February #09
It’s February and it’s still hot and lazy, and the city is still waking up; but on the other hand, there’s this local by-election, there’s an arts festival, and finally you can get a good cup of coffee again as hospitality opens up again.
In particular, make sure you check out our theatre editor Louise Drummond’s picks of the Hamilton Arts Festival: this kind of stuff is one of the reasons we started this newsletter. Because you can pick up a programme anywhere, but if you want recommendations on what’s likely to be very good, then read on, Macduff.
Otherwise! We have the first in a short series reviewing this city’s best bars in their quieter moments. It’s outdoor cinema season at Seddon Park, as well as our picks at the movies for those in search of aircon and shade. Celebrate Waitangi Day at the museum, and a new Filipino supermarket in Cambridge.
Also it’s a leap year! Enjoy your extra day of February darling readers and we’ll see you in March.
Scuttlebutt
We manifested this. In roundabout news! (Please send us any and all roundabout news and opinions that you come across.)
We’ve lovingly made fun of the city’s penchant (read: overuse) of the word precinct before… so the invitation of the month has to be for the opening of the Hamilton Gardens Visitor Entry Precinct. (It’s an information booth, essentially.)
Hamilton zoo Sumatran tiger Kirana welcomes two baby girl cubs.
Oh err…just look at the new station at the Auckland end of Te Huia. With the service up for review in June 2024, it’s use-it-or-lose-it-time, people.
An inner city bus stop is being moved for $700,000. The most frequently reported aspect of this story is that it is outside a Peaches and Cream sex store. But it also should be mentioned that the new location will have some decent seating, which actually seems more important. An earlier version of this newsletter mistakenly said the price had increased from $500,000 - the price was always going to be $700,000.
Kowtow fabs rejoice! They’re now being carried at Found.
Voting is underway in the Hamilton East by-election, with polls closing at noon on Saturday the 17th of February. Learn about the candidates here.
Not particular to Hamilton, but relevant everywhere, the New York Times considers why we don’t think rationally about inflation.
Bus services are increasing! From February 5, across the city, there are 102 new services.
There’s a change in curbside recycling coming (and on, there’s no bigger red bin, nor a weekly pick up). In line with a nationwide change, radically, only the locally recyclable plastics can go into your bin. Which is types 1, 2 and 5 - so start checking your plastics. Even better, check them at the supermarket, and reduce your waste at the other end of the equation.
People are still bursting their aneurysms about in-lane bus stops, like that being built on Hukanui Road. (Funnily enough it’s also the same people upset about the previously aforementioned roundabout.) But be skeptical of any local body candidate that links them to council waste, or tries to conflate it with the upcoming rate rise - it’s mostly funded by central government. For bonus non-sequitur points, try link it to the fixing of pot holes, too.
The Transport Choices Programme, a pot of about $300m dollars from Waka Kotahi, was designed to fund infrastructure that encouraged alternative modes of transport like walking, cycling, and public transport, with money coming from the Climate Emergency Response Fund (CERF). Hamilton City Council’s share of that pie was about $37m, which was to contribute 90% of the funding for 28 projects, leaving the council footing the remaining 10% - a bargain for badly needed infrastructure that makes our city much more inhabitable, including (yes), for cars too.
In September last year, councils were asked by Waka Kotahi to find 10% savings across their projects, which now seems fairly quaint. In October, Waka Kotahi put all this funding on hold pending some direction from the new incoming government. Now, that funding has been cancelled. At the street level this translates to the cancellation of projects across the city that either established new cycleways or linked up existing ones, with each other and to places like the railway station. The Hayes Paddock reconfiguration is gone, as is the Killarney Road separated two-way cycle lane.
You can read the full list of projects going head, and those scrapped, here.
And finally, this seems a no brainer, but a lot of people this year were asking if in these parts, we should still be calling it “Auckland” anniversary weekend.
What’s on
Theatre (namely the Hamilton Arts Festival Toi Ora ki kirikiriroa)
By Louise Drummond
There are well over 30 shows happening at the Hamilton Arts Festival Toi Ora ki Kirikiriroa in late Feb/early March - music, theatre, dance, comedy, cabaret, films, food, escape rooms, and a bunch of family-friendly acts to boot. Some shows, like the annual Sunset Symphony, are free or koha. There's too many great shows to list here, so I've limited this piece to my six top picks for theatre. To check out the many other awesome shows and to book tickets, go here and see what grabs your attention.
