When I was a university student, my life revolved around theatre plays. I was a Fine Arts student who majored in Creative Writing Drama. Every play I watched quenched an insatiable thirst inside me.

I needed no convincing when my cousin invited me to watch “The Comedy of Errors”, one of the two plays presented in the Auckland Shakespeare in the Park.

Performed by the Shoreside Theatre, the play was staged in the PumpHouse Theatre in Killarney Park on the shore of Lake Pupuke in Takapuna, Auckland.

The PumpHouse Amphitheatre

Next to The PumpHouse main theatre is the outdoor amphitheatre that can sit up to 200 people. The tiered bricks and wooden bench seating creates an ambiance of the olden times.

Even before the stage opened, I was already impressed by the grand look yet intimate feel of the setting.

THE COMEDY OF ERRORS

This riotous comedy centres on two sets of identical twins who were separated as young children in a shipwreck. A hilarious series of misidentifications takes place leading to a revelation that no one sees coming.

THE SHORESIDE THEATRE

The Milford-based theatre company specialises in presenting Shakespeare true to the Bard’s original plays, which means costumes, text and settings are as he intended.

The skillful actors and lively audience filled the theatre with laughter from start ’till finish. The cool breeze and the natural lighting from daytime, to sunset, to nighttime created the perfect mood for the play.

I like how informal and pleasant the atmosphere was. Guests, young and old, brought along their blankets and picnic baskets. During the show interval, the nearby cafe bar sold drinks for the mingling audience.

I walked out that theatre wanting more of this creativity. Thank you, cousin, for making me feel alive again, even for just a night.

Watch a short video clip of the play:

KNOW MORE OF THE PUMPHOUSE THEATRE