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Brian McNeill (playwright)
Brian McNeill (born 1939) is a New Zealand playwright, actor and director. Early life and career McNeill was born in New Plymouth in 1939. As McNeill says, he: "received the inspiration for his acting career in the form of a vision of Henry Irving in '' The Bells''. He interrupted his studies at Auckland University to go on the stage." At the age of 18, he played his first professional role as The Boy in '' Waiting For Godot,'' directed by Ronald Barker for Auckland's CAS Theatre in 1958. The production toured the North Island of New Zealand, and was controversial. "Dozens walked out at every performance. Local and national dailies gave us front-page coverage. The local ladies' guilds clothed themselves in the role of the Lord Chamberlain, and petitions and complaints flooded Government House, Wellington. The Prime Minister was informed, decided to see it for himself, but understandably pulled out at the last minute. The censorial task was delegated to one of his right-hand m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Plymouth
New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. The New Plymouth District, which includes New Plymouth City and several smaller towns, is the 10th largest district (out of 67) in New Zealand, and has a population of – about two-thirds of the total population of the Taranaki Region and % of New Zealand's population. This includes New Plymouth City (), Waitara (), Inglewood (), Ōakura (), Ōkato (561) and Urenui (429). The city itself is a service centre for the region's principal economic activities including intensive pastoral activities (mainly dairy farming) as well as oil, natural gas and petrochemical exploration and production. It is also the region's financial centre as the home of the TSB Bank (formerly the Taranaki Savings Bank), the largest of the remaining non-govern ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mercury Theatre, Auckland
The Mercury Theatre is a theatre in Auckland, New Zealand, located on Mercury Lane, off Karangahape Road. It was home to a theatre company of the same name for two decades. It was built in 1910 by the architect Edward Bartley and is the oldest surviving theatre in Auckland. Built in the Edwardian Baroque style, it was initially known as the Kings Theatre. On being converted into a cinema in 1926, a new entrance was built on Karangahape Road – this is now the Norman Ng Building. The building is a Category II listed building. History From 1968 to 1991 it was the premises of the Mercury Theatre Company. In 1966 the Auckland Theatre Trust was established by Professor John C Reid. It raised finance to open the building as a professional theatre in 1968. The first production initiated by the theatre was ''The Admirable Crichton'' by J.M. Barrie. At least 12 productions were put on annually after this period ranging from children's pantomimes to serious tragedy-dramas including ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edmund Anscombe
Edmund Anscombe (8 February 1874 – 9 October 1948) was one of the most important figures to shape the architectural and urban fabric of New Zealand. He was important, not only because of the prolific nature of his practice and the quality of his work, but also because of the range and the scale of his built and speculative projects. These extended from conventional essays to monumental urban schemes informed by his international travel, especially in America. His influence was specifically felt in Dunedin, Wellington and Hastings, yet he also realised projects in Alexandra, Invercargill, Palmerston, Palmerston North, Rotorua, Waimate North and Wanaka. His key works include the 1925–26 New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition, the 1940 New Zealand Centennial Exhibition, the Herd Street Post and Telegraph building, Anscombe Flats, the Empire Deluxe theatre and his work on the clocktower complex – including specifically the Archway Building and Marama Hall – effec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand And South Seas Exhibition (1889)
The New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition was an international exhibition held in Dunedin, New Zealand from 26 November 1889 to 19 April 1890. Organization D. H. Hasting proposed the hosting of an international exhibition in Dunedin, New Zealand to celebrate the golden jubilee in 1890 of the proclamation of British sovereignty over New Zealand in 1840. A meeting was held on 25 October 1888 to form an organizing committee. John Roberts was elected president and Richard Twopeny, executive commissioner. Alfred Lee Smith was one of the directors of the exhibition. The national government officially recognized the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition, and granted £10,000 for its organization. Architecture A site of about 121 acres was donated by the Otago Harbour Board, bounded by Crawford, Anderson's Bay, Cumberland, and Jervois Streets. The main building was designed by James Hislop and built by contractors McMath and Walker of Invercargill. The building consisted of several a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mata Hari
Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod (née Zelle; 7 August 187615 October 1917), better known by the stage name Mata Hari (), was a Dutch exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for Germany during World War I. She was executed by firing squad in France. The idea of a beautiful exotic dancer using her powers of seduction as a spy made her name synonymous with the ''femme fatale''. Her story has served as an inspiration for many books, films and other works. It has been suggested that she was convicted and condemned because the French Army needed a scapegoat,Howe, Russel Warren (1986). ''Mata Hari: The True Story. New York: Dodd, Mead and Company.'' pp. x–xi, 285. and that the files used to secure her conviction contained several falsifications. Some have even stated that Mata Hari could not have been a spy, and was innocent. Early life Margaretha Geertruida Zelle was born 7 August 1876 in Leeuwarden, Netherlands. She was the eldest of four children to Adam Ze ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Louise Petherbridge
Louise Durant Petherbridge (née Harris, born 1931), is a New Zealand actor, director, deviser, producer and lecturer. Early life Born in Dunedin, New Zealand, Petherbridge attended St Hilda's Collegiate and the University of Otago, graduating in 1953 with a BA in English. She was an active member of the Otago University Drama Society (OUDS), and also appeared in plays for the Dunedin Repertory Society, including Aldous Huxley's ''The Gioconda Smile'' (1949). In 1953, Petherbridge won a New Zealand Government Drama Bursary, which allowed her to study for two years at the Northern Theatre School in Bradford, under Esmé Church. A fellow student was Edward Petherbridge, and the two married in 1957. Career Petherbridge acted in weekly and fortnightly rep with companies including Lincoln Theatre Rep and Ipswich Rep (under director Peter Coe), playing Alison in the first out-of-London production of John Osborne's ''Look Back in Anger'' in August 1957. She also played the t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jonathan Elsom
