Fringe Festival: A Stage for Students
Words by Maia Ingoe (she/her)
Fringe is known as the birthplace of brilliance for a reason. Over February and March, emerging artists and established performers take to Pōneke stages. Salient talked to three shows making their fringe debut.
King Shit
King Shit explores online masculinity through an anthology of mediums. It is the first professional production by Wills Toon-Lister and Oliver Knott, who both completed degrees in theatre at VUW last year.
The show was born from recollections of the oppressive influence of anti-feminist masculinity in 2016. Wills describes it as a switch being flipped. “It drove young boys from Minecraft videos to PewDiePie to Jordan Peterson to Ben Shapiro,” he said.
“It’s awful,” Oliver added, “that the only masculine voice we were hearing was anti-feminist out of fear.”
Wills and Oliver are clear that while King Shit explores heavy themes, “you cannot understate the silly”. They describe the show’s style as camp, defiant, and beautiful. King Shit isn’t here to bring you answers or conclusions, instead it aims to start a critical conversation on masculine expression.
“At the theatre program at Vic, Fringe is seen as the next goal,” said Oliver. “Naturally it was a great platform to showcase this.”
King Shit is showing at two/fiftyseven on Willis Street from 8-10 March.
Hell School Musical
Hell School Musical was first devised in a VUW Musical Theatre paper in 2022. One year later, the cast and crew are performing the show in Fringe.
“I feel like it never really left our minds,” Aylana Francis from the Hell School Musical team told Salient. Set at a high school reunion, the ex-students discover that thirteen years ago, some of the students sold their souls to the devil.
While some of the original production cast and crew have left the show, most of the team have stayed on. For cast members Annie Black, who plays the head-prefect Alice, and Zane Barefoot, who plays Hearts, it will be their first time performing. Isolating with Covid-19 meant they didn’t make it to the stage the first time around.
Bringing the show to Fringe “just seemed like the next step”, said Aylana. Thanks to the festival and funding from Creative New Zealand, the show has grown into a two-hour production of interlocking storylines backed by a live band. “[At Fringe,] there’s a push for things to be diverse, creative, and push boundaries and expectations. It’s a really fun space to be in,” said Jules.
Hell School Musical was on at Hannah Playhouse from 21-23 February.
Women Drinking Hemlock
Women Drinking Hemlock is a queer comedy with a happy ending. Set in Pōneke, two bars open opposite each other and rivalry ensues.
Not only is it funny, Women Drinking Hemlock prioritises accessibility. It is performed with audio description, sign language, and touch tours. First written by Sacha Acland, Women Drinking Hemlock takes its title from a classical play, the contents of which have been lost due to time.
It’s the first production for many of the executive team and cast, and it’s the first to be directed by Bee Wilson Kilby. Fringe was suggested to Sacha by a VUW tutor as a good home for the show.
Putting on a show for the first time has been a learning process for Bee and Sacha. They’ve had to navigate prioritising accessibility while dealing with ambitious sets and transitions. “It’s a fun take on bringing a bit of TV magic into theatre,” said Bee.
The culture of Te Herenga Waka is very present in Women Drinking Hemlock, as well as that of the Ponēke hospitality scene. “For Vic students who’ve worked in hospo and hated it, you’ll find this hilarious,” said Sacha.
Women Drinking Hemlock is showing at Gryphon Theatre from 7-9 March.