The Sun
Wednesday June 7, 2023
Marlborough secures road recovery funding
Golding Girls inspired by lockdown By Chris Valli
Four women. Four weeks. At Level Four. March 23, 2020 and a certain pandemic. The Boathouse Theatre’s next play, Golding Girls, directed by Bridget McNamara is a light-hearted look at life in lockdown written by Taranaki playwright Shona Wilson. The play follows four women who unexpectedly find themselves thrown together for a snap Level Four lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic. A laughout-loud ride of disharmony, hormonal issues and hilarity ensues; complete with masks, a DIY Christmas tree, a lot of pyjamas, and everyone’s lockdown favourite — new hobbies. Bridget says the appeal of a comedy set during a lockdown of the pandemic presented the chance to reflect on recent history, and it is also a comedy enjoying the ups and downs of womanhood. The cast is a combination of very experienced thespians with Deborah Cox, Margaret Pringle and Abi Balasoglou while newcomer to the Boathouse stage is Juanita Smart. “Deb and Margaret are fabulous comedic actresses, well
known for that to Marlborough audiences. Abi has built a wonderful character for Hannah, she makes the dramatic parts real but also has excellent comedic timing,” says Bridget. “Juanita has been involved in theatre for a long time, but not on stage. She is showing herself to be a skilled actress.” With a script which reflects on the new territory that was a pandemic and information overload in March 2020, what does Bridget remember about the Level 4 lockdown? “My husband and I were overseas in March 2020, we had to cut our trip short and fly back urgently from the States before flights were cancelled. We were watching Trump in the States doing the daily press conferences, we were there in Chicago when overnight all restaurants and bars were shut down by the Governor, and we flew home two days before the first lockdown was announced. It was a dramatic time, full of uncertainty but also full of the best of humanity too in many ways.” Bridget says the play will resonate as the central theme focuses on relationships and how ‘we’ feel about ourselves affects how we relate to others.
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Marlborough District Council has been successful in its bid to gain further central Government funding to help repair its stormdamaged roads. Two heavy rain events in July 2021 and August 2022 caused extensive damage across its network running into the hundreds of millions of dollars. Last week the Waka Kotahi board agreed to fund 95 per cent of $52.39M, or $49.77M. The Council would provide the remaining five per cent, or $2.62M. “This is fantastic news and I’d like to thank everyone who contributed to this outcome,” Mayor Nadine Taylor said. “Thanks in particular to Waka Kotahi for agreeing to the financial assistance rate (FAR) of 95%. I understand and appreciate the Government is under significant pressure and facing funding requests from North Island regions for the Cyclone Gabrielle recovery and rebuild.”
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The cast of Golding Girls from left: Juanita Smart, Margaret Pringle and Abi Balasoglou. Back: Director Bridget McNamara and Deb Cox.
“Just because we don’t see eye to eye, doesn’t mean we can’t ultimately find common ground and get along. It’s a play about the seasons of life, and it is a play about fun and humour. It’s a lovely thing to sit in an audience
and all laugh together.” Golding Girls is on at the Boathouse Theatre from Wednesday, June 14 - Saturday, June 24 with a matinee on Sunday, June 18. Tickets are available at the ASB Theatre.
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