Cooking up a comic storm

Hudson and Halls Live! has seen Chris Parker and Todd Emerson portray the celebrity chefs for nearly two years.

Back in the 1970s and 80s, Peter Hudson and David Halls were two of the most popular personalities on New Zealand television. They haven't been on our screens for more than 20 years but a play based on their hit cooking show has proven their popularity endures.

For two years, actors Chris Parker and Todd Emerson have been living double lives as the celebrity chefs. Parker and Emerson have been a part of Hudson and Halls since it debuted in Auckland in 2015, where it was an instant hit and the season extended after the initial run sold out.

Now they're back in Auckland for a second season as part of a national tour. Parker describes it as settling into some well-worn shoes.

"The first Auckland season was like putting on new shoes and you're walking a bit weird in them," he says. "And now we've broken the shoe in, it's really comfy, they walk very well, so we can slip back into them and they fit us perfectly now."

The schedule for this season has been tight. Emerson, one of the stars of TV3's Westside, had only four days of rehearsal earlier this year to re-learn everything before the tour's first stops. That may seem like a daunting task but he says his muscle memory for the elaborate set - it's a TV studio kitchen - helped with the process.

"You think you can't remember it but you move your body in a certain way or pick up a pan a certain way and suddenly the next 10 lines of dialogue just open up in your brain," he explains.

The success of the first Auckland season has seen the show travel across the country, including a season in Wellington and short tours in Wanaka and Kerikeri. Parker says audience reaction is always the same no matter where they are.

"It's this overwhelming joy and warmth from the crowd because Hudson and Halls were on TV across the nation."

However, one incident shone a spotlight on the conflicting and conservative opinions belonging to some of the theatre-goers. The show ends with the audience being invited on stage for a photo with "Hudson and Halls".

Two women who came forward at the end of one of the Kerikeri shows told Parker and Emerson that their husbands weren't going to join them because "they're homophobic". It was an unfortunate reminder of what Hudson and Halls experienced in their day but for the two actors, it only highlights the importance of touring the show.

"This show is funny and is hilarious but it's also got a really beautiful, political message around that you've got to accept people for more than their face level of camp," Parker explains. "The fact that we kind of try and provoke more of that is the real importance of the show. If it was just slapstick, it wouldn't be as successful as what it is."

"I'd like to think those guys have thought about it a few times since then," Emerson adds. "I don't expect it to change them but we've made them aware of themselves."

While some in the audiences may hold conservative views, that hasn't stopped everyone who has seen Hudson and Halls from enjoying it. Emerson recounts how one night in Wanaka they had to pause on stage as the audience was laughing so hard they couldn't continue.

Given the success of the show and the popularity of the inspiration, it seems likely that it could make its way to screen someday. However, both actors say the live experience gives people a better opportunity to experience who Hudson and Halls were.

"I feel like it would be a shame to waste their story on 90 minutes," Emerson says.

"There's something really beautiful about bringing them into the communities," Parker agrees. "The show is so live; it was made to be live. It's immersive. If they wanted to tell the story without it being our show, it would be something different. TV, you could get an education of the men, but theatre, you get an experience of them."

Lowdown
What: Hudson and Halls
Where & when: Q Theatre, June 27 - July 9.