Kiwi love story aims for big time

Original cast members Todd Emerson and Colleen Davis perform on Friday to raise funds.

A Kiwi theatre company has just weeks to raise $100,000 to take its pop-rock cabaret to one of Scotland's most prestigious venues.

Bullet Heart Club has been asked to perform Daffodils at the Traverse Theatre during the 2016 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Since its 2014 debut, when it received rave reviews and sell-out audiences, Daffodils has toured New Zealand and Australia and is being turned into a screenplay.

Inspired by letters, interviews and family myths, it is loosely based on playwright Rochelle Bright's parents who met in their teens near the daffodils by Hamilton Lakes.

Their love story is told using songs by some of our top musicians including Crowded House, Bic Runga, Chris Knox, The Mint Chicks, Dave Dobbyn and The Exponents remixed by LIPS and Abraham Kunin.

Bright, co-director of Bullet Heart Club, says Daffodils' success was an unexpected breakthrough for the company.

"It's hard to express how incredibly touching it is to hear how many people have fallen in love with my parents' story," she says. "Taking Daffodils to Edinburgh is our chance to share our Kiwi love story with the world."

A Benefit Gala is planned for Friday featuring a performance of Daffodils by the original cast (Colleen Davis and Todd Emerson), with guest performances by Tami Neilson, Julia Deans, Anika Moa, Trip Pony and LIPS. A crowd-funding campaign is running via boosted.org.nz.

Bernadette Haldane, head of programming at Auckland Live says it's a big undertaking to take a show to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

"It's the biggest festival in the world and showcases the best of the best. For Bullet Heart Club to have secured a season of their masterpiece Daffodils at the Traverse Theatre really emphasises the quality of this incredible production."

Founded in 1963, Traverse Theatre has launched the careers of some of the UK's best-known playwrights and is regarded as the "theatrical heart" of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

What: Daffodils benefit gala

Where & when: Great Hall, Auckland Town Hall; Friday, June 3 at 8pm

Tickets: Ticketmaster