Standing Room Only for Sunday 24 May 2020

 

12:30   Ballet company's ambitious plans post pandemic 

The Royal New Zealand Ballet Company is determined to begin touring the country again in just a few months. What's especially inspiring is that it’s been planning for a return to live performance while at the same time, staying connected with its audience through its Live in Your Living Room series. The films of RNZB ballet productions have received 1 million Facebook and YouTube video views since the start of the series and its Facebook followers have increased by around 20,000. Executive Director Lester McGrath talks about how the company plans to capitalize on the interest.  

 

12:45  Venice Biennale postponed: what does it mean for the artist? 

One of the biggest Covid-19 casualties in the art world is the postponement of the Venice Art Biennale from 2021 until 2022. Italy has been one of the country’s hardest hit by the pandemic, forcing it to postpone both the Contemporary Art Biennale and the Architecture Biennale that was to open later this year. For some it could be a blessing having more time, for others a disappointment because of all the work that goes into representing your country. Yuki Kihara - the interdisciplinary artist representing NZ at Venice - talks about the implications for her; and Michael Moynahan  (Arts Council Chair) says the postponement was a good call.

 

1:10 At The Movies

Dan Slevin watches new films at home and in cinemas, including Motherless Brooklyn, I Still Believe and All At Sea. 

 

1:30   Adam Play award winner Jess Sayer talks up hope for a screen led recovery 

A lot of hope is being placed on New Zealand’s screen industry to help the country out of its financial mire. It’s too soon to know if overseas filmmakers will see Aotearoa as a safe haven in the immediate post pandemic period, but The Actors' Program based in Auckland is confident that its graduates have a promising future. One of the tutors is Jess Sayer. She’s also the winner of the 2020 Adam NZ Play Award. This Particular Room was described by the award Judges as “heartbreaking”, “excellently crafted,” “powerful and sophisticated" and “so realistic that it hurts". 

 

1:45 Te Papa prepares to reopen  

Te Papa Tongarewa is preparing to re-open this Thursday 28 May after a two month closure. Charlotte Davy, Head of Art at Te Papa has been particularly busy preparing to get visitors back in to its popular gallery Toi Art which broke records for attendance this time last year.  She's also been judging the 2020 Parkin Drawing Prize competition which awards 25-thousand dollars to the winner. Charlotte Davy talks to Lynn about what changes visitors can expect in the age of COVID-19.  

 

2:06 The Laugh Track - Paul Yates 

TV producer and actor Paul Yates is rearing to get back into the editing suite tomorrow, after weeks of enforced time away from it. He’s one of the creatives behind the homegrown TV comedy Wellington Paranormal and he also acted in local drama Fresh Eggs that screened last year. The actor, writer, producer, director and science fiction nerd shares some of his favourite comedians with Lynn including some very non PC comedy from Fred Dagg and Harry Enfield that shows just how far comedy has come since the 70s. 

 

2:20 What Sort of Man?

“An exhilarating and harrowing exploration of contemporary masculinity” is how Breton Dukes’ publishers describe his third short story collection, What Sort of Man. The Dunedin writer kept us waiting six years for this collection, then the corona virus scuppered the launch. But the book’s out and the reviews are coming in. Lynn talks to Breton about the themes of contemporary masculinity in his short stories. 

 

2:35  Films with Attitude

Dan Buckingham has  been coming up with ingenious ways to film vulnerable people with disabilities while adhering to social distancing. While most other film companies were closed during levels 3 and 4 Dan managed to keep filming the long running TV series Attitude. He tells Lynn when the shutdown was coming they ramped up production to get footage in the door, then came up with ways to produce programmes with fresh footage but also by creatively re-using footage from past episodes to tell new stories about people with disability. See the films here www.attitudelive.com

 

2:45 Rural residency becomes home for stranded US artist 

An artist’s residency in the Wairarapa has turned into a much longer stay for Kerri McGill, after her flight back to the US was cancelled. But paint and film set scenic artist Kerri McGill is making the most of her time at the NZ Pacific Studio. Even before the shutdown, she’d been exploring the North and South Islands, and incorporating maps into her work. She tells Lynn about the differences in the landscape between her home in urban America and here in Aotearoa. 

 

3:06 Drama at 3  'Backwards in High Heels' by Stuart Hoar, a 21^st century comedy of manners. 

Music Details: 

‘Miss You Like Crazy’ by Natalie Cole  Dur: 3.53

‘Missing’ by Everyone But the Girl      Dur: 3:51

‘Miss you in a Heartbeat’ by Def Leppard  Dur: 4.04

‘Somebody’s Missing You’ by Dolly Parton dur: 3.45