Right Royal Cabaret Festival 2023

TARANAKI 22 - 25 JUN 2023

Taranaki Arts Festival Trust is excited to present Right Royal Cabaret Festival for its 4th season, bringing our audiences worldclass performers and shows to our region.

We want to turn up the heat in Taranaki and simmer away those mid-winter blues with a cabaret festival like no other! Right Royal Cabaret Festival 2023 brings you a four-night blend of thought provoking, tantalising and delightfully wild entertainment packed with performances that highlight the allure and thrill of live cabaret. With eccentric comedy, burlesque circus theatre, and unforgettable musical shows, this festival flourishes with cabaret artists to please everyone.

TAFT would like to acknowledge and thank our festival partners, patrons and sponsors. We have been proudly presenting festivals for over 30 years and without your support, we wouldn’t be able to deliver or present the quality of performances we bring to the region. Thank

WELCOME TO THE CABARET

Kia ora

Welcome to the fourth Right Royal Cabaret Festival. We invite you to leave behind your winter woes and enter the razzle dazzle of the cabaret!

Over four days and late nights, we bring together some of the very best from Aotearoa and beyond – in a wild blend of cabaret delights. Prepare to be shocked, to be thrilled and to certainly be entertained.

It’s time to make your way to the Cabaret…

And don’t forget to be a part of the festival and join us at our late-night piano bar to belt out a tune, sip a drink, or watch in the shadows. You might even spot a special guest or two.

Tū Tama Wāhine

Proud Sponsor of The Haka Party Incident

See page 20-21 for details

Festival Survey

Like it, love it, or leave it! We want your feedback, our survey opens 26 June rightroyal.co.nz

Whilst not part of the Cabaret season, we’re delighted to present The Haka Party Incident, by Katie Wolfe, in late June. After tour cancellations in 2021, this gives Taranaki audiences the opportunity to experience this provocative, resonant and unforgettable theatre performance. It is honestly, not to be missed.

Thank you to our audiences for continuing to support the arts, to not only attend events but also to share the passion for what the festival brings to our city, our region, our people. To our supporters, funders, sponsors – thank you. The arts continue to not only survive, but to thrive in Taranaki.

Megan Brown Artistic Director, Taranaki Arts Festival

Kia Tūpato!

Proudly Supporting our Community and the Taranaki Region

We are proud to support our community, the fantastic work of TAFT and the 2023 Right Royal Cabaret Festival.

We are delighted to be a part of this festival and to contribute to the vibrancy our region has to offer.

Premium A Reserve

Cabaret Table Seating. Up to a maximum of 8 people

Tiered theatre seating

55 High St, Hāwera, Ph 06 278 8599

Monday – Friday, 8.30am-5pm

Weekends and public holidays 10am-3pm

The Taranaki Arts Festival Trust believes we have a responsibility to give as many school children as we can, access to performing arts. Exposure to arts and culture has many positive effects on the community’s wellbeing and the future of our next generation.

Over the last 30 years, our Schools Programme has given thousands of school children the opportunity to experience the arts who may not otherwise be able to. Pay It Forward, Keep Arts Thriving invites you to purchase a ticket that will create an opportunity for a Taranaki school child to experience a live performing art show right here in our community.

Your $5 donation goes a long way to ensure that Arts Thrive Here for the next 30 years.

www.rightroyal.co.nz for more information.

Pay It Forward Conditions

Information in this program is correct at the time of printing.

The Arts Festival Taranaki Trust reserves the right to alter without notice any advertised schedule of artists, events or programmes. For full terms and conditions please visit www.rightroyal.co.nz

Covid-19

The risk of exposure to Covid-19 and transmission in Aotearoa remains real, so we ask that you stay vigilant, follow good hygiene, and stay home if you feel unwell.

JACKIE GOES PRIMA DIVA

Homegrown chanteuse Jackie Clarke (When The Cat’s Been Spayed, The Lady Killers) turns her powerhouse vocals, wicked humour and maverick entertainment style to the songs of the 20th and 21st Centuries most legendary divas. Paying homage to Judy Garland, Kate Bush, Shirley Bassey, Lady Gaga, Peggy Lee, Dolly Parton and more, expect iconic songs performed with tender soul and gleeful virtuosity.

Jackie is an all-round choice wāhine made even more fabulous when accompanied by pianist Grant Winterburn. Don’t miss this rollicking show of bravura song styling, dazzling frockage, pin-drop moments and plenty of laughs from a NZ dairy-fed Diva with her feet on the ground and her head amongst the stars.

Jackie will be joined on stage by some of Taranaki’s favourite divas!

The powerhouse, Unity Wara will join Jackie on stage in New Plymouth, celebrating a union of soulful harmonies. In Stratford, Jackie will be joined by local Tracey Blake renowned for belting out the classics!