Jonathan Elsom (born 22 September 1938) is a New Zealand-born television actor, writer, sculptor and artist. He appeared in many British and Australian television series and films, which include ''The Troubleshooters'', '' The Avengers'', ''The Saint'', '' The Adventures of Don Quick'', ''Z-Cars'', '' Crown Court'', '' Worzel Gummidge Down Under'', '' The Feds'', ''Review with Myles Barlow ''Review with Myles Barlow'' is an Australian satirical black comedy television series which screened on Thursday nights on ABC2 and Friday nights on ABC 1. The series began screening on 16 October 2008. It is co-written and directed by Trent O' ...'' and others. Acting credits References External links *Jonathan Elsom's official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Elsom, Jonathan 1938 births Living people New Zealand emigrants to England New Zealand expatriates in England English male television actors Australian male actors Australian expatriates in England ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elizabeth Moody (actress)
Elizabeth Moody (née Bromley, 29 October 1939 – 12 January 2010) was an English-born New Zealand film, television and theatre actress and director. Career Born in Worthing, Sussex, England, on 29 October 1939, Moody emigrated to New Zealand, becoming a naturalised New Zealander in 1957. She first came to note nationally in New Zealand during the late 1970s and early 1980s as a regular panellist on the television show ''Beauty and the Beast'' hosted by Selwyn Toogood. Her first feature film role was playing Mabel in '' The Scarecrow''. She also played in ''Undercover Gang'', '' Braindead'', ''Turn of the Blade'', and ''Heavenly Creatures''. Her last film role was playing in Peter Jackson's '' The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring'' as the character Lobelia Sackville-Baggins. Death Moody had been diagnosed with an abscess on the brain and stayed in the hospital for almost three weeks when she died from pneumonia on 12 January 2010. She is survived by her husban ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yvette Bromley
The Court Theatre is a professional theatre company based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1971 and located in the Christchurch Arts Centre from 1976 until the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. It opened new premises in Addington in December 2011. It is currently New Zealand's largest theatre company, and is led by Chief Executive Barbara George and Artistic Director Daniel Pengelly. History Founding and early years The company was founded by Yvette Bromley and Mervyn Thompson in 1971 who served as Co-artistic Directors for the first three years of the company. Bromley chose the theatre's name out of affection for the Royal Court Theatre in London, which she knew well from her upbringing and drama education. During the first eighteen months of its existence, The Court had three venues. The first was the Stone Chamber of the Canterbury Provincial Council Chambers (April – May 1971), where The Court's début production, ''The Prime of Miss Jean Brod ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Court Theatre (New Zealand)
The Court Theatre is a professional theatre company based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1971 and located in the Christchurch Arts Centre from 1976 until the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. It opened new premises in Addington in December 2011. It is currently New Zealand's largest theatre company, and is led by Chief Executive Barbara George and Artistic Director Daniel Pengelly. History Founding and early years The company was founded by Yvette Bromley and Mervyn Thompson in 1971 who served as Co-artistic Directors for the first three years of the company. Bromley chose the theatre's name out of affection for the Royal Court Theatre in London, which she knew well from her upbringing and drama education. During the first eighteen months of its existence, The Court had three venues. The first was the Stone Chamber of the Canterbury Provincial Council Chambers (April – May 1971), where The Court's début production, ''The Prime of Miss Jean Brodi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Otago Daily Times
The ''Otago Daily Times'' (ODT) is a newspaper published by Allied Press Ltd in Dunedin, New Zealand. The ''ODT'' is one of the country's four main daily newspapers, serving the southern South Island with a circulation of around 26,000 and a combined print and digital annual audience of 304,000. Founded in 1861 it is New Zealand's oldest surviving daily newspaper – Christchurch's ''The Press'', six months older, was a weekly paper until March 1863. Its motto is "Optima Durant" or "Quality Endures". History Founding The ''ODT'' was founded by William H. Cutten and Julius (later Sir Julius) Vogel during the boom following the discovery of gold at the Tuapeka, the first of the Otago goldrushes. Co-founder Vogel had learnt the newspaper trade while working as a goldfields correspondent, journalist and editor in Victoria prior to immigrating to New Zealand. Vogel had arrived in Otago in early October 1861 at the age of 26 and soon took up employment at the ''Otago Colonist'', w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fortune Theatre, Dunedin
New Zealand's Fortune Theatre laid claim to being the world's southernmost professional theatre company and sole year round professional theatre group in Dunedin, until its closure on 1 May 2018, citing financial difficulties. The company ran for 44 years. The theatre regularly produced local shows and hosted touring performances. The company was originally located in the auditorium of the Dunedin Athenaeum and Mechanics' Institute in the Octagon, but when that proved too small, moved to the former Trinity Methodist Church on Stuart Street. Financial difficulties in 2000 threatened the theatre with closure, and forced the sale of the building to the Dunedin City Council, who leased the building back to the Fortune Theatre Trust. Early years The Fortune Theatre company was co-founded by David Carnegie, Alex Gilchrist, Murray Hutchinson and Huntly Elliot in 1973. The company was initially located in the 105-seat Otago Cine Club theatrette at the rear of the Athenaeum buildin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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