The Watercooler

This is the follow up episode to our live show The Secret Lives of Drag where Todd and Alice extend on the ideas that came up in our speaker's stories. They touch on Todd wearing make up in public, getting high while watching Ru Paul's Drag Race, and Police and Pride.

Glitter, dry ice, false eyelashes, and tape. But what goes on behind all the illusion? For the first Watercooler of the year, come hear stories from the drag artists beneath the wigs, make up and drama. In a Pride special, Drag connoisseurs Raoūl Dinesh (Rani Kumari), Dan Veint (Drew Blood) and Sean Stapleton (Shavorn Aborealis) will spill all the tea, sharing stories about how drag found them, how they find it, and everything in between. Issue #53 is hosted by the ever-sassy Todd Waters, proudly gay, very bald and one of the masterminds behind The Watercooler. You might also know him from the hit ATC show, BOYS.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Come and indulge with us, and feed your souls with nourishing tales of food, family, and the festive season. We asked Alice Pearce, Adam Rohe, and Marianne Infante to set the table for us, as they share some truly delicious tales at the fiercest FEAST of the year. This Watercooler is a chance to forget your to-do lists and silly season stresses, and join us for a taste-bud tickling evening of sharing and general merriment. Issue #43 is hosted by the ever-hilarious Donna Brookbanks, one of the pioneers of hit weekly improv show Snort, comedian, and actor. You might also know her from her work on Funny Girls, Jono and Ben and Shortland Street. Audio engineering by Todd Waters. Recorded live at The Basement Theatre November 23rd 2017.

It’s raining cats and dogs! And all the other animals! There is really no way to write this description without sounding like an advert for Animates, so we’ll keep it short and sweet. This month we get to see Alice Kirker, Jono Croucher, and Grace Cullen delve into the wondrous world of animals. We’ve got the dirt on all the animals in the kingdom including doggos, meow makers, fart squirrels, tall spotty horses, and the one and only legless psychedelic water gallopers. If none of that made sense, fear not! Come along and have all your pet and animal queries answered!* *You are almost guaranteed to not have any of your pet and animal queries answered, not even one, but you should definitely still come. Issue #42 is hosted by the ever-hilarious Donna Brookbanks, one of the pioneers of hit weekly improv show Snort, comedian, and actor. You might also know her from her work on Funny Girls, Jono and Ben and Shortland Street. Audio engineered by Todd Waters. Recorded live at The Basement Theatre on Thursday 26th October.

Have you ever been up to your eyeballs in Bullsh*t? It’s fifty shades of brown at this month’s Watercooler as we bring you a wonderful collection of sh*tty stories, and stories about sh*t. Valentine Tauamiti, Albertine Jonas and Todd Waters are ready to rise to the occasion (like a pesky floater that just won’t flush) and tell us all about their own Bullsh*t. (WARNING - ticket prices are not inclusive of toilet paper. Please bring your own). Issue #40 is hosted by the ever-hilarious Donna Brookbanks, one of the pioneers of hit weekly improv show Snort, comedian, and actor. You might also know her from her work on Funny Girls, Jono and Ben and Shortland Street. Audio Engineering by Todd Waters. Recorded live at The Basement Theatre on Thursday 31st August 2017

Watercooler - Issue #40: Growing Pains Stories of challenging growth, demanding expansion, and testing times. This month's Watercooler is all about growing pains. Amanda Billing, Kate Mcgill, and Nathan Joe tell tales of when they were trialed by fire and had to rise to the occasion. Issue #40 is hosted by the ever-hilarious Donna Brookbanks, one of weekly improv show Snort's pioneers, comedian, and actor. Audio engineering by Josh Wilson and Todd Waters. Recorded live at The Basement Theatre, 27 July 2017.

A change in seasons, a new perspective, an upheaval, a revolution, an unfamiliar chapter. Ahi Karunaharan, Zechariah Soakai and Jacque Drew are ready to hit you with radical stories of their own metamorphosis. This month’s Watercooler offers a fresh look at what it means to have your life move through a new season, or simply to reflect on a season that’s passed. This month's host is the ever-hilarious Donna Brookbanks, comedian, actor, writer and one of the pioneers of weekly improv show Snort. Watercooler – Issue #39 is thrilled to be part of the Basement’s Matariki season to celebrate the Maori New Year. Audio engineering by Josh Wilson and Todd Waters. Recorded live at The Basement Theatre, 29 June 2017.

This month’s meaty issue was all about the human body, from flossing habits to fertility, and each tale promised to be fully fleshed out. Featuring big stories about little body parts from Jordan Dodson, Laura Giddey and Grace Maguire. Hosted by Alice Gatland. Audio engineering by Sam Clavis and Todd Waters. Recorded live at The Basement Theatre, 20 April 2017.

