My Story, Your Issues
Paddy G, live on stage. Now this really is The F#$%ing News.
Paddy has written a book and he’s taking it on the road, from Stewart Island to Waitangi. The F#$%ing News is coming to a stage near you!
He will crack you up with his ripper yarns from a crazy life story.
This performance mixes journalism, stand-up comedy and motivational speaking - talking shit and giving uplifting messages about what it means to be a Kiwi.
Paddy was down, but he got back up again. He'll talk about the personal issues he has overcome, and the issues New Zealand needs to overcome.
In each place, he’ll tackle a local issue and show you a local hero.
And there will definitely be a Q and A!
Don’t f#$%ing miss this.
Disclaimer: There might be F-Bombs.
14+ | Audio Described | NZSL Interpreted | Hearing Assistive Technology Available
After wowing us in Thoroughly Modern Māui, award-winning Rutene Spooner returns to celebrate showband legacy, idolise the greatest Māori showman and tussle with the future of Māori in entertainment. This is everything but an impersonation show. Can you be like Billy without being the butt of the joke?
Aotearoa's newest Māori cabaret is hui-hopping to sweep you off your feet and Theatre Royal seats. If you loved Thoroughly Modern Māui (or missed it at our 2022 Festival), you MUST see this show!
Award-winning entertainer and playwright Rutene Spooner (Ngāti Porou, Ngāruahine) explores his personal connection with his childhood hero, Billy T. Infused with live music, humour, and show-band flair, the electrifying Be Like Billy? isn't just a tribute to Māori showmanship; it also prompts contemplation about the future of Māori entertainment—how to revel in joy without becoming the subject of mockery.
Joined by the flashest southern showband The Tekīra Mutton Birds, Rutene Spooner celebrates the showband legacy, idolises the greatest Māori showman, and tussles with the future of Māori in entertainment, to ask: Can you Be like Billy without being the butt of the joke?
"The Showband Era birthed some of Māoridom's most legendary entertainers. This production honours that lineage, reaching back to the infectious cheeky cackle we all know and cherish. But what does modern Māori showmanship entail?" - Rutene Spooner
“Be Like Billy? will surely go down as a true taonga of Aotearoa’s theatre history.” - Backstage Christchurch | Belinda Cullen Reid
"Spooner lays out this complexity for us in a show that starts with joy and celebration, with nostalgia, then pivots to something more complex when the audience is confronted with the division between laughing at and laughing with." - Flat City Field Notes | Erin Harrington
Originally commissioned by The Court Theatre and produced by Metro Māori Productions.
Supported by: Downing
16+ | Content warnings apply | Hearing Assistive Technology Available
From broke solo mum to award-winning comedian and TV star in five years – is this a dream? Join Courtney Dawson for a hilarious wakeup call filled with warm, anecdotal humour and banger punch lines.
The past five years have seen Courtney Dawson (Ngāti Kurī, Ngāti Amaru) go from that “crack up chicky at the BBQ” to award-winning comedian and rising TV star on shows like Paddy Gower Has Issues and Celebrity Treasure Island. But there’s still that lingering worry in her mind - don’t all stars eventually explode? Don’t worry Courtney, we know you’re only just getting started!
Come snuggle up with Courtney at the Theatre Royal as she uses signature warm, anecdotal humour paired with banger punch lines for a hilarious wake up call.
This comedy star will take over the comedic universe any time now – better catch her here in Whakatū while you can, arts lovers!
14+ | Content warnings | Lock-out applies | NZSL Interpreted | Audio Described | Hearing Assistive Technology Available
Rows S, T & U in the Dress Circle may have restricted viewing of the projected content of this event.
An exploration of identity, desire, family, and of being disabled and Pasifika, AIGA (Sāmoan for family/whānau) is ground-breaking theatre told through the lens of Pacific Toa award-winner Lusi Faiva.
AIGA represents the big dreams and heart-felt reflections of award-winning disabled performing artist Lusi Faiva – performed by an ensemble of women, non-binary, disabled, non-disabled, Pasifika and Māori creatives.
