July #14
The Founders Theatre is coming down, coming down, coming down.
Jane Goodall, naughty councillors who’ve watched too much Succession, another new hotel and apartment block. Gigs, including the end of the Yot Club in Raglan. The cat show - with lots of weird cats! We went to Sage. (That’s Sage, not Thyme, as we’ve found ourselves explaining to people.) And Poppies Bookstore gives us their top 5 winter reads, including for kids on school break, and the emergence of a genre we’re going to dub ‘evidence-based self help’.
As always send us your top tips, brunch intel, feedback and suggestions to hello@thewaikatodraft.com or slide into our Insty DMs.
Scuttlebutt
The actual, real life, Jane Goodall was here in Kirikiriroa. At the zoo! Which makes sense. There wasn’t that much about her visit publicly available ahead of time, which was a shame - we would have bought tickets to anything she was speaking at, which seems a missed opportunity for fundraising for something important.
In March, a new riverside, high end hotel was announced for the CBD, by the Templeton Group. Last month, a $100m, 191-bedded Pullman was announced for the Mistry Centre on Ward Street. As readers will know we try and support local and independent whenever we can. But we’re also here for a battle of the hotel bars, especially if they deliver good views of the river. And please let one of them have a) a good pool with b) service drinks poolside.
Before we leave real estate; we’re as guilty as anyone of not giving Tainui news the prominence it deserves. They’ve just got consent to build an apartment block on the corner of Victoria and Ward St. Although I’ll miss the stats on the temporary fence.
Sometimes scuttlebutt writes itself - see: “Hamilton city councillor writes expletive-laden rant to neighbouring council”, from RNZ. Andrew Bydder now has a total of 24 code of conduct complaints against him. As we’ve reported before, these complaints cost the ratepayers a lot of money, which is ironic as they’re instigated by a guy who loves banging on about council overspending.
Lastly, a 92 year old reversed his car into Elizabeth Georg Hair Design in Dinsdale, and everyone was okay. Within hours, Zibido Hair had offered them their unattended salon space that weekend so they could still see clients. We love to see it.
What’s on
IRL
Amphora are doing complimentary aperitivo with their pours between 4 and 6pm weekdays, which sounds like the perfect after work wind down to us. They are also doing a Raclette for Bastille Day (weekend) from July 12 - 14th, details.
Speaking of Bastille Day, Alliance Française hosts a party on July 13 at Sky City, promising live music, a French buffet and a cancan show. Bonne fête nationale, everyone! Tickets.
It’s the last-chance-to-see for a few exhibitions at the museum: a selection of modern art from the Chartwell collection, the six extinctions museum for kids (and adult dinosaur lovers). They’re also doing a number of movie screenings alongside entry for the latter - notably Night at the Museum (PG), July 16.
Go see some weird cats somewhere other than the internet, with the Hamilton Cat Club annual 2024 show, this weekend July 7 at the Tamahere Community Center.
Film
By Jason Marshall
Is it a sequel? Is it a reboot? We don’t know, and honestly it sounds like a film studio robot put it all together: Let’s do a new version of the beloved 90s storm chaser road flick, Twister, but put current reigning hunk Glenn Powell in it and get Oscar nominated director Lee Isaac Chung (of the soulful, heartbreaking A24 drama, and love letter to immigrant parents everywhere, Minari) on board. What we do know is Twisters is sure to contain bad weather and some sort of gadget flow into a tornado as it rampages through a town in the midwest. July 11. Trailer.
Director Yorgos Lanthimos (of last year’s excellent Poor Things, and purveyor of profoundly unsettling films like Dogtooth, The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer) returns with Kinds of Kindness, an absurdist black comedy anthology. Emma Stone, Willem Defoe, and Jesse Plemmons star. July 11. Trailer.
Echoing 90s crime thrillers with horror aesthetics like Silence of the Lambs and Se7en, Longlegs sees a rookie FBI agent detailed to the case of an on the loose serial killer with an interest in the occult. July 18. Trailer.
Music
By Adam Fulton
Yot Club Farewell show. Yot Club (Raglan), July 6. Tickets.
Possibly the most fitting band to send off the Yot Club the DHDFDs, who will be joined by Hermordroid, Illicit Wah Wahz and Hoick Stunt Clown.
Take Hold. Mesoverse (All ages), July 6. Tickets.
The second and final Kirikiriroa EP release show for Tāmaki Makaurau melodic hardcore outfit Take Hold. Joined by Qualms & Cease and Desist.
Paige Julia. July 6. Last Place. TIckets.
Possibly the first ever jungle show at Last Place.
Synthesis of Self. Mesoverse (All ages), July 13. Tickets.
A night of slightly theatrical metalcore and less theatrical hardcore. Synthesis of Self, Cease and Desist, Nuclear Blunt.
