I was looking through a few images recently from past New Zealand International Arts Festivals, and came across this one from the 2008 opera, The Trial Of The Cannibal Dog, at the Opera House in Wellington...
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It was a pleasant surprise to be asked to pop over to Ravi Shankar's sound check on the afternoon of his concert - I don't think I was really expecting to get a chance to photograph him or the show, but I tailed Festival Director Lissa Twomey over to greet him and spent a bit of time with them as he & his daughter Anoushka got things ready for that night. It was amazing to see him, at the age of 90, settle in and just play. Because he could really PLAY. Amazing - wish I'd been able to come back for the show!
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A mix of boxing, Shakespeare and dance, today - first a 2006 show, Aarero Stone, featuring Carol Brown and Charles Koroneho at Soundings Theatre in Te Papa. I actually photographed this one over a couple of days' rehearsals as it came together towards opening night - which often happens - but it still stands out in my head for the images that came out of it, this many years later.
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Four different shows today - first up is Super Vision, with Harry Sinclair from the Front Lawn. To be honest, when I heard he was in Wellington doing a show at the same time Don McGlashan was playing at the Festival Club, I kinda hoped...well, you know. Never happened, though!
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Two shows from the same year (and the same day), today - plus a bonus photo of lovely Vi Blackburn, who has been ushering and selling programmes around Wellington for as long as anyone can remember. This is possibly the first photo I got of her in action, but I always tried to track her down at some point during each Festival.
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As I mentioned yesterday, Kneehigh Theatre are one of my Festival favourites - and a company I'm always happy to see when I get a chance in other cities, too. From Tristan & Yseault to Brief Encounter and The Wild Bride, every show I've seen has a wonderful warmth to it - so it was great to have them back in Wellington in 2012, their second visit from their home in Cornwall.
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