Billy T award-winning comedian Kura Forrester will be performing at the Fringe Festival which makes a comeback in Whangārei.
From September 27 until October 13, Whangārei will come alive with performance, music, comedy, cabaret, art, theatre, circus, workshops and more. By Jodi Bryant.
Mysterious tiny hidden street art, an instrumental petting zoo, mud kitchen, lube wrestling, dungeons and dragons, dance parties, burlesque, circus, music and dramedy, all in Whangārei can only mean one thing – the Fringe Festival is back.
After a stellar debut in 2020, followed by further success in 2022, the Whangārei Fringe Festival is making its third return this month for over two weeks of festivities.
The city is hosting hundreds of artists from near and far while celebrating homegrown talent in 116 events at 25 venues across 17 days.
The line-up includes both national identities and up-and-coming local talent comprising a total of 169 shows (some repeats) and 450 participants. With over half of the 116 events from local talent, organisers are especially excited about the increase in new works, including youth engagement, with a focus on local stories and innovative ways to invite the community into the vibrancy of Fringe.
“Whangārei Fringe is a unique community celebration of Whangārei’s homegrown talent and our city,” explains co-founder and producer Laurel Devenie. “We’re so excited by the number of local people presenting new work and ideas this year, and also the number of great local venues, spaces and organisations who are coming on board to support the many different artists and community members participating.”
“Fringe is a platform for elevating people’s voices, celebrating the diverse community we live in and exploring new ways of exchanging stories.”
With a more family-friendly focus, events will keep kids entertained during the school holidays, and continuing the festival’s kaupapa of accessibility, a quarter of all events are free or only require a koha for entry.
Big names coming to town include Billy T award-winning comedian Kura Forrester, multidisciplinary artist Liv Tennet (Kiri and Lou, Power Rangers RPM, Shortland Street), Jonny Brugh aka Deacon the Vampire (What We Do in the Shadows), Tom Sainsbury as part of comedy-dance show The Children of Sacred Valley, James Mustapic and Eli Matthewson – both of Celebrity Treasure Island and award-winning comedians.
In a first for the festival, the Whangārei Fringe team is bringing a colossal, big-top circus tent to town to house the programme’s many circus, cabaret and burlesque events. Pūtahi Park will be home to late-night shows for adults, family-friendly fun and circus workshops for kids.
One of these events is The Ice Cream is Melting - a family circus show about climate change and how we can act locally while thinking globally. The story centres around siblings Bonnie and Nikau bringing double-scoop ice cream cones back from the dairy for the whānau. But it is such a hot day, they are starting to melt. The siblings follow the shady path next to the river back home instead and adventures await. Will they make it home with icecreams intact?
The 42-page programme is packed full of shows, including award-winning The Pre-conditioned Hori, where hip-hop lyricist and street poet Charles N Charge presents a conscious musical stage show that explores his experiences growing up in urban Aotearoa and the stereotyped discourses he faced; and We, the Outsiders, an original documentary theatre piece created with real life stories of migrant workers living in New Zealand using storytelling, original music and multimedia. The captivating, thought-provoking theatrical experience sheds light on the diverse challenges migrants face in this country, including unspoken issues of trying to fit in, learning new languages and adapting to a new culture.
“Tangihanga” dives into the heart of Māori whānau where tensions, dramas, and the bonds of family intertwine amidst grief and tradition. This drama-comedy is centred around loving daughter Jess, whose father passes away. His whānau and friends gather from near and far at the marae to mourn his loss. Kristyl Neho masterfully embodies more than 30 characters on this emotional rollercoaster, exploring the intricacies of whānau relationships, identity and cultural traditions.
On a lighter note, musical comedy “Petty Grievances” is about the banal bothers of everyday life; “the paper cuts of modern adulting such as taxes, traffic, forehead wrinkles and loud neighbours, that have sustained small talk for generations”.
Other comedy shows include a father and son duo and open mic described as “like a box of chocolates – you never know what you’re going to get. But we can promise it won’t be just full of the Cherry Ripes that almost no one likes. You can expect a pick-and-mix of local and national comedians, those new to the stage or trying new material. Both renown award-winning and first timers”.
Then there’s bedtime stories for grown-ups, a live cooking show, poetry, musicians, including solo, bands and choir, skits and theatre sports, exhibitions, and games at the library, including Dungeons and Dragons, and a human library listening to people’s life stories.
Interactive activities include the Mud Kitchen where participants can mix and squish a combination of natural ingredients such as flower petals and leaves to make mud cakes and pies. The Instrumental Petting Zoo is where one can try out a wide range of instruments while meeting local music teachers. The Hundertwasser Art Centre will be hosting a free drop-in art activity where participants can unleash their creativity by helping create a window for the building as part of a unique community project celebrating the intersection of art and nature. The Tiny Street Art Exhibition invites people to follow clues posted on Instagram to discover tiny artworks hidden around Whangārei central. Further workshops include printmaking and bookbinding, circus, puppetry and art.
The Quarry Arts Centre is one of the venues hosting events, such as Lower Bar Collective, who will bring their improvised soundscapes and guitar pedal-driven noise experiments to the garden’s tunnels. Specialising in creating textured layers of sound in unique spaces, the garden’s tunnels are promising to be a unique listening experience form every vantage point.
A free community event which was popular past years is “Light the City with Northpower” at Pūtahi Park, where spectators will be dazzled with fiery dancers, vibrant music, performances and delicious treats on the Canopy Bridge.
Some of the best Fringe events contain an element of mystery. Whangārei Fringe co-founder and producer Hayley Clark says, “This Fringe, we’ve got some amazing acts, art installations and performances popping up all over the city. These surprise events will be spontaneous and are only hinted at in the printed programme, so keep an eye on our Fringe social media for the latest updates. We can’t wait to see you at these fantastic pop-up performances!”
Anticipation has been huge in the build-up to this year’s event, says Laurel. “It definitely feels like, in the first year, we were trying to tell the story of what a Fringe Festival is all about but, this year, they just know about it and are suggesting ideas.”
A couple of new themes to emerge this year are dance, comedy and theatre shows made by women about birth, parenting, menopause and the female perspective; as well as low-sensory/gentle experiences for audiences.
“A lot of artists are recognising the need to make quiet, gentle experiences for people to engage with, in a response to the chaos and intensity of the world at the moment,” Laurel explains.
Flicking through the program, Laurel herself is wondering how she is going to fit in attending so many events from the line-up.
“There’s Bedtime Stories for Adults... and I’m really excited to see the band Mermaid Bait, but then, oh my gosh, I’ll be racing down to see The Children of Sacred Valley!”
Tickets are on sale now at eventfinda.co.nz or from the Fringe box office at ONEONESIX (open Monday to Friday 10am-1pm). Full festival details are available at whangareifringe.co.nz, where audiences can also search for events by date and genre. Whangārei Fringe is supported by festival partners Creative New Zealand, Foundation North and Northland Inc; platinum sponsor Northpower; and key supporters Oneonesix, Pub Charity Limited, Supacolour, Belltech, Just Cabins, Whangārei District Creative Communities Scheme, Creative Northland, Ecosse and Whangarei District Council.
Much of the South Island is set to plunge below 0C tonight and tomorrow.