Vagina Dry. Nivara Lounge. July 19. Tickets.
Tied with Kirikiriroa's own Dog Cock for least poster-friendly band name, fuzzy punk trio Vagina Dry (Ōtepoti) play Nivara Lounge.
Menzies. The Yard (Raglan). July 27. Link.
Menzies only have two singles out and they are both radically different, but also both quite good in a meander-y and very "kiwi" way. Featuring a bunch of well established and talented Pōneke musicians. Worth the risk and the drive out to Raglan.
Theatre
By Louise Drummond
Nurse Georgie Carroll: Sista Flo 2.0. Clarence St Theatre, 6 July, 7.30pm. Tickets.
A one night only comedy show from a touring star of Britain's Got Talent 2023. Nothing is darker than medical humour, and nurses are honestly the darkest (okay, I'm basing that on my sister, but I'm sure it applies across the board).
Kingdom of Night. Meteor Theatre, 9 - 19 July, times vary. Tickets.
It's school holiday time again, and with that comes the children's theatre shows. This one is locally written, which I love, by Courteney Mayall and Scott Granville. It tells the story of two adventurers needing to defeat an evil wizard. Recommended for ages 5-13 years.
Badjelly the Witch. Clarence St Theatre, 11 July, 11am. Tickets.
Spike Lee's Badjelly is an absolute classic and always a good time. This one has a bit of a twist, with Glow Show adding puppetry and science to the mix, so even if you've seen a Badjelly show before there should still be something new in the mix this time. Perfect school holiday option.
Whiti. Meteor Theatre, 20 July, 6pm. Tickets.
Part of the Matariki ki Waikato Festival, this is a one night only event celebrating the talent of local rangatahi, both established and up-and-comers. If you feel like listening to some beautiful voices, then this is definitely worth your time.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Clarence St Theatre, 27 July - 10 August, times vary. Tickets.
Hamilton Operatic's major show for this year is the classic Victor Hugo tale. It's based on the music from the Disney animated film, but the plot differs from the movie and is closer to the original book, so it's not appropriate for little ones. Should be an amazing night full of powerhouse talent, and I'm looking forward to seeing it.
What We Put in our Mouths this Month
As one-time Aucklanders, we love an Asian supermarket. We headed to Garden Fresh in Rototuna and found a great selection of fresh (and cheap) fruit and veg, seasonings and sauces, weird and wonderful snacks, and frozen dumplings and noodles. For our money, it’s Hamilton’s best Asian grocer.
We celebrated Matariki with some dear friends over a long and relaxed breakfast of migas tacos, served with chorizo, black beans, guacamole, and bucketloads of pour over coffee. This video by filmmaker Robert Rodriguez is a great primer on breakfast tacos and how to make flour tortillas.
We’re late to the party, but finally had a chance to eat at Sage. We’ve stopped in there for a drink before, and found the ambiance in the bar area somewhat lacking - we couldn’t put our finger on it exactly, maybe it was the lighting or lack of music, but it felt like a bit of a dead space. Thankfully that vibe didn’t carry over to the dining area, which looks out over the leafy oaks of Steele Park, like a high end treehouse. As we’ve written about previously, we’re big fans of chef’s choice menus and putting restaurants in the driver’s seat for the evening, so we went for the ‘Eat Wisely’ ($82 pp) menu option; it was all excellent, but were especially taken by the soy cured salmon (with spring onion fraiche and bagel crumb) and the duck breast with red cabbage and almond cream. We added on oysters to start, as well as dessert from the dessert cart, and of course drinks. We love love love that they cycle out plates with every course. We love oysters, but we don’t want their juice over the rest of the meal.
Top 5: Winter Book Club
We asked Alison Southby from beloved local bookstore Poppies, in Casabella Lane, what’s flying off the shelves at the moment: from self help and neutrodiversity, to Stella Greg’s latest young adult fiction set in Ngāruawāhia.
Lioness, by Emily Perkins. Winner of this year's Jan Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction at the Ockham NZ Book Awards.
A Life Less Punishing: 13 Ways To Love the Life You've Got, by Matt Heath. Experts from neuroscience, philosophy, biology and psychology helping you deal with gnarly emotions such as anger, loneness and stress.
The Missing Piece: A Woman's Guide to Understanding, Diagnosing and Living with ADHD, by Julie Legg (who lives in Ohaupo), who was diagnosed at age 52 and dovetails her own experience with the latest research.
Nine Girls, by Stacey Gregg, a young adult adventure; a treasure hunt set in Ngāruawāhia and featuring the Waikato Awa.
And another one for the kids - Astrochimp, by David Williams, where chump the chimp is thrust into a space-opera with the 6 - 10 year old reader in mind.
