Best of Auckland this week: Pride Festival, free The Phoenix Foundation gig

By Metro date Jan 31, 2020

So many free events on this week, including a revised Tamaki Herenga Waka Festival hosted by the 19 iwi of Tamaki Makaurau, free gigs and movies at Silo Park, and more.

Silo Cinema: The Farewell

One of our favourite films of 2019, The Farewell follows Chinese-American Billi as she flies back to China to say goodbye to her grandmother, whose family has decided to keep her terminal illness a secret from her. It’s funny, it’s sad, and if you haven’t seen it yet, it’s free to see under the stars.
Friday 31 January | Silo Park

Tamaki Herenga Waka Festival

For the first time, performances on land and water will weave the story of Tamaki Makaurau and the first waka that sailed here. Expect a waka showcase, toi (art) and kai markets, kapa haka, and a water stage. The festivities go on well into the night, teling Auckland’s rich waka history and how it shaped who we are today.
Friday 31 February | Captain Cook Wharf

Auckland Pride Festival

Pride is back for 2020, recharged and with a new slogan – Our Liberation, Our Celebration, Our Pride. It kicks off with opening party OurGala (Saturday 1 February), followed by central event OurMarch, which replaces the Pride Parade and is free to attend. For the full line up of events, take a look at their website – there’s plenty on, including outside of central Auckland.
Saturday 1-16 February

Jack Whitehall

Affable British comedian Jack Whitehall (Travels with my Father, Good Omens) performs at one of the biggest venues in Auckland, Spark Arena, determined to fill it with laughter. Well, presumably.
Saturday 1 February | Spark Arena

Hannah Gadsby

For a couple weeks in 2018, anyone who saw Hannah Gadsby’s Netflix special Nanette would not shut up about Nanette. In it, she mulls over the use of self-deprecating humour in stand-up comedy and its pain when employed by already marginalised people. Her conclusion: stop doing stand-up comedy. Her conclusion after the outpouring of acclaim for her (very good) special: continue doing stand-up comedy.
Saturday 1 February | The Civic