CHERISH by NZ playwright Ken Duncum Dir. Sian Davis

Press Release – 22 October 2011

Ellerslie Theatrical Society presents
CHERISH
by NZ playwright Ken Duncum
directed by Sian Davis

10 to 19 November 2011

Stables Theatre (Ellerslie War Memorial Community Centre)
Cnr Main Highway & Arthur St, Ellerslie

TEASER
Jess and Maeve each have a daughter fathered by Tom, who lives with contract lawyer William. The deal is that Jess will have another child who will be raised by Tom and William ... “Cherish is the tale of two couples and the children they share. What happens when good intentions run up against the hard realities of human need?

At its deepest level ‘Cherish’ is about how people use others and how the others allow or need themselves to be used... only the arrow may well fly both ways. Nothing is clear-cut in this play, not even in the matter of sexual orientation. ’Who are you? Are you gay? Or straight?’ asks Maeve. Jess replies, ‘It’s not as easy as that’. And certainly nothing is readily predictable in the way the story evolves. It is not an ‘easy’ play: provocative, dealing with serious issues - but not without its moments of tenderness and humour.

“Cherish” won Best New New Zealand Play at the Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards in 2003 making it two in row for Ken as his play “A Trick of the Light” won the same award the previous year.

“In recent years some of the finest New Zealand plays were written by Ken Duncum. In Cherish he has created a masterpiece.” -- Theatre News

NOTES FROM THE DIRECTOR – Sian Davis
I am particularly interested in promoting the staging of New Zealand plays, I am also game to direct anything, modern or classical, that offers an interesting challenge. Having previously directed “A Trick of the Light” and “Horseplay”, “Cherish” will be my third ‘go’ at a Ken Duncum play. Amazingly, not having been picked up by ‘pro’ theatre in Auckland, this will be the play’s Auckland debut.

I saw “Cherish” at Circa Theatre in Wellington in 2003 and was instantly taken by its immediacy, its intensity, its pain, its beauty, its tenderness……. and by a desire to direct it: to work with actors on a play with meat and meaning. I truly believe this play to be a genuine NZ classic.

Cherish is centered on the complexities (and the joys) of surrogate parenthood. The adults involved are two gay couples, but the emotional and experiential ambit of the play embraces both homosexual and heterosexual couples alike: ‘the sobering incompatibility of good intentions and the cold reality of human need’ seems a good enough summary. But there is very much more. It is a challenging play to direct and will be a challenging one to watch.

PERFORMANCE DATES
Thursday 10 to Saturday 12 Nov 2011 at 8pm
Sunday 13 Nov at 2pm
Tuesday 15 to Friday 18 Nov at 8pm
Saturday 19 Nov at 2pm and 8pm

BOOKINGS
iTICKET – www.iticket.co.nz or phone 09 361 1000 (booking fee/delivery fee will apply)

TICKETS
Evening $20, $18 (discounted)
Matinee $15, $12 (discounted)

VENUE
Stables Theatre, Cnr Main Highway & Arthur St, Ellerslie, Auckland

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