The Court Theatre — Attraction in Christchurch

I was genuinely excited to be spending an evening out at the new Court Theatre building, especially after receiving a gift voucher and spending $133 on tickets for two. Unfortunately, my anticipation quickly turned to disappointment. While the play was beautifully narrated by Ian Mune, I found it excruciatingly painful to watch. Despite the captivating storytelling, the production itself left me bored and irritated. In my opinion, it wasn’t the most fitting choice for the opening night at this beautiful new theatre. Our seats, P33 and P34, were located through Door 5. Although they were just acceptable, the wooden rail in front made it necessary to lean forward to see the stage properly. Sitting at that height, we ended up looking down on the performance. Additionally, several audience members around us requested to move during the interval because their view was partially obstructed. On a positive note, the acoustics in the theatre were excellent. While I appreciate the effort put into the production, I regret to say that that I can't recommend "The End of the...

Four of us were looking forward to visiting the new Court Theatre. We booked tickets and arrived at the Theatre at 6.35pm to collect the tickets. At 7.15pm we went in the queue to go into the theatre. We were shocked to realise there were no allocated seats as per numbers on our tickets, all the high seats were taken and only left front row low seats (approximately 400mm or 16" from the ground). These seats are totally inadequate for adults, especially with mobility issues. At no point in all the information that was supplied when you purchased the tickets was it explained about the lack of allocated seats and the very low unfit for purpose front seats. This took our appreciation and enjoyment of the outing away. The production was good. Totally disappointed with our experience and would not recommend this theatre to friends and family. Please do not paste your standard response (as per other reviews I have read who were equally disappointed too!!!). You can and should do better than that Court Theatre. You have not maintained your usual high...

Dear Team,

My husband and I are originally from Europe, where the arts, especially theatre, are a big part of life and held to a very high standard. Since moving to New Zealand two years ago, one of the things we've really missed is that rich cultural scene. We've tried a few theatre experiences here, but to be honest, they didn’t quite meet our expectations in terms of professional level.

But after seeing The King’s Speech last Saturday, I turned to my husband and said, “My faith in theatre in New Zealand has just been restored!”

It was absolutely incredible - a truly professional and powerful production. The performances were fantastic, the scenography was beautiful, and the whole atmosphere in the theatre was so warm and welcoming. It was simply a wonderful experience from start to finish.

We’re so happy to have found a place where we can enjoy strong, high-quality theatre again. I’ve already bought tickets for Wolf Play - we can’t wait!

A huge thank you to all the actors and every member of the team who made this show so special. Your hard work...