NEW VENUE: Trafalgar Centre, Paru Paru Road, Nelson

It’s time to check-in to Hotel California The Eagles Experience – the captivating live concert and stage show saluting the extraordinary talent and timeless catalogue of The Eagles.

With a stage full of show-stopping voices and musicians, relive the beautiful country harmonies, the rockin’ guitar solos and the masterful songwriting in all its glory, performed live on stage.

Hear all the classic tracks that topped the charts and tested the boundaries of Rock and Country including Hotel California, Desperado, Take It Easy, One of These Nights, Tequila Sunrise, Heartache Tonight, Life in the Fast Lane, Take it to the Limit, Witchy Woman, New Kid In Town, Lyin’ Eyes, Get Over It, Love will Keep Us Alive, Best of My Love and more.

A carefully-crafted tribute that music fans will truly appreciate.

In celebration of new material, March 2021 will welcome the long-awaited return to the stage for Marlon Willliams. Over an extensive tour of Aotearoa, audiences will be treated to a very different show from Marlon – a full solo performance unearthing some early material, beloved album songs and an introduction to some sparkling new works. This will be Marlon’s first solo tour in over six years.

This tour will take on the feel of Marlon’s early days of performing and the hard-working ethic of playing gig after gig through Australasia whilst still presenting the internationally renowned musician that we now know today.

Taking in cities between Auckland and Invercargill, An Evening with Marlon Williams is an upfront and personal tour visiting cozier venues than before and giving guests the experience of a more intimate Marlon.

2020 has been a time for Marlon to focus on some new musical projects; one of which can now be revealed…

The New Zealand Army Band is hugely excited to be going on tour presenting, ‘New Zealand Army Band Live’. This follows our recent sold-out concert in the Christchurch Town Hall post lockdown. During the lockdown, the Army Band kept busy by producing many online “bubble band” recordings. These weekly recordings were watched by more than two million viewers from all around the world.

‘New Zealand Army Band Live’ will be a memorable evening of big band, classical and brass band music featuring our world-class vocal and instrumental soloists. We pride ourselves on our concerts being family friendly and like to include something for everybody. The Army Band is also delighted to support the local community by donating 50% of the profits from the concert to Nelson City Brass.

Hip-hop/jazz project headed by rapper Tom Scott, with an enviable cast of musicians — “a huge learned journey borne of lived experience”.

In a debut performance for the region, Tom Scott brings his hip-hop/jazz project, Avantdale Bowling Club, to the Theatre Royal, having won the Taite Music Prize, the Album of the Year and Hip-hop Artist at the 2019 Music Awards, a No. 1 album and a Silver Scroll song-writing nomination.

In Tom’s typically irreverent own words, the Spotify profile for the project says “Irrelevant jazz from an island nation off the coast of Antarctica.” The concert features an enviable cast of musicians – Tonga Vaea (vocals/keys/trumpet), Guy Harrison (keys/trumpet), JY Lee (saxophone), Ben Turua (upright bass/bass guitar) and Julien Dyne (drums).

For a sneak preview, visit https://www.nelsonartsfestival.nz/

“The album’s about home and its inhabitants, with all their inadequacies and complexities. It’s about finding peace in the little piece of land you stand on” Tom says.

Scott first emerged in 2007 with Home Brew, a band that still performs live. His other projects – Average Rap Band, @Peace, a new Average Man collaboration and his new label ‘Years Gone By’ – ensure that he continues to influence a generation of young rappers and push boundaries across genres.

R18

The Howard Morrison Quartet Take Two led by Howard Morrison Jnr take to the road in February with a two hour show to celebrate and recreate the magic of the New Zealand entertainment phenomenon that was the original Howard Morrison Quartet with superb vocals, entertainment, and first hand family stories.

The Howard Morrison Quartet is considered this country’s’ most successful show band who helped to create the New Zealand entertainment industry. Merging family-friendly music with unique New Zealand humour, they toured constantly during the 50’s and 60’s but reformed regularly throughout the subsequent decades to remain hugely popular. Its charismatic lead singer, the iconic Sir Howard Morrison also enjoyed a stellar solo career over many decades plus the love and respect of his country for the huge amount he gave back to the community.

