Hadlow Transforms From SNAG to MAMIL

Hadlow Transforms From SNAG to MAMILL!

MARK HADLOW IN
MAMIL (MIDDLE AGED MAN IN LYCRA)
A new play by Gregory Cooper

Formerly a Sensitive New Age Guy (SNAG) in the 90’s, one of New Zealand’s most beloved actors, Mark Hadlow is a little older but his character none the wiser as he returns to the stage as the most polarising of species - a middle aged man in lycra.MAMIL, a new play from Gregory Cooper premiers at The Herald Theatre, Auckland LIVE, from July 25th and Prefab Hall Wellington from September 5th.

Bryan Cook is a property developer who has accumulated a small fortune building leaking homes. He’s a stressed out, self-medicating, self-loathing arse, killing himself to increase his bank balance while decreasing his golf score. When his business and life fall apart thanks to the global financial crisis, he joins a men’s cycling group to relieve stress and get healthy. Ultimately faced with his own mortality, he makes a few startling discoveries in various cracks and crevices.

An exploration into the male mid-life crisis in all its lurid glory (superbikes replacing sports cars a well-known symptom of this affliction), MAMIL in some respects serves as a spiritual sequel to Hadlow’s celebrated one-man show, SNAG. Where SNAG was about the rise and fall of a businessman and the roller-coaster of emotions his life became,MAMIL is much more current – taking swipes at the age of entitlement in the new millennium and the fallout surrounding the GFC of 2008 and dodgy partnerships.

Penned by Gregory Cooper (The Complete History of New Zealand - Abridged, Heroic Faun No. One ), MAMIL stemmed from conversations between the writer and Mark Hadlow. Spending some time with a peloton of riders in 2011, Hadlow was surprised to find the conversations were not male orientated (sex and sports), but rather emotional topics such as relationship and health problems, business… and the odd chat about rugby (we’re only human after all). The conversations taking place through the glorious outdoor scenery were something Hadlow found incredibly uplifting – and an idea which Cooper expanded into the first draft of MAMIL months later.

Playing a multitude of characters complete with Hadlow’s trademark high energy and childlike enthusiasm once again proves that now in middle age, Hadlow has no intention of slowing down. His work in the current The Hobbit trilogy is a throwback to his early works with Sir Peter Jackson – both in 2005’s King Kong remake and even earlier in the 1989 black comedy Meet The Feebles, earning him “Best Actress” at Italy’s Fantafestival in 1991. Combined with his television work (in particular, Willy Nilly in 2001-2003) and tireless theatrical work, Hadlow has rightfully earned his position as one of New Zealand’s most treasured performers.

A show that knows no geographical boundaries and a universal truth that everyone has an opinion of the MAMIL, Cooper and Hadlow present a poignant and sharply comical look at one of the most polarising of species – the Middle Aged Man in Lycra. The 2015 national tour for MAMIL is currently being planned with international seasons also on the agenda.

MAMIL plays
AUCKLAND – The Herald Theatre, Aotea Centre
25th July – August 16th at 7.30pm
Ticket prices $45/$35 + applicable booking fees
Bookings through Ticketmaster – www.ticketmaster.co.nz or 09 970 9700

WELLINGTON – Prefab Hall, 14 Jessie Street, Wellington City
5th September – 20th September
Ticket prices $45/$35 + applicable booking fees
Bookings through Ticketmaster – www.ticketmaster.co.nz or 04 913 0044.
Wellington tickets on sale from July 30th

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