SEASON SPONSOR SUPPORTED BY NATIONAL TOURING PARTNER A TASTY TREAT OF A BALLET ROYAL NEW ZEALAND BALLET CLICK TO EXPLORE Artistic Director Patricia Barker Executive Director Lester McGrath Ballet Masters Clytie Campbell, Laura McQueen Schultz, Nicholas Schultz, Michael Auer (guest) Principals Allister Madin, Paul Mathews, Katharine Precourt, Mayu Tanigaito, Nadia Yanowsky Soloists Sara Garbowski, Kate Kadow, Shaun James Kelly, Fabio Lo Giudice, Massimo Margaria, Katherine Minor, Joseph Skelton Choreography Loughlan Prior Artists Cadence Barrack, Luke Cooper, Rhiannon Fairless, Kiara Flavin, Madeleine Graham, Kihiro Kusukami, Minkyung Music Claire Cowan Lee, Yang Liu*, Nathan Mennis, Olivia Moore, Clare Set and costume design Kate Hawley Schellenberg, Kirby Selchow, Katherine Skelton, Laurynas Assistant set designers Miriam Silvester and Seth Kelly Vėjalis, Leonora Voigtlander, Caroline Wiley, Wan Bin Yuan Lighting Jon Buswell Todd Scholar Teagan Tank Visual effectsPOW Studios Apprentices Georgia Baxter, Ella Chambers, Lara Flannery, Conductor Hamish McKeich Vincent Fraola, Calum Gray, Kaya Weight Orchestra Orchestra Wellington Guests Jamie Delmonte, Tristan Gross, Levi Teachout *On parental leave. CONNECT WITH US rnzb.org.nz Vodafone is proud to keep the Royal New Zealand Ballet facebook.com/nzballet connected, whether we’re in Wellington or out on the road. In twitter.com/nzballet December 2019, Vodafone will be launching the next generation instagram.com/nzballet of mobile technology – 5G. To learn more about what this youtube.com/nzballet means for you and your business visit vodafone.co.nz/5G. Hansel and Gretel drive our story and their ‘ Above all, the story is about Building relationship reflects the ups and downs of overcoming difficult obstacles any good sibling bond. Hansel can usually be found with his head in the clouds and big that block your path, growing up, sister Gretel is always there to get him out of navigating the world and using a trouble. Both children go on an epic journey level head to rise above adversity’. and come out the other side stronger and wiser - bringing the family unit back beautiful, glamorous hostess to a menacing, together. Our primary protagonist Gretel is a predatory child catcher. She’s a mash-up: a fearless female leader and a wonderful role cabaret performer, Kylie Minogue showgirl model for young girls and boys alike. meets Leigh Bowery, vampiric Nosferatu. Hansel and Gretel’s parents are both loving and I would like to thank Patricia Barker for supportive but have fallen on hard times and entrusting Claire, Kate and myself with this struggle to make ends meet. We have done special story and supporting our creative away with the cliché trope of the evil vision. It is our goal to have audiences stepmother, creating greater sympathy for the pirouetting out of theatres with an orgy of parents in their financial struggles and lumping stunning visuals emblazoned in their minds the Witch with the job of primary antagonist. and humming tunes which they won’t be able The character of the Witch is an amalgam of to get out of their heads for weeks. Hansel & a ballet so many influences. She has a dual personality Gretel is a show for everyone. The story of Hansel and Gretel instantly conjures up visions of witches, and gives rise to the term ‘looks can be LOUGHLAN PRIOR | October 2019 lost children, a trail of breadcrumbs and a glowing gingerbread house. deceiving’ as she transforms from a Our production brings together all the fantastical elements you remember from your childhood, while presenting the story in a wholly unique way. Caught inside a black and white 1920s silent The most important part of building any great film the look, sound and feel of the production production is the team you surround yourself harkens back to the times of old celluloid. with. I am very privileged to be working with Audiences will experience the story through collaborators Kate Hawley and Claire Cowan to the eyes of Hansel and Gretel in an bring this fantastical story to the stage. Together expressionistic landscape where trees we have spent countless hours designing the manifest as a forest of forks, the moon is treatment for the show and building a world made of cheese and the Witch rides around that is familiar yet full of surprises. on a steampunk bicycle, luring children to The themes of underprivileged children, her Gingerbread House. bullying and stranger danger are prevalent Hansel & Gretel has been a production two throughout the tale and speak directly to issues years in the making and is the largest single facing Kiwi kids today. Above all, the story is RNZB Principals Allister Madin and Mayu Tanigaito Tanigaito Madin and Mayu Allister RNZB Principals project I have yet had the pleasure to work about overcoming difficult obstacles that block on. In terms