Kicking Up a Storm

Regular price €102.99
Quantity:
In stock with our UK publisher. 14-28 days
Delivery/Collection within 10-20 working days
14 days return policy Shipping & Delivery
1970s
A01=Ken Rea
activism
alternative theatre
Aotearoa
Author_Ken Rea
Balinese performance
Category=ATC
Category=ATDF
counter culture
eq_art-fashion-photography
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_new_release
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
kathakali
kiwi
Maori culture
New Zealand
Nixon
political theatre
tai chi
theatre-making
Vietnam
whakapapa

Product details

  • ISBN 9781350569683
  • Weight: 560g
  • Dimensions: 154 x 236mm
  • Publication Date: 02 Apr 2026
  • Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
  • Publication City/Country: GB
  • Product Form: Hardback
Secure checkout Fast Shipping Easy returns

With the right people around you following the same dream, can you really change the world? The sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll frenzy of the counterculture movement is brought vividly to life in this often hilarious, uncensored account of a hippie theatre troupe in 1970s Aotearoa New Zealand.

In their gaily painted old bus, the ‘troupies’ brought their disruptive, sometimes scandalous, brand of performance to parks and theatres, streets and beaches. The Living Theatre Troupe story, told by the people who made it happen, embraces political satire, psychedelic rock circus, nudity and an innocent optimism based on peace, love and flower power. But it also shows how theatre, as part of the anti-war protest movement, challenged social attitudes and helped change the politics of the time.

Drawing on diary excerpts and interviews, this inspirational book gives a startling glimpse of Kiwi culture, ‘can do’ spirit and ancient Maori traditions set against a backdrop of The Lord of the Rings landscapes. The bigger story resonates beyond theatre. It concerns the importance of belonging; how we build on what has gone before us and how we pass on a powerful legacy to those who come after us – as captured in the Maori concept of whakapapa (genealogy)

Ken Rea, who was the Living Theatre Troupe’s director, is now an internationally renowned acting teacher and coach. As Professor of Theatre at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, he has trained some of Britain’s most exciting actors of stage and screen.

More from this author