Most people associate Jeremy Elwood with stand-up comedy, if they know who he is at all, but his role in Land Without Sundays is far from comic. Elwood plays Nick, a Kiwi vineyard worker from a lower-class West Auckland family, who's a bit rough around the edges. Land Without Sundaysis the second in a trilogy of plays by Donna Banicevich Gera. The first was Anton's Women, which traced the stories of Dalmatian immigrants in New Zealand. Lila joins her husband in West Auckland where he's trying to set up a vineyard and make wine in keeping with the traditions he left back in the Adriatic. To Lila, the whole place breathes defeat and the play focuses on her struggles to overcome the odds and adjust to a new life in a new land. Directed by Cathy Downes, Land Without Sundays also features Alana Barber (Lila), Stephen Papps (Miro), Liz Tierney (Rosa) and Darien Takle (Mara). As the only non-Croatian character in the play, Elwood has done a lot of research to understand the cultural and historical tension between him and the other characters. "Google has been my best mate," says Elwood, adding that besides acting, he really enjoys finding the essence of someone else and bringing their character to life. "It's great to bring a page to life when you're on stage." The 32-year-old Birkenhead resident says he can't think of a thing that beats live performance. Elwood, who moved to Auckland in the late 1990s to be a serious actor, admits that stand-up took over because it paid the bills. This foray into drama has re-ignited his passion for theatre. "I certainly hope this is not a one-off . . . . The only thing that I've had to be aware of is the shift in my awareness of the audience. Unlike in comedy, I've had to relearn to detach myself from the audience and get into my own world. "I always enjoy opening night, but only once it's started." Land Without Sundays, Musgrove Studio, Maidment Theatre, until August 2. Tickets: ph 308 2383 or see www.maidment.auckland.ac.nz
