INDEPENDENT NEWS

NZSO tours with All Black great Anton Oliver in October

Published: Thu 29 Aug 2013 10:18 AM

29 August 2013

Legendary All Black hooker and arts connoisseur Anton Oliver will soon tour with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra to narrate the famous story Peter and the Wolf.

Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf has introduced millions of children to classical music. Oliver will narrate the story of an inquisitive boy called Peter, his unlikely farmyard friends, and a wolf that’s a terror in the night. In performing this work, Oliver is following in the footsteps of others who have also narrated this tale – Dame Edna Everage, Sean Connery and David Bowie, to name just a few.

This is a rare opportunity for the influences of rugby and the arts to meet. It’s a chance for Oliver to share his experiences and belief in the self-expression that can come from the arts. During the tour, Oliver will also visit schools, telling his story:

“When I was young the only way I knew how to express [emotions] came out as anger, luckily for me this was channeled and controlled through sport. My art experiences provided a way for me to ‘come out of my emotional closet’ and that’s the message I want to convey.”

And if you thought having been an All Black means you are fearless, think again! Performing with the NZSO won’t be an easy undertaking, even for one of New Zealand’s rugby greats:

“[O]ne of the reasons I did say ‘yes’ was because this is completely out of my comfort zone. I’d rather run into the South African forward-pack to be honest!

“I don't want my choices in life dictated to me by fear – there are any number of valid reasons not to do something but I try not to let fear be one of them. I suggest people come along and have a good old laugh, I'm going to try to have fun and enjoy myself and I hope others can do too.”

Peter and the Wolf won’t be the only work the NZSO will perform on this six-concert tour. This family concert starts with a first half of orchestral delights. Every aspiring young dancer will be mesmerised by excerpts from Tchaikovsky’s familiar music for the charming classic ballet The Nutcracker. Tap your toes along to Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy and Waltz of the Flowers, among others.

Our dance theme will continue with waltzes, tangos, and polkas from New Zealand composer David Farquhar’s Short Suite from Ring Round the Moon. This music was originally composed for a New Zealand production of a play by the same name and has been performed ever since, both here and abroad, and was used for a Royal New Zealand Ballet production, The Wintergarden.

International conductor Tecwyn Evans comes home to lead the Orchestra for this special concert for people of all ages.

Beginning in Wellington, the tour then heads south to take in Dunedin, Gore, Te Anau, Balclutha and Oliver’s home town, Invercargill.

This October, the NZSO is getting back to grass roots, mixing it up with rugby great Anton Oliver, a whimsical children’s story, and some of classical music’s most famous dances.

NZSO Tall Tales & Tangos

TECWYN EVANS Conductor

ANTON OLIVER Narrator

TCHAIKOVSKY Selections from The Nutcracker

FARQUHAR Short Suite from Ring Round the Moon

PROKOFIEV Peter and the Wolf

WELLINGTON / Michael Fowler Centre / Saturday 12 October / 4:30 pm

TICKETEK / 0800 842 538 / TICKETEK.CO.NZ

DUNEDIN / Town Hall / Tuesday 15 October / 6:30 pm

TICKETDIRECT / 0800 224 224 / TICKETDIRECT.CO.NZ

GORE / St James Theatre / Wednesday 16 October / 7:00 pm

iTICKET / 0508 iTICKET / ITICKET.CO.NZ