Just days before The Rehearsal's screening at the NZ International Film Festival I started reading Eleanor Catton's astonishing debut novel of the same name. As you do.
When I took my seat in Auckland's grand Civic Theatre for the screening I hadn't finished the book, but it was clear the ambitiousness of Catton's storytelling, non-linear timeline, multiple narratives and distinctive prose would make this a tricky novel to adapt.
In the hands of Emily Perkins, another New Zealand author with an innate ability to write genuine teenage characters, and writer director Alison Maclean (Crush, The Kitchen Sink), The Rehearsal retains the wit, candour, realism and heightened drama of the novel, all the while setting itself apart from its source material with key changes and a more relaxed approach to dialogue. Both changes will help draw in an audience beyond just Catton admirers.
The foundation of the story remains in place, but is stripped back - high school students and their parents deal with the fallout of a sex scandal between a teacher and pupil, while a group of drama students use the scandal as inspiration to write a play.
