Blog| 2 March 2011 | New Zealand Ballet | Queen Mary 2
More than 50% of the dancers in The Royal New Zealand Ballet Company are local. Every two years the company divides and takes a high-powered programme 'round 40 towns on both islands, anywhere this year with a stage large enough for Pinocchio and a man-swallowing whale. The other night I saw 16 of the young dancers at the Opera House in Wellington show what they can do. It's ironic that the one city which might benefit most from a theatrical distraction has asked the dancers to stay away.
The Isaac Theatre Royal (where I played Waiting for Godot last July in Christchurch) is rumoured to be in a parlous state. Is it true that the domed ceiling has collapsed on the newly restored auditorium?
En route to the theatre at dusk, the Queen Mary 2 was chugging out of the Wellington harbour, a substitute for a visit to Lyttelton where the latest quake centred its destruction. On the way home, I bumped into Tom whose partner Nick works with Manuel at WETA, adding hair and costume to digital images of the actors. They can't wait to start work.
