Written by Luke Di Somma and Gregory Cooper
Co-directed by Courteney Mayall and Kyle Chuen
Produced by Bold Theatre
The Meteor 26 August – 3 September 2022
Kate Sheppard rallied her troops, fought against the colonialist patriarchy and won the battle to give New Zealand women the first right to vote in the world. Bold Theatre rallied their troupe, once again fought against producing bland theatre, and gave Kirikiriroa’s opening night audience the first glimpse into a likely smash hit season of ‘That Bloody Woman.’
From the outset the cast and band were unstoppable in this punk rock musical. Lauren Mann’s high energy choreography was brash, strong and required extraordinary stamina. The cast looked empowered, well-rehearsed and filled the stage with boundless enthusiasm. ‘Enough’ was marvelous.
Jane Leonard in the role of Kate Sheppard was a delight. It was imperative to have someone of Leonard’s calibre to narrate, sing and dance through this tale of giving it to the man in a time when women didn’t have a voice. Leonard’s portrayal was composed yet vulnerable and utterly memorable.
Nick Wilkinson, what a Dick! Wilkinson’s performance as Prime Minster Richard ‘King Dick’ Seddon was refined, witty and compelling, and he added a certain surety with his command of the stage. There could’ve been no better Dick than Nick!
With multiple entry points to the stage, the cast were at times very much amongst the audience. On this note, if an audience member is visibly shaking, the cast need to back off, find their space and be mindful of interactions. That Bloody Woman has an intensity that some theatre-goers would find confrontational.
In a performance filled with many highlights, there are a couple more that need a shout out. First, the gaffa tape cleverly fashioned into facial hair. Secondly, the absolute shredding guitar solo in ‘Hands Off My Property.’ The band lead by Nick Braae smashed it out of the ballpark with their musicality and tight performance.
Braae was given a few minutes grace when Jessica Ruck-Nu’u (Jennie Lovell-Smith) sat on his stool to play the keyboard while she sang the hauntingly beautiful ballad ‘The Man With Two Wives.’ Ruck-Nu’u’s tender and memorable solo was in stark contrast to her romper stomper role as part of the gang.
Costumes, makeup, lighting and props were all superb. There were no problems with diction but mic issues and EQ levels meant that it took some time for the sound to be resolved.
The old rule is that if fifty percent of the season’s tickets have sold before opening night, the holders of the purse strings should be able to relax. Bold Theatre scheduled eight performances, four of which were sold out prior to opening night. I think they can relax. All in all, it’s shaping up to be a bloody good season.
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