Theatre: A remarkable story of unremarkable lives

Anders Falstie-Jensen invites you into 95-year-old Inga's living room in Denmark during the lockdown. Photo / Supplied

The Rebel Alliance returns to Hamilton with the indoor version (it's winter after all) of their outdoor show Back to Square One?, which premiered at the Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival this year.

Originally made to be performed in parks and driveways in the immediate aftermath of the 2020 lockdowns, Back to Square One? invites you into 95-year-old Inga's living room in Denmark as she reaches out through space and time to her grandson in New Zealand.

Inga has seen world wars, cold wars, civil wars. In real life and on TV. And when you're close to 100 you know a thing or two about a thing or two.

Featuring lots of chalk and a cameo by a Viking god, Back to Square One? is the remarkable story of unremarkable lives and the (sometimes) misdirected urgency that drives us all.

The play is based on writer and performer Anders Falstie-Jensen's conversations with his grandmother in Denmark who during the lockdown was isolated for months in her small apartment.

Says Falstie-Jensen: "That first lockdown ... it was scary and surreal, but also it had moments of beauty. The world suddenly got very small. We connected, from a distance, with our neighbours, and for me I had time.

"Time to be with my family, time to talk to my grandmother. Time I didn't normally have because I was so busy at work. For a brief time, family and community took priority in a way it hadn't done before."

Back to Square One? was shortlisted for the 2020 Adam award for best new New Zealand play and was originally performed in Anders Falstie-Jensen's driveway for his neighbours. It has toured to other people's driveways, a carpark in Hamilton, a garden in Dunedin, as well as theatres, and performed by a range of actors.

The season marks the third time The Rebel Alliance performs in Hamilton. They premiered their previous production Watching Paint Dry, performed by Sean Lynch, at The Meteor. In 2012 Standstill, featuring three actors on three treadmills, played as part of the FUEL Festival of yonder years.

Previous works by The Rebel Alliance:

• Yours Truly – "The Rebel Alliance could easily be mistaken for an international touring company" – NZ Herald

• Standstill – "Defies description" – Dom Post

• Watching Paint Dry – "A masterpiece" - theatreview
The details
What: The Rebel Alliance production of Back to Square One?
When: August 13 – 15, (Fri 11am & 6.30pm, Sat 6.30pm, Sun 2pm)
Where: The Meteor, Victoria St, Hamilton
Tickets: $10 - $25: Themeteor.co.nz