PRESS RELEASE
Leaders of Avant Garde NZ Theatre Seize The Basement.
After an invitation to perform at a prestigious New Performance Art Festival in Finland, NZ's leading forces of avant
garde theatre, Nisha Madhan (Indian Ink Theatre Co, Shortland Street) and Stephen Bain bring 2 of their stunning and
critically acclaimed works to the Basement.
The two week Basement take-over begins with WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME? - an absurdist and darkly comic cabaret of
obsessions based on the stalkeresque work of French photographer Sophie Calle. What Have You done To Me? is a
sub-consciously feminist playground of visually bold images, gorillas and confetti.
"charming, troubled, violent, seductive…hilariously entertaining"- theatreview.org.nz
Closely following is the genre-defying, anarchic and party fuelled LIES, where 4 performers lie, cheat and run gleefully
into the face of failure. LIES is a deliberately unstable world of theatrical discord and pure play.
“it breaks every rule of the theatre without ever encroaching into arrogance or cliché.” – theatreview.org.nz
For 5 years Bain and Madhan have created work that smashes up boundaries. Known for their deconstructed and humorous
style the pair have consistently delivered work that has fearlessly played by its own rules. Their work pulls the rug
out from under your feet and explodes expectations.
They have performed in Paris, Brussels, Perth, Montreal and soon head to Turku and Helsinki in Finland. In 2011 They
created The Town Centre theatre company to umbrella their larger theatrical pieces and have since won several awards
including Best Newcomer Theatre Makers (2011 Hackman Awards, and Best In Outdoor (2014 Fringe Festival) and this year
were finalists for Most Original Concept at the Dunedin Fringe Awards.
This is not traditional theatre, but instead, a team of traditionally trained artists navigating new, experimental ways
of vying for the audience’s trust and affections.
See the shows that people claim "ruins all other theatre" and call "exhilarating, inspiring and brilliant."
PERFORMANCE SEASON 2 -13 September
7 & 8pm
facebook/thetowncentre