ABSOLUTELY! CABARET

Allow yourself an absolutely delicious evening, a full release of tension, and a wild ride of absolute delight

Can we have a “Hell Yeah!” as MCs Lizzie Tollemache (‘7 Deadly Stunts’) and Tom Sainsbury (‘Snapchat Dude’ and comedian) coerce and guide you into a fabulous whirlwind of extravagant talent. Boylesque ballet beauty the Everchanging Boy, dynamic circus acrobatics from Dust Palace and Flow’s parkour crew, Ladderman’s daring stunts, Supermarket drag star the Bombay Bombshell and extraordinary pole-dancing contortionist, Miss Hellblazer.

Absolutely! – The Cabaret quiver of Absolutely! fabulous acts playfully tease us for our Absolute obsessions with fashion, religion and the binding liturgy of money- our devotion to these and our search for Absolution; faux fur to false idols, the search for redemption is real.

Sugar High Productions brings ‘Absolutely! Cabaret’ to New Plymouth, following its premiere at 2023’s Splore Festival and the critically acclaimed ‘Heavenly Bodies’ Cabaret at 2021’s Auckland Arts Festival.

Age suitability 16+, contains partial nudity.

Performer Creditation: The Everchanging Boy & Miss Hellblazer

Photographer Creditation: The Everchanging Boy: Shonty Rogan

Director Emma Herbert Vickers in association with Splore Festival

SUPPORTED BY

THE TIWHAS CABARET

Find yourself spellbound by three takatāpui all-singing, all-dancing queens at the centre stage

The Tiwhas, your new favourite girl group is made up of Wellington based takatāpui drag queens; Jthan Morgan, Slay West and Rauteti Ormond. Join these divas as they weave together musical theatre, drag hits and waiata Māori to present an evening of fun, costumes, choreography and stunning vocals. Oh – and of course –a flawless LIPSYNC too! Whatever you do, don’t miss out!

Dare to be entertained!

Date

Location

Theatre Royal, TSB Showplace

Time

Fri 23 June 6pm

Duration

75 minutes

Tickets

Premium

A Reserve $59 $49

*Service fees apply.

GAG REFLEX

She’s hard to swallow.

Rachel Atlas has a complicated relationship with danger. From teenage stripper to sword swallower, from accidental dominatrix to knife-thrower’s assistant, she’s never been able to resist living on the edge. In this riotous tell-all debut solo show, expect to be thrilled by world-class stunts, raw humour and the heart-warming journey of a dangerous woman finally finding safety.

Rachel Atlas is an internationally renowned circus performer and a veteran of the vaudeville and Fringe Festival circuits the world over. “Gag Reflex” is her first autobiographical work: lifting the curtain on her fascinating life of salacious sexual exploits, bad trips, worse men, and, of course, death-defying misadventures.

A thrilling, titillating, tear-jerking theatre experience not to be missed.

*Recommended for ages 16+, contains swearing, explicit stories and reference to drugs and sexual assault.

HAYLEY SPROULL AILMENTS

Award winning comedian Hayley Sproull (ZM Breakfast, Have You Been Paying

Attention?) brings you a brand new hour of music and comedy as she exposes her most annoying and predominantly minor ailments.

A dead kidney, a weak bladder, a full beard and a uterus shaped like the bunny from Donnie Darko - Hayley Sproull’s body is a constant source of mild disappointment. A body so confused it’ll grow quads worthy of an All Black prop and have a moth-induced panic attack. A body so contradictory it can handle two bottles of cheap sav blanc but not a cube of pumpkin. A body so dramatic it killed its own organ because Hayley didn’t go pee pee often enough.

THE MOST NAKED

Fearlessly sinking its teeth into cultural mores around nudity, strip tease and the flashing of skin, The Most Naked is a compelling, wild and unsettlingly sexy multidisciplinary work-come-cabaret that strips nakedness right down to the bone. Inspired by cabaret and burlesque art forms and incorporating mesmerising dance artistry, subversive theatre, spectacular live music and political eroticism.

Created and performed by force-of-nature movement alchemist and “most naked” performer Hannah Tasker-Poland, with the live musical wizardry of internationally renowned composer and musician Lucien Johnson.

Fresh from sold-out seasons across Auckland, Wellington, Dunedin and Hawke’s Bay to spectacular reviews and box office waiting lists, The Most Naked will not be the show you were expecting but GODDAMN it’ll be the show you’re glad you got.

*Recommended for ages 16+ Contains offensive language, sexual content, nudity, strobe lighting, and loud music

Developed in partnership with Auckland Live.

Image: Ivan Muller

Tickets Premium A Reserve $59 $49

*Service fees apply.

CABARET

AN EVENING WITHOUT KATE BUSH

The chaotic cabaret cult!

Enter Strange Phenomena, howl with The Hounds of Love and dance on the moors with Wuthering Heights. Kate’s not there, but you are. British performer Sarah-Louise Young invites you to release your inner Bush in this joyful, unique and mind-blowing show.

Over a career spanning five decades, Kate Bush has always attracted loyal and devoted followers. An Evening Without Kate Bush explores their stories though her music, celebrating one of the most influential voices in British pop culture.