Exploring identity, family, and desire, AIGA is a show that ebbs, flows, dips forward into the wicked and tilts back toward the heavenly as we traverse the experience of Lusi’s beautiful and complex life story. Using music, movement and dramedy, AIGA chronologically captures Lusi’s life from youth into adulthood, from 1960’s Samoa to the warrior that we bear witness to today.
AIGA is a three-year “crip time and c r i p s p a c e” devised work that has not only drawn on the life history of Lusi, but also the experiences of co-collaborators and performers including Iana Grace Pauga, Forest V Kapo (Te Atiawa, Ngāti Raukawa), Alex Medland (Kai Tahu), Jake Arona and support writer and performer Fiona Collins. The collective creative ensemble of women, non-binary, disabled, non-disabled, Pasifika and Māori gives this work its proud identity.
We’re incredibly proud to share this Aotearoa story with universal resonance with you, Whakatū. An honest and heartfelt work that moves, expands empathy and consciousness and invites us to explore new perspectives of being.
With a powerhouse creative team, this work features storytelling at its core; a story that will make you laugh, cry, think and feel – one that needs to be heard.
Features Sāmoan, Te Reo Māori, English and NZSL languages.
Supported by: Innit Creative
TICKETING INFORMATION
Two sections have been reserved as priority seating for the Disabled and D/deaf communities, and older people.
One of these sections is at the front of the stalls (downstairs area on the flat) and one is on the stage to the side and back of the performance area.
These sections are reserved to allow audience members that are part of these communities access to connect and celebrate with Lusi Faiva (the lead artist).
Front of the stalls priority seating (downstairs seating on the flat)
The front rows closest to the stage will be reserved with a mixture of theatre seats and spaces for wheelchair and mobility device users. There will also be reserved seats for the D/deaf community near the NZ Sign Language interpreter.
Stage priority seating (accessible via wheelchair lift or stairs)
This will be a combination of chairs, beanbags and space for wheelchair and mobility device users. Access is via wheelchair lift from foyer. These seats will be to the side and back of the performance area, and the lighting state of the show means that the audience seated in the stalls will only see a shadowy silhouette of anyone seated on stage, except when the houselights are up.
Tickets to these sections can be purchased by phoning the Theatre Royal box office on 03 548 3840 (Select 1) or by emailing [email protected]
Ticket Cost
All priority tickets are $24 plus a $2.50 booking fee.
Companion seats are free of charge and can be reserved in the same area.
Hi, Pax Assadi here. It’s really nice to see you. Is that a new top? It looks great on you, the colour really compliments your skin tone. It’s been a while since I’ve been to the Nelson Arts Festival. I’ve been busy with life—water blasting my deck, building flat pack furniture, and making award-winning television (Watch Raised By Refugees now on NEON or Sky Go).
Hey, so… I need to tell you something BUT I need you to keep it a secret. Can you do that? Ok, cool. Then come to a designated theatre this season, and I’ll share this secret with you in the form of stand-up comedy. Ideally, you come alone, but if you must, you may bring one other person—maybe a significant other or close friend. Coming in a large group is also acceptable, but you have to make sure that everyone in this group understands that what I’m going to share with you is highly confidential. If they fail to respect the classified nature of what will be said on the night, their life may be at risk.
A comedic celebration of food from the beloved and bizarre cookbooks of our past. Te Radar has sampled a century and a half of New Zealand cookbooks to find the tastiest morsels, with a side of sumptuous vintage food photography.
Revealing New Zealand’s rich - and weird - home cooking heritage we rediscover celebrity chefs such as Graham Kerr, Alison Holst, Aunt Daisy and Hudson and Halls. We’ll savour cookbooks designed to get us eating more dairy, tamarillos or kiwifruit, and the desperate lengths they go to: Cold Sour Kiwifruit Soup anyone? We’ll get a taste of cookbooks from school fundraisers and recipe contests: recipes supplied by ordinary kiwis that suggest some of us were not to be trusted with food.
