Media Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FROM THE FROZEN SOUTH TO THE MOORINGS
Bond Street Bridge presents
THE EXPLORERS CLUB: ANTARCTICA
They’ve torn up the bible and eaten the dogs – Auckland alt-folk outfit Bond Street Bridge present tales of courage,
endurance and Edwardian pluck in their multimedia song cycle ‘The Explorer’s Club: Antarctica’. For the 2013 Wellington
Fringe, The historic Moorings ballroom plays host to a special show of sweet harmonies and jangling guitars on Friday 16
February.
2013 marks the 100th anniversary of the end of Captain Scott’s ill-fated Terra Nova expedition, and inspired by the incredible stories of Captain Scott and Sir Ernest Shackleton, songwriter Sam Prebble
has produced a series of songs of shipwreck, frostbite, and stiff-upper-lip survival in the snow. With a combination of
spoken-word storytelling and original folk songs, performances range from ethereal to foot-stomping; arrangements run
the gamut from delicate vocal harmonies to dramatic percussive explosions. The show is fortified by heritage photographs
taken by the explorers themselves courtesy of the Alexander Turnbull Library, projected alongside original mixed media
illustrations from Auckland artist Emily Cater.
Sam Prebble. Photo by Conor Clarke
‘These are fantastic stories,’ says Prebble. ‘You couldn’t make them up. The reactions we’ve had as we travel round the
country with them this year are remarkable – there’s something in the New Zealand psyche that really resonates with
these stories of self-reliance and endurance.’
The Wellington Fringe Fest show will be enhanced by the appearance of local duo Rosy Tin Teacaddy, singing their
exquisitely researched song-translations of New Zealand history, written during their Wild Creations
Artists-In-Residency on the banks of Lake Tarawera. Expect digital dustings, found-sound percussion and mood-altering
melodies woven into their familiar close-knit vocal harmonies and traditional folk leanings.
Prebble’s band of road-hardened troubadours will be touring The Explorers Club through 20 locations throughout New
Zealand, accompanied by indie-rock band Luckless and blues songwriter Brendan Turner. With rousing stories of icy
adventure, stunning heritage photographs and beautiful original illustrations, audiences can expect to be transported
back to a time when the ice was unforgiving, the pole was untouched, and if the worst came to the worst, one could
always eat the dogs.
Wellington Fringe runs from 15 February to 19 March 2013. For more Wellington Fringe information go to www.fringe.co.nz
The Explorer’s Club: Antarctica plays
16 February, doors at 8:00, 8:30 start
Duration: 120 minutes (including support acts)
Venue: The Moorings, 31 Glenbervie Tce, Thorndon
Tickets:$20, door sales only
ENDS