Aussie horror and new Maggie O’Farrell: What Your Weekend is Loving this week
Saturday, 13 June 2026
Each week, Your Weekend looks at what’s new and happening around the motu.
Immerse
The NZSO National Youth Orchestra will be taking audiences on an oceanic journey with two concerts this July, timed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) New Zealand. Titled NYO La Mer, the concerts bring together some of Aotearoa’s most talented young musicians to perform four pieces that pay tribute to the majesty and power of the world’s oceans, including Claude Debussy’s La Mer (The Sea) and Benjamin Britten’s Four Sea Interludes from his opera Peter Grimes. There’s also the Aotearoa premiere of Hawaiian composer Michael-Thomas Foumai’s Kealaikahiki Suite, and the world premiere of a new piece from the orchestra’s Composer-in-Residence Jack Bewley, making this a rich sonic journey across time and oceans. Wellington, Michael Fowler Centre, July 3; Auckland, Town Hall, July 4, nzso.co.nz
Read
She broke hearts all over the world with Hamnet, and again with the screenplay for the Oscar-winning film adaptation, and Irish author Maggie O’Farrell is back yet again with an epic, sprawling story of a family navigating a land marked by upheaval and loss. Inspired by the mapping of Ireland in the mid 19th century, Land follows a father and son working for Britain’s great Ordnance Survey, until Tomas, the father, is knocked off course by a strange encounter in the woods. With a multi-generational, mythic story, Land is described by the New York Times as a “rich portrait of family life amid Ireland’s long struggle against British rule”. In bookstores now
Wear
Penny Sage’s new AW26 collection, Festina Lente, is marked by elegant, beautifully made staples with sharp tailoring and warm tones. The Maryse Shirt is a highlight, made in a crisp typewriter cotton with a pointed collar, back pleats and a back yoke. Slightly oversized, it’s an ideal and versatile number for both effortless office looks and smart weekend layering. Available in Penny Sage’s Auckland store or online.$420, pennysage.com
Scare
Australian filmmakers are undeniable masters of horror, and Leviticus is an inventive, chilling addition to the genre from Causeway Films, the production company behind Talk to Me, Bring Her Back and The Babadook. Leviticus follows two teenage boys, Naim and Ryan, whose unexpected romance invites unwanted attention in their isolated rural town. When they’re forced into a conversion-therapy ritual, a violent entity is released which takes the form of the person they most desire - each other. Described by The Guardian as a film with equal parts terror, “piercing sadness” and “giddy, against-all-odds romance”, Leviticus further proves that horror is where the most innovative filmmakers are currently working. In cinemas next Thursday, June 18
Laugh
The hilarious Tom Sainsbury is headlining three shows across the Wellington region in August, and he’s inviting some of Aotearoa’s best up-and-comers to join him. His Newtown show will be MC’d by Alayne Dick, a rising star in the Wellington scene, and joined by Newtown local Neil Thornton, a comedian who daylights as a teacher and a transplant from the New York comedy scene. In Lower Hutt Sainsbury will be joined by Jerome Chandrahasen, Li'i Alaimoana and Katy Borrows; for Masterton he’s recruited Brendon Green, Lianne Karaitiana and Jamaine Ross. It’s essentially a mini comedy festival, where one can see a legendary comedian alongside the next generation. August 6, Moon Bar, Newtown, August 6; Abandoned Taproom Petone, Lower Hutt, August 7; Copthorne Hotel, Masterton, August 8, wellingtoncomedy.co.nz