Cringe-worthy catastrophes, face-flushing fails and sweaty palmed moments of misinterpretation. This month's issue wildly celebrates the awkwardness of the human existence.  Recorded live at The Basement Theatre, 23 March 2017. Featuring tales of the uncomfortable from Kathryn Burnett, Gina Dellabarca and Chye-Ling Huang. Hosted by Alice Snedden. Audio engineering by Todd Waters.

From the love bug to fighting back, in the first issue of 2017 listen to three incredible stories of things that light the fire under us all. Stories of self love, of family, of pride. Recorded live at The Basement Theatre, 9 February 2017. Featuring stories from Lillian Hanly, Taane Mete, and Cole Meyers. Hosted by Alice Snedden. Audio engineering by Sam Clavis.

Recorded live at BATS Theatre, 8 September 2016. Featuring stories from Jonny Paul, Tai Samaeli, and Anna Guenther. Hosted and produced by Jennifer O'Sullivan. Audio engineering by Oliver Devlin.

It's usually straightforward to know when you're experiencing something for the first time, but how do you know if it's the last? Is it easier when you don't know you'll never do the thing again? Or to start something rather than finish it? Recorded live at BATS Theatre on 11 August 2016. Featuring stories from Michael Howard, Freya Sadgrove, and Jess Brien. Hosted and produced by Jennifer O'Sullivan.

Stories of times we've wanted to stop and start again, of our favourite TV and film reboots, or maybe even of our fond memories of 90s Canadian-American CGI-animated action-adventure television series Reboot. Recorded live at BATS Theatre on 14 July 2016. Featuring stories from Kristine Bartley, Wiremu Tuhiwai, Matt Powell, and Lori Leigh. Hosted by Jonny Potts, and brought together by new Wellington producer Jennifer O'Sullivan.

April's issue was loosely inspired by the hit Improv TV show ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway?’ Except it's storytelling and there may not be as many Hawaiian shirts paired with khaki trousers. However we did what we could to dress the part. Did Alice Brine just theme this show because she thought up the name and wanted to make it work? Pretty much. Recorded live at BATS Theatre on 14 April 2016. Featuring stories from Jennifer O'Sullivan, Brad Zimmerman, Nik Bruce Smith and Jessica Mearns. Hosted and produced by Alice Brine. Audio engineering by Oliver Devlin.

This month's theme is TMI, i.e. "Too Much Information". Writer and actor Ash Jones, comedian Jamie Bowen and journalist Sasha Borissenko will share their stories of knowing too much, too little, revealing too much, wishing they knew more, or taking it in the traditional "TMI" direction with super, super personal stories. Hosted by comedian Alice Snedden (Funny Girls, Jono and Ben). Any and all interpretations of the theme possible! Recorded live at Basement Theatre on 8 September 2016.

Recorded live at BATS Theatre, 17 March 2016. Featuring stories from Eamonn Marra, Kate Robertson, Eli Joseph and Jennifer O'Sullivan. Hosted and produced by Alice Brine. Audio engineering by Oliver Devlin.

After giving up a promising artistic roller skating career at age eight to pursue dance, music, outdoor pursuits and an awkward teenage phase as a unicyclist, Saran spent most of her childhood flinging herself into the air and making as much noise as possible. Now a professional swing dancer, she spends most of her adulthood flinging herself into the air and making as much noise as possible, only now she gets paid for it so the moral of that story is she didn't learn anything except to largely ignore good advice from older wiser people. She also did a whole bunch of music at serious music things for a while and people kept laughing, so now she does a whole bunch of music at silly comedy things instead. Co-creator (or evil genius, depending on who you ask) behind the musical improvisation show Song Sale, 1/5 of the enigmatic Klaus Vermillion Quartet, and international viral sensation as “that sign language lady who flipped off all of parliament”, when she told people she was doing this show called Super Awkward the overwhelming response was “Well that sounds like you.”

Hadley Donaldson is a poster designer/illustrator/animator recently re-based in Wellington after a couple of years in Auckland. It was okay but then Marshall from Rubicon bought his flat and threw everyone out into the street. It was cool. Hadley heads the show Sketch/Comedy, where he live draws comedian's sets. There has been one show so far and it went very well thank you. Posters n stuff up at http://hadleydonaldson.tumblr.com/ Unfollow him on twitter at @Sexnap

Originating from Canada, Rob has found a nice home with NZ stand-up comedy and has become a mainstay on the scene - the highlight of his experience receiving an honorary mention in the 2013 National Raw Comedy Quest finals. A mixture of observational and story-telling, Rob's punchlines seem to come out of nowhere, and tend to come often, always leaving the crowd delighted. Rob Co-runs one of VK's weekly shows, The Medicine, and if he's not onstage, is definitely making his presence known from the tech booth. Even when he's not on, he's on.

Hadassah Grace is a writer and performer, with a penchant for questionable life choices. During the day she writes poetry and drinks too much coffee, and at night she takes her clothes off to pay the bills. Her writing explores sex, politics and sexual politics. She’s a high school dropout, but she’s never burned a single kernel of popcorn.