Anthonie Tonnon
29th August 2020
The Royal Opera House, Whanganui, New Zealand.
Review by Bridget Herlihy.
This special one-off gig was planned to celebrate the release of Whanganui based musician Anthonie Tonnon’s latest single, Mataura Paper Mill – an exquisite track about the environmental situation at the neglected mill in Southland. To provide some background information, this is where 10,000 tonnes of an aluminium dross product were stored at the mill in 2000 shortly before it shut its doors. The dross remains at the mill, which is situated next to a river and if it should come in contact with water it will create ammonia gas which would quickly spread into the local community; a bona fide disaster waiting to happen.
From the get-go, this show promised to be very special. Not only is Tonnon renowned for his stunning performances and showmanship, but he chose a very special venue for the show; the Royal Opera House in Whanganui, which at 115 years old is the last working Victorian theatre in the Southern Hemisphere. In addition, Tonnon invited two fellow artists and friends, to join him on the bill; musician and podcaster Al Reid, the man behind the ‘You’re Going To Die In Bed’ podcast (a show designed to help creatives who struggle with their mental health “get up and into [their] day with a mildly morbid Monday-morning motivational broadcast”), and author Rose Lu, who recently released her debut book ‘All Who Live On Islands’, a collection of autobiographical essays that shine a light upon the cultural and linguistic questions faced by migrants.
As it transpired, the show evolved to become a superb example of Kiwi ingenuity in the days leading up to the performance. A change in alert levels the week prior meant audience attendees were limited to 100, as well as physical distancing having to be maintained. Fortunately, some quick thinking from Tonnon, his crew and the Whanganui Opera House meant that Covid did not force the postponement of the show. Rather, the show tripled in scope, as Tonnon performed not one, not two, but three back-to-back shows in order to ensure that the show not only went ahead, but that no one missed out on the opportunity to attend the show in person. And for those who weren’t able to, Tonnon made the show available for live streaming online, with viewers able to tune in with a pay-what-you-want virtual ‘ticket’.
In true Tonnon style, this was never destined to be a ‘traditional’ show of three distinct parts, with two opening acts and a headliner. Rather, it was intended to be more fluid; reminiscent on a live on stage variety show, with interactivity between the three performers. The first of the three performances commenced at 5pm, with the 100-strong crowd suitably physically distanced on the ground floor of the stunning Opera House. The show began with an intro from Reid, who operated as a kind of pseudo-MC for the evening. He was quick to warn the audience that his material might not be to everyone’s taste, including his mother, who was in the audience. He then welcomed Tonnon to the stage, looking as dapper as ever in a suit, who then launched into a spoken word piece about Mataura accompanied by a stunning synthesised soundscape that sent a collective chill down the spines of the audience. The piece drew comparisons between the abandoned mill and the empty railway workshops of Whanganui that closed in the 1980s, an ode of sorts to the abandoned physical remains of New Zealand’s once burgeoning industries. Tonnon moved seamlessly around the stage between his sampler, keyboard, a guitar and a grand piano, performing an array of tracks both old and new, each song even more captivating than the last. One of the highlights of the set was a beautiful rendition of the 2017 single ‘Two Free Hands’, which saw him joined onstage by Castlecliff Lights’ Ellen Young, whose exquisite ethereal vocals complimented Tonnon’s perfectly, not to mentioned the synchronised hand and arm movements.
Midway through the performance, and after a word from the fictional sponsors Eugene’s Jeans (whose jeans are made from unicorn denim and pizza grease) and ‘Paul Gets Pissed With Power Tools’ – courtesy of Reid – Tonnon was joined onstage by Rose Lu, who read an excerpt from her book accompanied by a Tonnon playing another stunning synthesised soundscape which suited the slightly sombre tone of Lu’s monologue to a T. This spoken word piece was followed by an interesting Q & A session with Lu, with Tonnon taking on the role of interviewer. He asked about her experiences as an adolescent in Whanganui, and the life experiences that led to her writing ‘All Who Live On Islands’, a collection of essays which represent a modern way of storytelling.
After another interlude from the amusing Reid, this time in the form of ‘The Bullshit Bulletin’, which was full of farcical news items, Tonnon returned to the stage to deliver what this reviewer considers to be the most powerful parts of the evening’s performance, with an absolutely epic and spellbinding performance of ‘Leave Love Out Of This’, which saw him shift between the grand piano, sampler and his guitar; essentially operating as a one man band. Ending on the hauntingly beautiful ‘Mataura Paper Mill’, Tonnon’s voice filled the cavernous Opera House with ease, and provided a truly stunning finale to what was a very special show. Anyone who had the opportunity to attend this show more than once that evening was very lucky indeed, or it was one of the most memorable performances that I have had the pleasure of experiencing for quite some time (with or without covid). And the choice of venue made it even more special. For those who weren’t fortunate enough to attend in person or watch the live stream, I very strongly recommend that you try to catch Anthonie Tonnon on his annual Rail Land tour in December; it is guaranteed not to disappoint in any way, shape or form.
Were you there at the Royal Opera House for this magnificent concert? Or have you seen Anthonie Tonnon perform live somewhere else? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Image Credit: Feature Image courtesy of Anthonie Tonnon / Tristan J Brooks.
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Yes I was there and uncomfortble and emlightended