line." NOTHING EVER HAPPENS IN BRISBANE

Warning: R16, full-frontal nudity, strobe, coarse language and adult themes.

In this colourful and turbulent concoction of pure joy and intimacy, watch Casus Circus bring a blank canvas to life and revel in our innate need for human contact.

This is a circus show that won't let you forget what it is to be human, and in a moment of danger, how a grasping hold can be survival.

The unique acrobatic shapes signature to Casus abound in this journey of explosive encounters, hidden looks, and humorous discoveries.

Accompany Casus as we surge forward... together!

"Outrageously impressive." THE LIST

"The most magnificent show of the Festival." EDINBURGH FESTIVAL MAGAZINE

"Breathtaking sounds like a buzzword, so let's just say I kept forgetting to breathe; eyes wide, mouth agape, in complete awe."
THE ADVERTISER


"Driftwood is quickly becoming circus royalty so be quick, go and grab a ticket."
ED FEST MAGAZINE

"We may all be cast on the ocean of life but Driftwood is rising above the waves." BROADWAY BABY

Compagnia Baccalà (Switzerland)

An extraordinary physical performance blending contemporary clowning with theatre and circus.

Inspired by the era of silent films, two characters take to the empty stage in a timeless performance of enthralling physicality and exquisite humour. Poetic, surreal, ironic, acrobatic and infinitely enjoyable, they play out their unique and hilarious pas de deux through the universal language of gesture and look, without a single word being spoken.

Inventive and exciting, the characters' breath-taking fumble through mishaps, acrobatics and life will have you laughing long after you leave the theatre.

"Sometimes a show is such a total delight that it is hard to write about it without just gushing 'See it, see it!' - Pss Pss is such a show. See it, see it." TOTAL THEATRE

"... this gentle child-like dance of love and friendship transcends language and utterly captivates with imagination and fun." EDINBURGH GUIDE

Suitable for all from 9 years

Awards
Winner - Swiss Theatre Award 2016
Winner - Audience Award, 2014 Festival des arts burlesques de Saint-Etienne, France
Winner - Audience Award, 2010 Festival Des Art Du Cirque, Switzerland

Eat fruit. Love lust. Nelson Arts Festival is proud to present the world premiere of The Dust Palace's new circus theatre work.

Spring-boarding from Christina Rossetti's iconic poem Goblin Market, the show is a contemporary circus re-telling, following two sisters, their temptation, sacrifice and eventual salvation. Delicious circus is precariously balanced with gritty performances and candid story telling.

The Dust Palace is New Zealand's premier circus theatre company, having created and toured a dozen full-length works and innumerable performance art works and events. The Goblin Market is set to be their first interoperation presentation in Montréal later this year.

"...superbly choreographed acrobatics featuring the finely muscled bodies and disciplined athleticism of highly trained performers." PAUL SIMEI-BARTON, NEW ZEALAND HERALD
"Fine actors as well as masters of physical movement." RAEWYN WHYTE

Warning: Contains nudity & sexual references. Suitable for ages 16 +

Presented by Casus Circus, the company that brought Knee Deep to Nelson in 2013.

On a search for silence, the absence of noise is elusive, barely tangible, and as Casus discover, the search is liquid, much like the acrobatics that it yields.

Silence is a very personal thing - perhaps a brief moment of quiet focus, clarity and calm. We all desire it, often we crave it, but how do we even know where to look for it?

Casus explore this by diving headfirst into the depths of their own hearts and minds in an incredible and unique approach to both acrobatics and theatre; bodies combine and break away to reveal a truth that is at once beautiful and frightening, powerful and touching.

By testing their individual vulnerabilities, emotions and real fears, Casus truly go on a search to find the absence of noise.

"Romantic, cheeky, nostalgic, sexy, powerful" BRISBANE FESTIVAL

"Visually spectacular, physically stunning" STAGE WHISPERS

"This is not the sort of circus that desperately seeks applause or is crystal studded in razzmatazz. Instead it gets to the heart of circus's origins and explores what the body is capable of." 2012 FEST MAG

The Buskers are going bad, oh so bad. Come and join the buskers for this no holds barred adults only side splitting cabaret. Remember what they say - 'Content may offend', if you're lucky.

Introducing:
Becky Hoops - (Becky Priebe)
Pancho Libre - (Francisco Sandoval)
Vinyl Burns - (Kim Potter)
Eddy Eighty - (Gonzalo Fernandez)
The Bendy Em Show - (Bendy Em)

...with a stranger... follows a man who works in the lost property department of the world. In a sudden epiphany of purpose he understands he is to re-distribute the things he collects. But once gifted these things create as many problems as they solve and our characters must decide if they'll let life throw them around or stand with bravery and make decisions of their own.

...with a stranger... is a play on serendipity and the connections between people.

"...with a stranger... is a mesmerizing and jaw-dropping visual spectacle and an absolute theatrical masterpiece. Circus does not get any sexier and more dangerous than this."
WHIMSICAL BANANA

With a strong influences from the style of revered Montreal circus troupe Les 7 Doigts de la Main (The Seven Fingers of The Hand), The Dust Palace have created what they tout as "arthouse-circus"; a cabaret of short stories told in the striking language of carny.

"As always The Dust Palace show is original, varied, naughty and highly entertaining." SHARU DELILKAN - Theatre Scenes

An original devised work ...with a stranger... toys with the inherent duality of people, the juxtaposition of strangeness and intimacy, and the irrevocable consequences of our actions. Armed with these provocations the troupe delves into the deep waters of humanity going far and beyond what bubbles on the surface.

 

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