2010 New Zealand International Arts Festival
First Events Announced For 2010 New Zealand International Arts Festival
A fusion of dance celebrating George Gershwin’s music, a play with no words set to a soundtrack of Simon and Garfunkel, Mahler’s orchestral masterpiece ‘Symphony of a Thousand’ and leading British writer and historian Simon Schama are the first events to be announced for the 2010 New Zealand International Arts Festival to be held in February and March next year.
World-renowned Russian conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy will lead the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and some of the world’s finest soloists for an epic performance of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No 8 ‘Symphony of a Thousand’; from Latvia comes the innovative New Riga Theatre with The Sound of Silence – a play without words set to the soundtrack of Simon and Garfunkel; French dance company Compagnie Montalvo-Hervieu makes its first visit to New Zealand with Good Morning, Mr. Gershwin; while leading British writer, historian and television presenter Simon Schama headlines New Zealand Post Writers and Readers Week.
Season tickets
go on sale today for the 2010 New Zealand International Arts
Festival which takes place in Wellington from 26 February to
21 March.
In making today’s preview announcement,
artistic director Lissa Twomey says the 2010 Festival
programme looks to the past while continuing to explore
innovative art forms of the future.
“We’re bringing
the best possible works and the best artists to New Zealand
to connect with, engage and entertain the widest possible
audiences,” Ms Twomey says. “I’m excited about the
wealth of experiences we have in store for 2010 and I’m
delighted to now be able to share a few Festival
gems.”
Mahler Symphony No 8
2010 marks
100 years since the premiere of Mahler’s Symphony No 8,
dubbed ‘Symphony of a Thousand’ due to its vast
instrumental force. Opening the 2010 Festival, this
monumental work, Mahler Symphony No 8, will be performed by
the NZSO with two large mixed choirs, a children’s chorus,
organ, off-stage brass and eight leading vocal soloists.
“Mahler 8 is a remarkable work of redemptive power and
one of the greatest musical experiences of our time,” Ms
Twomey says. “We’re absolutely thrilled to bring one of
the world’s most renowned and revered artists to New
Zealand to conduct this work. It will be a wonderful
celebratory start to the Festival.”
The vocal soloists
feature New Zealanders Simon O’Neill (tenor) and Martin
Snell (bass) together with sopranos Annalena Persson
(Sweden), Russia’s Marina Shaguch and Australian Sara
Macliver; altos Dagmar Peckova from the Czech Republic and
Bernadette Cullen (Australia) and German baritone Markus
Eiche.
The Sound of Silence
Set to a
soundtrack of Simon and Garfunkel hits and staged by
award-winning director Alvis Hermanis, New Riga Theater’s
The Sound of Silence brings to life the idealism and heady
romance of the 1960s.
The Sound of Silence weaves
together the experiences of 14 young Latvians as they
discover the intricacies of life and love in the aftermath
of the cancellation of a Simon and Garfunkel concert. The
production has won numerous awards including the Grand Prix
at the 18th International Theatre Festival in Poland held in
May this year.
“The Sound of Silence is a journey back
in time,” says Ms Twomey. “It’s funny, colourful and
exuberant, but it’s also mischevious and poetic.”
Good Morning, Mr. Gershwin
Fusing hip-hop,
ballet and tap-dance against a backdrop of immense and
emotive video imagery, Compagnie Montalvo-Hervieu’s Good
Morning, Mr. Gershwin pays tribute to American composer
George Gershwin.
In the first half, dancers bring to life
the glamour of the 20s and 30s as they take an exuberant
frolic through some of Gershwin’s most well-known Broadway
classics; while the second half draws on the music of
Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess and features some of the
composer’s most popular hits including Summertime and It
Ain’t Necessarily So.
“I’m looking forward to
welcoming Compagnie Montalvo-Hervieu to New Zealand for the
first time. They’ve been to Australia before, but despite
previous efforts have never made it here,” Ms Twomey says.
“It’s hard not to like this company, who blend ballet
with contemporary street dance and acrobatic styles with
video to popular and magical effect.”
Simon
Schama
New Zealand Post Writers and Readers Week runs
from 9-14 March presenting a programme of remarkable writers
and thinkers from around the world and headlining the
programme will be renowned British writer, historian and art
critic Simon Schama.
Currently an art and cultural critic for the New Yorker Professor of Art History and History at Columbia University, Simon Schama is a multi award-winning writer and is best known for writing and hosting the 15-part BBC documentary series A History of Britain. His impassioned account of the American Revolution in Rough Crossing won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Non-Fiction in 2007 and his other award-winning books include Citizens: Rembrandt’s Eyes and the History of Britain trilogy.
These events are just a glimpse of what’s in
store for the 2010 New Zealand International Arts Festival
programme of music, theatre, dance, performance, visual arts
and literature which will be staged from 26 February to 21
March 2010 in Wellington. The full programme will be
announced on Tuesday 3 November. The 2010 New Zealand
International Arts Festival is proudly supported by Gold
sponsorship partners TV3, New Zealand Post, Pacific Blue and
Clemenger BBDO.
Season tickets for the Festival are on
sale from today for dedicated arts enthusiasts to be able to
secure priority access to the hottest tickets of the
Festival. Season tickets and Friends of the Festival
memberships can be purchased online at www.nzfestival.nzpost.co.nz.
ENDS