The Night Is Always Darkest: World First Performance Coming To NZ Fringe

Midnight-7am
Night of Friday 14 Feb
& Saturday 8 March
@ 2/57 Willis Street & livestreamed online

The Night is Always Darkest is a brand new durational theatre experience coming to The New Zealand Fringe Festival this February. Stay up with Lia as she fills the sleep-less hours of the night in real-time, while you- the audience- influence her decisions and see the inner-workings of her mind in this truly unique performance.

Starring Lia Kelly (One Night Band, PopRox) and directed by Rosie Glover (Don’t Wake Me Up, You’d Look So Pretty If) The Night is Always Darkest explores themes of isolation and loneliness in a form Wellington has never seen before. The 7-hour event kicks off at Midnight on the opening and closing nights of the Fringe with audience members able to enter the world of Lia’s bedroom live at 2/57 Willis Street, or online via livestream where every moment will be captured to interrupt your 2am doom scroll.

Glover says anyone who decides to come along at any time, or access the livestream, will get a different experience depending on what they see or choose to see. With the audience feeding into Lia’s actions throughout, the two nights will be completely different with audiences influencing an experience unique to them.

This hybrid live/digital event creates a fascinating discourse on the role of social media in our lives and how our digital experiences feed into our IRL ones. In an age where most of us are chronically online, and often when we should be sleeping, this show seeks to remind us that it's human connection which feeds our well being.

“I wanted to put onstage something audiences or even just regular humans never see.” says Kelly. Not only is the form unique, but we also aim to explore some of the less catastrophic elements of mental health struggles. Many shows explore panic attacks and moments of crisis, but very few explore the other 98% of the mental health journey. The Night is Always Darkest takes a light-touch approach to a sleepless night and feeds into discussion around isolation and anxiety in a soft and accessible way.

With production design from Pōneke powerhouse Izzi Lao (Winner Wellington Theatre Awards Lighting Designer of the Year 2023), and AV/Digital wizardry from Campbell Wright (The Quarter Quell, Roll for Initiative) the show promises a beautiful world for audiences to immerse themselves in. There will be a nap zone, blankets, hot chocolate (or coffee for those who don’t want to miss a moment).

Stay up with us the nights of February 14th and March 8th, only in the New Zealand Fringe Festival.

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