Featuring classic hits like Running Up That Hill, Cloudbusting and The Man With The Child In His Eyes, the show also throws some unexpected B-sides, and Bootlegs alongside unique takes on songs like This Woman’s Work and Babooshka. Made with Julie Madly Deeply co-creator Russell Lucas, this ‘brilliant dissection of the diva’s genius’ (Attitude Magazine ★★★★★) has won awards, critical acclaim and its own legion of fans & cult following.

Young reinvents the tribute act fusing triple-threat comedy with the warmth of an old-school vaudevillian

The Stage

MUSIC

BATTLE CHORUS

Battle Chorus is a social sing-a-long experience that brings people together for an unforgettable night of iconic melodies and sweet harmonies.

Under the guidance of two Aotearoa musical heavyweights, audiences form two groups, grab a drink, learn some choruses and then battle it out in an epic medley of songs.

No singing experience is necessary, simply a love of music and coming together with others in collective harmony (although a little bit of friendly rivalry doesn’t hurt!)

Date

Location

Theatre Royal

TSB Showplace

Time

Sun 25 June 7.30pm

Duration

60 minutes

Tickets

GA $30

*Service fees apply.

LATE NIGHT PIANO BAR SING ALONG

WITH CAMERON MCHUGH

The place to be!

Step into the depths of the Theatre Royal bar, which will be transformed into a raucous late-night den of 80’s ballads, pop hits or whatever song you choose. Cameron McHugh will entertain audiences on the piano – will you join him in a song or two?

Enjoy a cocktail in the bar, lubricate those vocal chords and sing your heart away. Everyone welcome – singers, entertainers, watchers and anyone who wants to remain in the shadows…

Keep your eyes peeled for cameo appearances from our Cabaret performers!

Date

Location

Theatre Royal Bar

TSB Showplace

Fri 23 & Sat 24 June 10pm until late 19 2023

Time Free

THE HAKA PARTY INCIDENT

BY KATIE WOLFE

The last New Zealand war took place in Auckland in 1979. It lasted three minutes.

The Haka Party Incident resurrects the eventful day when a group of University of Auckland engineering students rehearsing their annual tradition of a mock haka are confronted by the activist group, He Taua.

The incident sent ripples through the nation and changed race relations in New Zealand forever.

Accessibility

The Haka Party Incident

5.30 - 6pm Touch Tour

Theatreview, 9 April 2021

Crafted by film-maker and theatre director Katie Wolfe, Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāti Toa (The Mooncake and the Kumara, Waru, He Māngai Wāhine, Artefact), The Haka Party Incident is verbatim theatre that innovatively combines documentary and kapa haka to thrilling effect.

Provocative, resonant and unforgettable, The Haka Party Incident is a not-to-bemissed theatre event

Image: Sacha Stejko/Norm Heke

Audio Described performances provide a live audio commentary by passionate professionals from Audio Described Aotearoa Ltd as they describe the actions onstage. This commentary is relayed to blind and low-vision patrons via an earpiece which can be booked in advanced. Touch Tours are held one and a half hours before the show. Patrons can walk through the set, touch props, feel costumes and familiarise themselves with visual and sensory materials in the performance.

To book a place on the Touch Tour and the audio described performance, please email ticketnp@npdc.co.nz or visit the TSB Showplace Box Office

Masterfully brings to life a bold act of resistance...intensely funny, to heartbreakingly sad in a single beat.

SCHOOLS PROGRAMME

With the support of the Toi Foundation, New Plymouth District Council, CNZ and Tranzit, Taranaki Arts Festival & TSB Showplace offer students throughout Taranaki the opportunity to experience The Haka Party Incident by Katie Wolfe.

To book a place or find out more about the Schools Programme, please email sallyAC@taft.co.nz

Commercial, industrial and residential construction.

cbconstruction.co.nz

“Exceptional results from exceptional effort”

Theatre Royal Lounge

PRE-ORDER YOUR FESTIVAL PLATTER FOR TWO

Three options available:

Salmon platter

Antipasto meat platter

Antipasto vegetarian platter

Only $45, service fees apply

TOP TARANAKI MUST-DOS

POUĀKAI CROSSING

Premier one-day hike offering the iconic shot of the maunga perfectly reflected in the Pouākai Tarn.

TRIP-TO APP

Unearth hidden gems along Surf Highway 45 through a selection of curated road trips.

TAWHITI MUSEUM/TRADERS & WHALERS

Step back in time at this award-winning museum and take the underground boat ride akin to something from Disneyland!

CHADDY’S CHARTERS

Head out to the culturally and environmentally significant Sugar Loaf Islands.

TASTE OF TARANAKI

Be spoilt for choice with the many breweries, cafes and restaurants around the maunga.

Find out more about all the things to see and do in Taranaki at taranaki.co.nz/visit

COASTAL ARTS TRAIL

A scenic self-drive journey that guides you to galleries and studios along the west coast of the North Island.

DESIGN WEB PHOTO/VIDEO MARKETINGSOCIAL

Caci New Plymouth proudly sponsoring the Right Royal Cabaret Festival.

Enrich your Social Feeds

FESTIVAL PLANNER