Top Karori and Northland girls

Wellington Repertory Theatre’s upcoming production of Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls will feature actors from Karori and Northland.

Top Girls will play at Wellington’s Gryphon Theatre, 22 Ghuznee Street. From 2 to 12 August.

Aston Matheson, who lives in Northland, will play three roles, while Karori resident Rachel McLean has just the one role.

A theatre and film student, Aston works part time in hospitality.

“Northland is a great quiet place to live just out of the city, being amongst the hills and the greenery, being close to amenities, and having a very convenient bus route,” she says.

“I love delving into the world of interesting characters and telling their stories.

“This show has so many important themes and engaging characters, showing the lives of women and their relationships with each other and society.

“Working with such a great cast and crew has been a privilege and I’m excited for Wellington to see the show in action,” Aston says.

Rachel has been acting since she was a teenager, and is a graduate of Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington with a BA in Theatre and Psychology.

“I love living in Karori because it feels like its own little town within Wellington,” she says.

“I love that the tree outside my kitchen window is usually full of tui and the occasional kereru.

“The writing and characters in Top Girls are a real treat for an actor, there is a lot to sink your teeth into.

“The discussions about feminism, class, and capitalism still resonate just as strongly today as they did when the play first premiered,” Rachel says.

Top Girls is a modern epic.

It’s a famous text, with snappy, fast-paced overlapping dialogue and an iconic dinner party scene featuring powerful women from history who faced adversity in achieving their goals.

This is blended with the modern Top Girls Employment Agency, set in a 1980s United Kingdom and the sharp societal change represented through the rise of Thatcherism.

The play is often included in collections of “greatest plays” and “contemporary classics” for its cutting social commentary and its representation of women on stage.

Top Girls reflects a time when Britain’s socialist mindset shifted to a capitalist one – led by a powerful female leader.

“For our modern New Zealand, we can take the themes expressed in Top Girls as a reminder to never become complacent on