Federation asks ‘who was truly unruly’ for NZ Opera

AUCKLAND, Wednesday: CBD indie Federation has created a campaign to promote The Unruly Tourists, an original piece by NZ Opera, which has been labelled “a piece of genius”.

Federation managing partner Elizabeth Beatty said: “Very rarely does the venom that spills from the mouths of New Zealanders ever make the headlines of a campaign. But that’s exactly what Federation chose to do.

“The unruly tourists came, got under our skin and left.

“But not before creating chaos across New Zealand with anti-social behaviour that made them famous, resulting in global news headlines and even social media petitions to have them thrown out of the country.

“Could there be a better subject for an opera with a major twist?

“To promote this intriguing contemporary production, the agency shone a spotlight on the loathing and despair aired by New Zealanders.

“In confronting out-of-home and social campaigns, the outspoken opinions of Kiwis and The Unruly Tourists were revealed.

“Suddenly, everyone from your average Joe to government officials had an ugly view and a potty mouth.”

“Federation CCO Tony Clewett said: “Suddenly, everyone from your average Joe to government officials had an ugly view and a potty mouth.

“And this led us to the inevitable question ‘Who was truly unruly?”

NZ Opera marketing manager Sophie Morris said: “The events surrounding the ‘unruly’ visit said as much about the traits of this rowdy bunch of foreigners as it did our own prejudices.

“With campaign, we wanted to position The Unruly Tourists as a contemporary culture satire – one that proudly sits within the NZ Opera season.”

Beatty: “The Unruly Tourists production has provoked a lot reaction and a lot of media coverage, and we’re leveraging that to convert opera outsiders to insiders, exposing fresh new audiences to the visceral power of opera.”

The Unruly Tourists runs from the today to Friday (26 March) at the Bruce Mason Centre , Takapuna, Tamaki Makaurau.

About The Unruly Tourists
Written by the award-winning comedy duo of Livi Reihana and Amanda Kennedy (The Fan Brigade), composed by Luke Di Somma (That Bloody Woman), directed by Thomas de Mallet Burgess and designed by Tracy Grant Lord (NZ Opera’s The Marriage of Figaro), The Unruly Tourists is an entertaining and thought-provoking work.

• nzopera.com

CREDITS

Client: Sophie Morris, Marketing Manager, New Zealand Opera
Creative: Production, & Strategy: Federation
Media: Lasoo Media