About The Production

Fifty years since its first performance, Phoenix Theatre proudly presents Roger Hall’s smash hit Glide Time, the play that inspired the TV classic Gliding On.Step back into a time when office chairs squeaked, memos were handwritten, and the tea break was sacred. This beloved Kiwi comedy brings the quirks of 1970s public service life to the stage with razor-sharp wit, painfully familiar characters, and laugh-out-loud moments that still hit home today.

Whether you once worked in a government office or just love a smart, character-driven comedy, you’ll recognise the personalities, politics, and passive-aggressive paper shuffling that define life behind the desk. It’s a workplace time capsule full of charm, chaos, and classic Kiwi humour.But this is more than just a comedy; it’s a slice of New Zealand’s cultural history. First performed in 1976 and still as relevant as ever, this play captures a moment in time with humour, heart, and honesty.It’s a celebration of everyday people, of workplaces that frustrate and comfort in equal measure, and of finding laughter in the small moments. As we mark 50 years since its debut, this is your chance to experience (or re-experience) a true Kiwi classic, live on stage.

Fri Sep 18, 7:30pm Sat Sep 19, 2:00pm Sat Sep 19, 7:30pm Sun Sep 20, 2:00pm Wed Sep 23, 7:30pm Thu Sep 24, 7:30pm Fri Sep 25, 7:30pm Sat Sep 26, 2:00pm Sat Sep 26, 7:30pm Sun Sep 27, 2:00pm

Video

These are skilled performers who pace, punch and propel the play, landing lines with panache and motivating movement with purpose.

Glenda Pierce, Broadwayworld

Cast

John - Zac Russell

Jim - John Palmer

Beryl - Christina Cie

Hugh - Jimmy Carrick

Michael - Ngahere Hedlund

The Boss - Albie Smith

Wally - Chris Smith

Helping Hands (Messenger) - Trent D'arth

Creative Team

Director - Vikki Cottingham

Producer - Holly Pollock

Production Manager - Kate Birch

Stage Manager - Helen Topliss

Assistant Stage Manager - Jessica Keesing~Styles

Wardrobe - Ciara de Hora, Lynn Cottingham

Set - Jazzmin Heaven, Paul Topliss

Properties - Bridget Hastie, Paul Topliss

Construction - Ian Birch, Tom Birch, Liam Currican, Tom Standen, Shane Hartley, Paul Topliss, Matt McKenna

Lighting & Sound - Crystal Livingston, Parag Londhe

Phone Technician - Paul Topliss

Prompt - Michelle Smith

Marketing - Liz Cannon, Braydon Priest

Programme - Braydon Priest

Front Of House Manager - Michelle Smith

Front Of House Team - Dale Everiss, Raewyn Nevin, Karen Hayston, Braydon Priest, Grace Rhynd, Timea Nemeth, Kate Birch, Liz Cannon, Holly Pollock, Vikki Cottingham, Aimee Tribe

Additional Photography - Yasmina Birch

Ticketing - Meg Andrews

Canine Bringers of Joy - Tilly, Pippin

Special Thanks

Sir Roger & Dianne Hall, The PumpHouse Theatre Team, RNZ, Benefitz, Channel Magazine, Shoreside Theatre, Titirangi Theatre, Offbeat Theatre, Company Theatre, Playmarket NZ, Circa Theatre, Eyes and Ears, Will Prosor, Rangitoto Observer, Soroptimist International North Shore, Auckland Theatre Company

Chris Smith, John Palmer, Zac Russell, Albie Smith, Jimmy Carrick, Christina Cie, Ngahere Hedlund

Director's Note

On 11 August 1976, a play about a small government office opened at Circa Theatre in Wellington. The waiting list passed a thousand names. It transferred to a bigger venue to keep up with demand, toured the country, and went on to inspire Gliding On, the sitcom that became a Kiwi institution.

Glide Time was Sir Roger Hall's first play, written after a lightbulb moment at a playwrights' workshop in Connecticut and partly, as he cheerfully admits, at his public service desk while being paid by the government. More than forty plays have followed over five decades, and in 2019 he was knighted for services to theatre. He is also a Takapuna local and a Patron of The PumpHouse Theatre, which makes staging this play here, fifty years on, feel exactly right.

I feel a huge responsibility with this one. Not only is it by one of my favourite playwrights, it is New Zealand history. It needs to be honoured and celebrated, because it's such a part of us.

From our very first read-through, hearing these words leap off the page reminded me just how good Sir Roger is at writing dialogue that makes it easy for us Kiwis to laugh at ourselves. Fifty years on, the jokes still land, and underneath them sits something geniune: a play about ordinary people finding small ways to stay themselves inside a system that was never really built for them.

The script stipulates that the play must be set in 1976, and Sir Roger puts it simply: "It's a play of its time. It seems silly to muck around with it." So we haven't. Our production team have conjured 1976 beautifully, and our cast have been extraordinary. Unlike their characters, they turn up on time, work far too hard, and have never once fudged a timesheet. It has been a privilege to build this world with them.

Vikki Cottingham
Director

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