Howard Morrison Jnr and his new Quartet, also featuring Russell Harrison, Chris Powley and Jack Grace (instead of Andre King who recently suffered a serious injury), will faithfully recreate a trip down memory lane for the followers of the original showband plus add new songs and magic of their own. Thanks to Covid these busy performers have been able to take time out from their international commitment to organise this long-awaited national tour in honour of Howie’s Dad and his much loved quartet. Even those not old enough to remember the original icons will be impressed by this super-group of award-winning New Zealand talent. Suitable for all ages.

Nayland College proudly presents a showcase of performing arts featuring the very best of Music, Dance and Drama. We welcome you to sit back and enjoy our 2020 students performing as spotlight soloists and as part of our talented ensembles.

The evening will celebrate a broad spectrum of performances from Concert Band, Jazz Band, Orchestra, Broadgreen Intermediate Concert Band, our three choirs, Vast Dance, and the Drama Company.

The programme will appeal to a variety of artistic tastes with our all-encompassing talented students.

Nelson Youth Theatre Company presents the irrepressible comic strip heroine in one of the world's best-loved, award-winning musicals.

Based on the popular comic strip and adapted from the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, Annie JR. features everyone’s favourite little redhead in her very first adventure.

With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone's hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930's New York City. Annie is determined to find the parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of an orphanage run by the cruel Miss Hannigan. Annie eventually foils Miss Hannigan's plans for her, and finds a new home and family with billionaire Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary, Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.

At only an hour long, Annie JR is the perfect show to introduce young children to the world of theatre!

Note - Very limited season, 6 performances over 3 days only.

It's 1955, and into a square little American town rides a guitar-playin' motorcycle ridin' roustabout who changes everything and everyone he meets in this hip-swivelling, lip-curling musical comedy.

Featuring the music of Elvis Presley and a script that's packed to the seams with comic one liners, Nelson Youth Theatre Company will have you jumpin' out of your blue suede shoes with such classics as "Heartbreak Hotel", "Jailhouse Rock", "Teddy Bear", "Hound Dog", "It's Now or Never", "Devil in Disguise", "One Night With You", "Don't Be Cruel" and of course the title song "All Shook Up".

Saddle up the family and come along for a trip back in time to the very beginnings of classic Rock 'n' Roll and celebrate the magic of the music of "The King".

Note: Limited season, 6 performances at 7pm only.

Dust off those musical theatre cobwebs and return to your seats to indulge in the magic of the very best songs from stage and screen.

Showcasing an all-star cast of New Zealand voices from the international stage, this glittering concert of musical theatre showstoppers is not one to miss. The Shows Must Go On features a spectacular song list of your favourite toe-tapping numbers from the world’s greatest musicals including The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Hairspray, Dreamgirls, The Greatest Showman, We Will Rock You and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

With stunning backdrops and theatrical staging, The Shows Must Go On is a night set to delight. Featuring an exquisite cast of some of our best international performers, The Shows Must Go On will be an experience you will never forget.

See www.theshows.co.nz for more info.

Imperfect Offering presents the music of the great singer-songwriter-poet Leonard Cohen. This acclaimed nine-piece band have sold-out concerts and created a huge audience following all over the North Island: “Utterly blown away, wow, just wow”… “Sometimes better than the originals”… This is their first visit to the South Island, catch them for ONE NIGHT ONLY.

Imperfect Offering have been performing around NZ for five years with the full range of Cohen’s best-loved songs including Hallelujah, Bird on a Wire, So Long Marianne as well as songs from Cohen’s intensely touching last albums with a full band line-up including five vocalists and acclaimed violinist Nick Jones.

The focus will be on Cohen’s life journey through his music on his first album Songs of Leonard Cohen in 1967 to his last album You Want it Darker released just weeks before his death in 2016. With a story that spans from a Jewish upbringing in Montreal, through Greek Island life with his muse Marianne to New York’s artist hang-out Chelsea Hotel to a Zen Buddhist sanctuary on Mount Baldy, Imperfect Offering will present the best songs from this journey.

“Cohen’s music was captured perfectly with the incredible talent of the whole band “ Radio13 2019

“Truly a special concert performed for the memory of a very special man.” Radio13 2018