Benjamin Teh stars in Dominion Rd - The Musical which puts on of Auckland's most famous thoroughfares in the spotlight.
A home-grown musical featuring dialectical analysis of ethnic community politics seems like a big ask but Dominion Road the Musical has enough enthusiasm and musical talent to somehow pull it off.
The opening songs proclaim Dominion Rd's rich cultural diversity and as a parade of colourful characters reveal their back
stories, it is clear writer Renee Liang has taken pains to ensure the musical is peopled by authentic representatives of a community she knows well.
The main story line, about grass-roots resistance to a bureaucratic development proposal, avoids the obvious cliches about rapacious capitalism and the plan to turn the street into a China Town comes from a sympathetic character who had to overcome prejudice to carve out a career as a community-minded councillor.
The nuanced treatment of complex issues makes it difficult to build dramatic tension and more compelling emotions are supplied by a subplot about a tempestuous cross-cultural romance between the owner of a trendy vegetarian cafe and the cantankerous proprietor of an Indian curry house.
Their love-hate relationship is brought to life with outstanding vocal performances from Jackie Clarke and Mustaq Missouri and the show's best songs come as these two lock horns in a protracted feud that masks deeper feelings of tenderness.
