Full circle
Liam Stretch
Culture Editor
Did you make it along to any of our city’s cultural treats for September? I kicked it off with WORD, and I was lucky to attend several events, with An Evening with Lianne Moriarty an absolute stand out. As the month continued, the CSO came out to shine with Verdi Requiem, an impassioned opera which seemed a fitting way to remember the late Queen. Then came the moment I had been waiting over a year for – Matilda The Musical at the Isaac Theatre Royal. I was thrilled for the local theatre crew Showbiz to wow audiences once again. It is something they do so well, and they had been interrupted by Covid several times when trying to perform Matilda. It was a full circle moment, with opening night falling in the same week as pandemic mandates were lifted. I say this to our local artists and performers that have made it through these past two years, you’ve sacrificed a lot, and for that, we owe you an ovation, a ‘bravo’, a thank you.
PACIFIC BLUE(S)
You’d be forgiven if you couldn’t name a New Zealand ‘blues’ group. That’s why I was thrilled to come across Wellingtonian band Sea Mouse. Though not strictly a ‘blues band’ – they’re known for rock – their latest EP has an incredibly bluesy feel, with hard-hitting guitar slapping and vocals from the recesses of the soul that B.B King would be proud of. Check out their EP Evil Heart.
4 stars
BEST BEFORE
Tasting History with Max Miller is the YouTube series you didn’t know you needed. It is guaranteed to satiate your historical hunger. Max takes the viewer through some of history’s most interesting meals and presents excellently researched contextual stories of the times of the dish. Though he admits some should stay where they were, he occasionally comes across a gem.
4 stars
ROOT TO STEM
There are some books that are read once and then relegated to an overflowing bookshelf. Plantopedia is not one of them. You’ll be picking this one up time and time again, even if you don’t have an urban jungle like some of us, ahem. Think of it as a parenting book for plant mummies and daddies, with care level descriptions, soil needs, and even toxicity ratings. Trust me; you need this.
5 stars