Why did we disguise mutton as poultry? Why did Alison Holst believe fried brains were the perfect food for children? And is the brilliant “Recipes With Canned Foods Are Interesting” the greatest cookbook ever written in the nation’s history?
Multi award-winning comedian and documentarian Te Radar dishes up a smorgasbord of kiwi recipes moulded into a deliciously hilarious and sentimental journey through the Cookbookery of our past.
Nelson, are you ready for The Ultimate Drag Show?
Get ready to sashay, shante, and slay with the most fabulous drag performers from coast to coast. The Ultimate Drag Show is hitting the road, bringing you an unforgettable extravaganza of glitz, glamour and jaw-dropping performances that will leave you begging for more!
RuPaul's Drag Race has brought Drag into the spotlight and we're here to show that New Zealand Drag talent is not to be overlooked because we can twirl, kick and SLAY just as hard as the rest of the world!
Join us for a night of dazzling entertainment, fierce competition and unforgettable moments as drag performers from across the country showcase their talent and creativity on stage. Whether you're a seasoned drag fan or new to the scene, The Ultimate Drag Show promises to deliver an experience like no other, featuring a lineup of the most talented drag kings and queens in the industry.
From high-energy lip-syncs to stunning runway looks, prepare to be amazed as our queens and kings bring their A-game to each and every performance, leaving you on the edge of your seat and cheering for more. You best believe we aren’t coming to play Nelson, we are coming to slay! So don’t delay in securing your tickets today.
Parental Guidance recommended. Coarse language may be used throughout the evening.
Wilson Dixon is known to many as the greatest country singer Cripple Creek has ever produced - as well as the only country singer Cripple Creek has ever produced. Whichever way you look at it, it’s a pretty good achievement.
Life of late has been fun* for Wilson navigating his way through the pandemic denying QAnon believing alt right leaning members of his own family.
*Use of the word “fun" in the previous sentence is heavily nuanced.
Join Wilson for an intimate hour as he performs his brand-new show with brand new songs about his unfortunately not brand new extended family.
(p.s. expect a few new stories about his binge eating angry horse Andrew).
Sicily’s beloved King Enzo is dead. Now Princess Rosa, a stroppy spinster, must navigate the tempestuous waters of belching Step-Fathers, lusty suitors, popping cod pieces and menopausal witches, to face her destiny.
Award-winning comedian Penny Ashton (Promise and Promiscuity, Olive Copperbottom, Austen Found, The Panel RNZ) presents her latest literary solo musical with this Shakespearean frolic. She’ll spark 11 characters into life in an Elizabethan tale of magic, meddling and puffed bull’s pizzles.
“Incredibly clever, the script is just so smart.” Radio NZ
“She’s such an entertaining storyteller and huge fun. The audience loved it.” Theatreview 2024
“…an excellently written script that Shakespeare himself would be proud of. There’s no need to be intimidated by the use of Shakespeare’s language for Ashton is clearly a master of it. She cleverly weaves modern phrases into the style of Elizabethan speech with precise comic timing, and hides lines ripped straight from Shakespeare throughout this new text. Every line is clear and each character is distinct – which is saying something, considering Ashton brings to life no less than eleven over the course of the story.” Theatrescenes
If you get Covid and cannot attend the performance, please contact the Theatre Royal box office. You will be fully refunded.
From the quote attributed to Mark Twain, humour is defined as Tragedy Plus Time. Come and join Ed as he tests that formula by mining the most tragic event in his life for laughs.
Edinburgh Fringe 2023 was a bumper five-star review year for Ed. They came in thick and fast alongside outstanding critical acclaim for this exceptionally funny, ‘Best Reviewed Stand Up Show at Edinburgh 2023’ (British Comedy Guide).
Century and NZ Comedy Festival are proud to present Ed Byrne: Tragedy Plus Time.
“Hilarious, extremely dark, profoundly touching and resolutely unsentimental. Ed Byrne has plumbed the very depths of his soul and found something verging on greatness.” ★★★★★ Rolling Stone
“Poignant, touching, spiky and laugh-out-loud funny… beautifully written and flawlessly performed.” ★★★★★ Edinburgh Reviews