of scenic scale and cast there your path, growing up, navigating the world are six large set changes and over seventy and using a level head to rise above adversity. FROM LEFT / FROM different characters. Prior, with Loughlan Fairies of the Dew the King and Queen rehearse A’Court. Stephen by Photograph Papa. Te Theatre, Soundings at onstage Hawley. Kate (R) by (L) and Hansel Gretel for Designs Once upon a time CHARACTERS ACT ONE ACT TWO WHAKAMIHI Once upon a time... Dinner is served! Inside the Gingerbread House Hansel We are honoured to thank the donors who have Gretel • Feisty, resourceful and just a little bit bossy and Gretel are treated to an enormous banquet as the helped us make Hansel & Gretel magnificent by – the perfect big sister Hansel and Gretel live with their mother and father in a tiny little house. The family have fallen on hard times and Witch and her troupe of pink-iced gingerbread men supporting our creative talents and bringing the Hansel • Dreamy and easily led. the children’s parents struggle to make ends meet. provide a cabaret. Hansel and Gretel gorge themselves characters and props to the stage: Thank goodness he can rely on Gretel! on every food imaginable until they can no longer move Every morning, their father ventures into town to sell his Father • Ground down by poverty but working hard and fall asleep at the table. Once the children are asleep Loughlan Prior • Ballet Foundation of New Zealand homemade brooms while their mother scrounges rations for to look after his family the Witch reveals her true, terrifying self. dinner. Hansel and Gretel are always hungry, and their Kate Hawley • in memory of Kate Meares Mother • Devoted to her family, but at her wits’ end clothes are ragged and worn. The other children tease Back in the forest Mother and Father search frantically. The Gingerbread House • Dr Tom and Mrs Ann Morris They are beside themselves with worry until the Sand Man The Ice Cream Witch • A sugar-coated Pied Piper, them when they play in the streets. and the Fairies arrive to explain what has happened. The Moon • Sarah and John Singleton luring children with magical treats One day an enchanting woman appears, riding a magical Together they continue their quest to find and save their bicycle and selling delicious ice-creams! Penniless, Hansel The Mother • Elizabeth Whyte The Transformed Witch • The Witch in her children from the Witch. and Gretel watch jealously as the other children buy giant true form The Queen of the Dew Fairies • Friends of the RNZB ice-cream cones. All is not as it seems however as the Meanwhile, the Witch prepares disgusting concoctions to The Sand Man • Guardian and guide in the mysterious woman is an evil witch in disguise and she has a fatten Hansel. She is going to cook him in her giant oven The King of the Dew Fairies • Douglas Higgins enchanted forest and then eat him. Gretel tries in vain to free Hansel from his taste for naughty children… Food People • Bruce Rae and Margaret Mabbett Queen of the Dew Fairies • Queen of the cage. She passes Hansel a scrawny chicken bone so when That night, Hansel and Gretel start to quarrel at the table. enchanted forest the witch asks Hansel to stick his finger out of the cage Dew Fairies (corps de ballet) • Sarah and Tim Bartlett, They are scolded by their parents, who are at their wits’ so she can feel how plump he is getting he can present Steven and Catherine Fyfe, Heather Gribble King of the Dew Fairies • Her consort end. Feeling hard done by and desperate for food, Hansel the chicken bone instead and the short-sighted Witch The Chorus of Witches • Steven and Catherine Fyfe, • and Gretel decide to steal the last loaf of bread and run Gingerbread men Enslaved by the Witch will think he is still too skinny. Elizabeth and Geoffrey Lee, Mrs Diana Marsh and away. A magical forest begins to grow from the ground. to do her every bidding Justice Francis Cooke QC Hansel and Gretel venture inside, laying a trail of As the Witch takes a nap, Gretel sneaks up to steal the keys Food People • Anthropomorphic dancing desserts breadcrumbs to mark their way back home. to Hansel’s cage. Just as she is about to grab them the Birds (child extras) • Peter Bertram, Shanwen Tan Witch wakes up. In a terrible rage, and fed up with waiting and Family Townspeople • Wealthy inhabitants strolling A squabble of noisy birds makes quick work of the crumbs the street so long, the Witch decides she will cook Hansel and tells and the children are lost and alone. They run from the Gingerbread Boogiemen • Frances and Bill Bell, Mrs Gretel to prepare the oven! Gretel finds some bellows by Diana Marsh and Justice Francis Cooke QC Ghost children • Lost souls in limbo shadows and ghosts that appear in the forest until they the fire and pretends not to know how to use them, tricking meet a friendly face, the Sand Man.