High Street to the Hills Issue 22

ANN WARNOCK SUMS UP THE BEST OF WHAT'S ON.

Show Me Shorts 2008

6 November to 14 January,  various locations

From “docu-mations” to “splat-stick horrors”, this competitive festival of short films crafted by amateurs and pros from Australasia is a blast of ingenuity. Around 40 short films across all genres screen for week-long periods in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, Motueka and Whitianga. As well as hailing the big boys, the festival fosters emerging film students.

Phone (09) 373 2761, www.showmeshorts.co.nz

Harbour Crossing

16 November, Auckland

If you’d like to be able to say you’ve swum across the Auckland Harbour, this is your moment. It’s not every day that all marine traffic in the country’s largest city comes to a standstill while you bring out your best breaststroke. The event started in 2004 and now attracts more than 900 competitors. The course starts in Devonport and finishes amidst the fashionable cafés and apartments at the Viaduct Harbour.

Register online at www.nzoceanswim.co.nz

Roger Hall’s Red Riding Hood

15 November to 20 December, Circa Theatre, Wellington

A New Zealand première and a marvellous, magical treat from our iconic playwright – musical goodies, jokes and pre-Christmas nonsense as Roger Hall reinvents this famous pantomime with his sharp-humoured pen. Enjoy the traditional tale of Red Riding Hood, her widowed mother, short-sighted grandmother, handsome woodcutter and villainous, smooth-talking wolf.

Phone (04) 801 7992,  www.circa.co.nz

Beyond the Print

5 to 18 December, Lake House Arts Centre, Takapuna

New York-based master printmaker, artist and educator Dan Welden is internationally renowned for his hybrid works on paper combining print, paint and drawing techniques.
The 40 works in his début show in this country were inspired by the landscape patterns of sheep tracks on grassy slopes – conceptually they form playful meandering lines
and structures which he interprets on paper and canvas.

Phone (09) 486 4877, www.lakehousearts.org.nz

The Kepler Challenge Mountain Run

6 December, Kepler Track, Te Anau

Run in tandem with the “hard yakka” 27km Luxmore Grunt, this 60km mountain-running event is 21 years old this year and attracts competitors from all corners of Aotearoa and the globe. It follows the Department of Conservation’s Kepler Track, starting at the control gates of Lake Te Anau, climbing steadily to Mt Luxmore, across undulating tops before a spectacular descent, journeying along the Iris Burn, skirting Lake Manapouri and back to base. Secure your spectator possie at the finish line.

www.keplerchallenge.co.nz

Frontstage

12 December to 15 February, Pataka Museum of Arts & Cultures, Porirua

The West portrays Iranians as the people of an oppressive government. But what is happening in their real lives? Dutch photographer Anoek Steketee portrays them in the public spaces of their daily lives in this series of staged photographic images. 
They demonstrate that individuals, even when forced into uniformity,
still manage to preserve their individuality – be it with Converse
All Star sneakers peeking out beneath a burqa or young girls posing like Vogue models.

Phone (04) 237 1511, www.pataka.org.nz

Big Day at the Office Race

13 December, Methven

This heartland Canterbury happening kicks off with a 40km road cycle “gradual” uphill then a 24km run through the Mt Somers Subalpine Walkway with vistas across the back-country landscape. Hop back on the bike for a 30km section sidling along the foothills before heading down-country for a 9km kayak blat on the main irrigation canal. The final push is a 3.5km run which ends outside Methven’s famous Blue Pub.

Phone (03) 302 1822, www.multisportevents.co.nz

Freedom – Grand Finale Gala

20 December, Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Christchurch Town Hall

Do not miss the final celebratory concert in the 50th anniversary year of the CSO.
It showcases Beethoven’s opera Fidelio and Symphony No.9 in D minor (Choral) with a seriously talented stable of Kiwi soloists – soprano Anna Leese, mezzo Kate Spence, tenor Simon O’Neill and bass baritone Malcolm Ede, conducted by Sir William Southgate.

Phone Ticketek (03) 377 8899, book on www.christchurchsymphony.co.nz

Wings over Wairarapa

17 to 18 January, Masterton

This biennial event is an exhilarating fix for those with a passion for planes, jets, helicopters, microlights and gliders. It alternates each year with Warbirds over Wanaka and this is its 10th anniversary. During the weekend more than 70 aircraft will be on display including some of the finest privately owned WW1 and WW11 military aircraft. These alone provide a rich pictorial account of the history of aviation. The weekend includes heart-stopping action in the air and each day features a dramatic pyrotechnic display and mock airfield attack.

Phone 027 477 4717, www.wings.org.nz

Black Barn Open-Air Cinema

27 December to 6 January, Black Barn Amphitheatre, Havelock North

A cinematic smorgasbord of comedies, dramas, thrillers and award-winning docos screens under the stars at this spectacular outdoor venue in the foothills of  Te Mata Peak. Movie-goers can chill out on the grassed terraces, sip a wine, enjoy a picnic, nibble in-house snacks and watch the big screen with the latest techno tools. Acoustics are superb and the view beyond stretches out across the beautiful Hawke’s Bay.

Phone (06) 877 7985, www.blackbarn.com