5 May, 2026

Eight decades on, theatre classic still resonates

Sharp parts… Glass Menagerie cast members Taku Chiketa (who plays Tom), Shivaun Statham (Amanda), Chris Wheeler (Jim) and Tash Allen (Laura) are appearing at the PumpHouse Theatre

The director of theatre company Foolish Wit’s latest production says he and the cast are relishing bringing theatre classic The Glass Menagerie to the PumpHouse.
“It’s described as a memory play, and we are really leaning into that,” says James Bell, a Milford resident. “It really resonates today because the theme of being stuck in a life that isn’t the one you want remains a universal experience.”
The play’s narrator Tom has a job he hates and desperately wants an adventure, but can’t escape the expectations of his suffocating mother Amanda and the guilt of abandoning his troubled sister Laura. Into the tense mix and to please his mother, Tom brings home Jim, a “gentleman caller” for Laura. It doesn’t go well.
“It’s one of those plays where you can see yourself in every character, even when none of them are particularly likeable,” says Bell. “There are no big moments. It’s all in the subtle expressions and reactions, the things that don’t get said.”
The play by Tennessee Williams premiered in 1944, and Laura is based on his sister, institutionalised for much of her life. The royalties later paid for her care.

• The play runs until 3 May, evenings at 7.30pm, with 2pm matinees on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets at pumphouse.co.nz

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