Cheehoo! Jandals To Jazzhands. Rhododendron Lawn, Hamilton Gardens. Friday 23 February, 8–10pm. A mix of musical theatre and traditional Pasifika culture, this piece stars local talents Jessica Ruck-Nu’u and Iosia Tofilau, who have recently returned from an international tour of Shrek: The Musical. These two are absolutely worth a watch, especially when directed by Benny Marama, who is absolutely killing it with his cultivation of young talent in Kirikiriroa. BYO low seat or rug, coz it's on the lawn and you want to be comfy.
Merry Wives of Windsor. Festival Hub, Hamilton Gardens. Sunday 25 February 5pm, Saturday 2 March 5pm, Sunday 3 March 5am. The Summer Shakespeare tradition continues with another clever comedy. This is always an absolute highlight of the festival (I say this having been involved with several in the past), and the 5am (yes, you read that right) dawn performance is a surprisingly popular and oddly beautiful shared experience. It's koha, so just show up with a few dollars to drop in the bucket at the end and you're good to go.
The Tempestuous. Medici Court, Hamilton Gardens. Wednesday 28 - Thursday 29 February, 6.30pm. After touring her awesome Jane Austen and Charles Dickens-inspired shows worldwide, Penny Ashton is back with a Shakespeare-inspired solo musical. If it's anywhere near as funny as her previous shows, you'll be guaranteed a fantastic time.
Songs For A New World. Modernist Garden, Hamilton Gardens. Wed 28 February - Friday 1 March, starting times vary each day. Local legends Bold Theatre Company are bringing us another powerful musical. Their previous shows, especially That Bloody Woman and Assassins, have been outstanding, so I'm pretty confident that this one is also going to hit it out of the park.
Prima Facie. Clarence St Theatre. Thurs 29 February - Saturday 2nd March, starting times vary each day. A one-woman show about a lawyer who finds herself at the mercy of the legal system after one horrible night. The script for this show is absolutely incredible (it won the 2023 Olivier Award for Best Play), and I'm really looking forward to seeing this performed. (CW: themes of assault.)
Beautiful People. Mansfield Garden, Hamilton Gardens. Friday 1 March, 5.30pm and Saturday 2 March, 7pm. The NZ premiere of an award-winning play that tells the story of two elderly people facing ageing and death. That sounds super depressing, but it's actually a dark comedy, and the reviews are insanely positive, even the one from the Evening Standard that says the show is "like being kissed and hit with a fish in rapid succession." Consider my interest extremely piqued.
Film
By Jason Marshall
There’s no better place to find respite from the dog days of summer than inside a movie theatre. It’s a quiet month of releases, but there’s a few movies that we’re really excited about.
Nobody crafts tales of the lonely, alienating, horny, terrifying passage from girlhood to womanhood quite like Sofia Coppola. Or so women have told me. Priscilla is an adaptation of Priscilla Presley’s memoir, Elvis and Me depicting their first encounter and subsequent life together, and apart. The King’s estate wouldn’t licence any of his music for the film, so you know it’s not going to pull any punches. Releases 1 February. Trailer.
Nobody puts Baby in the corner! But maybe they should, she’s only 16 years old. The Regent are doing a one-off screening of everyone’s favourite Swayze joint, Dirty Dancing, on February 16th. Tickets.
Master of alienation Jonathan Glazer returns with 2023 Cannes Grand Prix winner The Zone of Interest, a Holocaust drama unlike any other that contemplates the Arendtian concept of the banality of evil. “Glazer has achieved something much greater than just making the monstrous mundane — by rendering such extreme inhumanity ordinary he reawakens us to its true horror,” writes Raphael Abraham in the Financial Times. Releases 22 February. Trailer.
I can’t hand on heart say that I really understood what Dune was actually all about, but it was captivating and visually breathtaking. Delayed by last year’s SAG-AFTRA strikes, Dune: Part Two finally lands this month and seems sure to bring the blend of Frank Herbert weirdness and Denis Villeneuve fastidiousness that made the first film such a banger. A rogues’ gallery of very cool actors including Charlotte Rampling, Léa Seydoux, Florence Pugh, and Christopher Walken join the already absolutely stacked cast. Releases 29 February. Trailer.
Sunset Cinema returns to Seddon Park on February 29th, with a screening of beloved 90s golf comedy classic Happy Gilmore on the stadium big screen. Food trucks, a bar, and cheap tickets are promised but you’ll have to BYO chair or picnic blanket. Tickets.
