The New Zealand
cultural scene is vibrant and receives a lot more attention
these days than it has in the past, mainly due to the cinematic
release of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Auckland, as a cultural melting pot, has an exceptionally healthy
and diverse cultural scene, although not everything
that the city generates gets beyond national limitations.
One of the centres of Auckland cultural life is The Edge,
a gathering of buildings around the junctions of Queen Street, Wellesley
Street West, Albert Street and Mayoral Drive.
Auckland Town Hall (Queen Street) is a remarkably renovated building,
with its Great Hall said to have some of the finest acoustics in
the world:
Telephone: (09) 309 2677
Facsimile: (09) 309 2679
Email address: info@the-edge.co.nz
Website address: www.the-edge.co.nz
The Aotea Centre (which is behind the town hall on Queen Street)
has main and small stages, for ballet, music, drama and opera.
Telephone: (09) 309 2677
Website address and email address: same as above
For a taste of the alternative culture with a bit
more of a Polynesian influence, visitors should take a Saturday
trip up the Karangahape (K) Road, or for that matter to any of the
flea or cultural markets that spring up around the city on Saturday.
K Road is busy with mainly Maori and Polynesian shops, craft shops,
clothes shops, cafés, restaurants, butchers, fishmongers,
and grocers, all of which offer an intriguing insight into New
Zealand’s bi cultural society.
Tickets can be booked through Ticketek, at the Aotea Centre, Queen
Street:
Telephone: (09) 307 5000
The free monthly listings magazine 'What’s Happening', the
free newspaper 'Tourist Times', and The Thursday and Saturday editions
of the New Zealand Herald, all provide listings and information
on cultural performance and events in Auckland.
Listings are also available online. |
