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Best
of New Zealand |
Music
 New
Zealand musicians need not be in Australia or become Australian to make
their debut in the international stages. Crowded House became a global
hit while recording in New Zealand and just recently, Pauley Fuimana saw
huge success with his hit How Bizarre. Foreign music still rank top on
radio stations' list, but local artists have now been given increased
airtime. Bic Runga, Annie Crummer, Moana and the Moa Hunters, and Headless
Chickens are among the many that produce distinct local sounds.
Lovers of classical
music are well served by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and regional
orchestra in the four main centers. Chamber and jazz music are also rapidly
flourishing. New Zealand opera has made a comeback with world-class productions
performed regularly in the main centers, each of which has its own opera
company. Performances by Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Dame Malvina Major, and
Sir Donald McIntyre guarantee packed houses.
 Professional
theater is booming in New Zealand and the playwright to whom local actors
and writers owe a great deal to is Bruce Mason (1921-82). He was a one-man
theatrical band whose roots were purely local. Mason performed his classic
works, The End of the Golden Weather and The Pohutukawa Tree, many times
in theaters and country halls throughout the country. His colleague, Roger
Hall, also enjoyed huge success with his plays Middle Age Spread (which
was performed in London's West End) and By Degrees, among others.
 The
most famous New Zealand-made film is The Piano, which was directed by
Jane Campion who is now based in Australia. Once Were Warriors, a product
of Maori director Lee Tamahori, features an all Maori cast. These two
films enjoyed box office success and several awards.
Since the late 1970s,
the feature film industry achieved significant success, starting with
Roger Donalson's Sleeping Dogs, which starred Sam Neil. Thanks to the
support from the New Zealand Film Commission, many local smash hits have
followed suit. These include Geoff Murphy's Goodbye Pork Pie, Vincent
Ward's Vigil, and more recently Harry Sinclair's Topless Women Talk About
Their Lives. With the rise of women's liberation, a new generation of
Kiwi female filmmakers such as Merata Mira, Gaylene Preston, and Alison
McLean now exists. Another film phenomenon is Peter Jackson with his comic
'splatter' films Bad Taste and Brain Dead.
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