Events
Kawhia hosts the Move Your Tinana Music Movement and Kai Festival, on Saturday February 3rd.
Keen to see some sick manus? The Hamilton qualifier leg of the Z Manu World Championship takes place on February 3rd and 4th at Waterworld.
Waikato Museum - Te Whare Taonga o Waikato hosts a Waitangi Day Festival with a full day of events on February 6. Details.
British stand up and Mock the Week regular Russell Howard performs at Globox Arena on February 8th. Tickets.
The first run of the year at the Hamilton Model Engineers, February 10th, has a Valentine's Day theme, from 5 - 9pm.
The 2024 Paeroa Highland Games and Tattoo takes place on February 10th, and promises massed pipe bands, Highland dancing, something called the Axeman Carnival, and Steampunk Tartan. Tickets.
Kabayan Asian Store, a Filipino run Asian supermarket in Cambridge, celebrates its opening on February 10th.
The Black Caps face South Africa at Seddon Park for the second test, from February 13 to the 17th. Tickets.
The Waikato Westpac Rescue Helicopter holds an open day on February 18th.
What we put in our mouths over summer
With everything shut over the break and forced to fend for ourselves over summer (and before you write to us, we thoroughly endorse hospitality getting a break), we reverted to simple, uniform, largely deli-based eating.
When it’s hot and I want a sandwich, I always think about the jambon fromage at La Voie Francais in Auckland, that used to be a 20m walk from my front door when our family lived in Mt Roskill. There’s nothing revolutionary about it - it’s the same jambon fromage you could get in a billion places across France. I’m not ashamed to tell you that there’s a sort-of-fancy baguette that’s new at Countdown (sorry, Woolworths) that’s not bad. Look – we always try and plug the little guy, but ultimately we all go to the supermarket. Vetro, thank god, was open (although their baker did get a break). And so the uniform eating became the previously mentioned baguette with cheese (Ventro’s provolone gets an especially special mention), and various combinations of fresh tomato, left over Christmas ham, cracked pepper. Sometimes mustard. But never all of those things at once.
We also sampled Vetro’s frozen pizza dough - two balls for around the $5 mark, which are excellent, and also pair well with summer laziness.
We’re also mad on the “chilly red” and started putting selected red wines in the fridge - see our profile of local sommelier Kieran Clarkin (who runs Amphora) for better advice than we can give about how to chose what tipples to do this with.
High Bakery & Cafe, of Silverdale, do a barbecue brisket and cheese pie that we absolutely loved.
Also cheese wise - Expleo butchery in Made carries Over The Moon cheese to Hamilton East, saving us a trip to Putaruru. We’re making our way through some saggy camembert that would do you well on a picnic to any of the upcoming festival events.
And can Hamilton East support another bakery? Let’s find out! Viands of Kihikihi is coming to Grey Street.
We also remain some of the only people who haven’t tried Sage yet, but we are hearing good things. We’ll report back in March.
FeatureTTES
Modern Manners: Hamilton Gardens entry fees
In a significant departure, our world-class attraction that is the Hamilton Gardens is bringing in an entry fee for out-of-towners, with the view to fund new and future expansions. In some ways, in the neoliberal world, it seems astounding it has been free for so long, especially given busloads of tourists are frequently charged by touring companies to stop there. In other ways, it’s always been nice to take visiting friends from out of town down there, waltz in and out, and being able to do so unimpeded feels so accessible, noncommercial, and democratic.
Still, be sure to hear grumbling about the price, and whether it’s worth $20 anyway, from locals to whom the fee doesn’t apply. But what can you do for $20 these days? Nothing. Have you been to a garden centre lately? Plants are expensive, which is also to say nothing about the expertise that must run that place.
Hopefully their expansion plans include more public transport options and pedestrian access across the fiendishly busy Cobham Drive, and much more disability friendly access.
The profile: Kieran Clarkin, Sommelier of amphora
Somellier Kieran Clarkin, who grew up in Kirikiriroa, has moved back home from Melbourne to open wine bar Amphora. Situated at the entry point of the mess hall in Made, you’ll see him loving pouring his ever evolving selection (Greek wines are his specialty), and expertly redirecting all those that want beer to Hapi down the end. Q and A, here.
An empty Earnest
In the first in a short series, we muck around in this city’s hottest spots when they’re luxurious quiet and empty.
