The Spinoff’s top picks of events from around the motu.
This week some sad research landed in my inbox. A report found that 75% of New Zealanders are tightening their purse strings when it comes to socialising. The casualties are dining out, going to cafes, weekend getaways and going to bars and clubs. It’s the kind of research where the first gut reaction is “sad!” and then you think about it for a minute, line it up with your own life and think, “actually, I knew that already”. Nearly half the people surveyed said that as a result of cutting back that spending they were feeling isolated or that they were missing out on key life moments. Too true.
I’ve been a stingy loser recently, slobbing around at home or focusing on quiet, nature-based activities. Last weekend, I took my own advice, left the couch and went to two of the events on the noticeboard, plus two others. They were all free, and I ran into precious friends I haven’t seen in months. What a joy! And what a great reminder that purse strings don’t have to choke your social life.
Music: Zoe Scott and Kate Owen
Hall on the Terrace, 49 Hally Terrace, Temuka
3pm Friday, April 18
$25, all ages
Zoe Scott is back home briefly after time in Australia, Indonesia, and Malaysia. She makes ethereal acoustic folk-y music and has a clear, soulful voice. Her lyrics are vulnerable, telling stories of love, loss and female rage. Scott will be performing songs from her upcoming EP, Homecoming.
Kate Owen, Scott’s sister, is another formidable vocalist and songwriter. Her songs are faster paced, though still poetic and restrained. To continue the familial trend, you may even spot their brother playing a lap steel guitar. If the beauty of the music hasn’t pulled you in yet, consider that they’re performing in a carefully restored old Church hall. It is quite possible it will be transcendental.
Northland
Music and sculpture: Maggie Cocco’s Science for Sociopaths
Hundertwasser Art Centre, 81 Dent Street, Whangārei
7 – 8.30pm Thursday, April 17
Pay what you can (Recommended $30)
A theatrical art pop project that is known for its sincere and disarming intimacy. There will be a chance to get involved in making a sculpture, don’t be shy.
Auckland
Visual art and Jewellery: SUPERSTORE
Plomacy, 8 Brown Street, Ponsonby
1 – 6pm Friday – Saturday until April 27
Free
Auckland’s hottest young-ish artists at the city’s newest gallery.
Theatre: Speed is Emotional
Q Theatre, 305 Queen Street, Auckland Central
7pm Tuesday – Saturday, 5pm Sunday until May 3
$30 – $65
Jo Randerson bares their soul on stage, sharing the exhaustion, joy, and absurdity of living with neurodiversity.
Central North Island
Sculpture: Treasures in the Landscape
The Sculpture Park at Waitakaruru Arboretum,
207 Scotsman Valley Road RD7 Tauwhare, Hamilton
9am – 5pm daily until May 4
$5 – $20
A rare opportunity to see more than 20 major pieces of art by some of New Zealand’s finest artists.
Wellington
Visual art: The Shamash stays the same but the Atua is different, Mariam Tawfik
Enjoy Public Art Gallery, 211 Left Bank, off Cuba Street
11am – 6pm Wednesday – Friday, 11am – 4pm Saturday, until May 24
Free
Filmed during a trip to Iraq in 2024, Tawfik looks at Iraq’s layered history of disruption and its unexpected resonances with te ao Māori.
Marlborough
Visual art: Land.Form, Joanna Dudson Scott and Sara Scott
Dudson Scott Studio, 1494 SH6, Renwick
10:30am – 3:30pm daily until May 4
Free
The two artists have combined painting and ceramics into words that show love for the landscape of the region.
Christchurch
Visual art: Dalosa, Lafo & Iva
The Physics Room, 301 Montreal Street
11am – 5pm Tuesday – Friday, 11am – 4pm weekends until May 18
Free
Axel Iva, who made the clear persepex fale umu (traditional Samoan cooking house) says that when their dad moved to New Zealand from Samoa, he built a fale umu as a portal to home
Dunedin
Visual art: …we all become all of these things, Megan Brady
Blue Oyster, 16 Dowling Street, Ōtepoti
11am – 5pm Tuesday – Friday, 11am – 3pm Saturday, until April 26
Free
Whimsical, patterned sculptures in wood and textile that the artist uses to think about time and place.
West Coast
Visual art: Within My Reach, Robert Thompson
Left Bank Art Gallery, 1 Tainui Street, Greymouth
10am – 4pm Tuesday – Friday, 10.30am – 2pm Saturday, until April 26
Free
Picton-born local artist shows off his skills with colour and line in a series of paintings.
Southland
Music: Supergroove, Troy Kingi, Rubi Du and DJ King Kapisi
Civic Theatre, 88 Tay Street, Invercargill
8pm Monday, April 21
$72-$92
Party like its 1995 with the original lineup! But also arrive on time for the wonderful support acts!
Have a fun week seeing your friends :)
