Due to the reinstating of Covid Level-3 lockdown, the community open day for the hall has been postponed.  Updates will be posted as they’re available!

Our August club night falls on Monday, 31 August. Doors open 6:30pm for a 7pm start.  Special guest for the second half are Bluegrass and Beyond!  First half will feature local floor singers.  Email to reserve your spot in the first half. jenine@torkington.com.

If we are still at Level 3 Lockdown, this evening will be postponed.  At Level 2, we will have a maximum attendance of 40 people. Book your tickets here: https://whangateau.co.nz/event/august-club-night-with-bluegrass-and-beyond/31_08-2020-700pm/

As of Friday, 29 May, New Zealand Covid19 Alert Level 2 has been loosened to allow groups of up to 100 people. Accordingly, Whangateau Hall rules have been adjusted as follows.

1. Maximum occupancy of hall grounds (within picket fence) to be limited to 40 people.
2. Events in the hall and grounds are still limited to 2 hours in duration.
3. Hirer must complete an attendance register with names and phone numbers for all people present and submit to hall Supervisor (Jenine Abarbanel, jenine@torkington.com, 021 428 568) immediately upon completion of hire.
4. Hall hirer must see that social distancing of 1m is maintained at all times.
5. The wearing of masks is encouraged but not required.
6. In addition to the usual required cleaning, all surfaces and doorknobs are to be sprayed down and wiped with provided disinfectant sprays and cloths. All used towels and wiping cloths to be left in hall foyer in bucket provided.
7. All other conditions of hire and post-use cleaning requirements for Whangateau Hall remain in place and unchanged.
8. These guidelines may be updated in response to any new guidelines issued by the New Zealand Government or Auckland Council. For more information: https://covid19.govt.nz/alert-system/alert-level-2/.  Additional guidance has been incorporated from https://www.majorevents.govt.nz/resource-bank/covid-19-advice-for-event-organisers/.

For more information about using the hall, contact Jenine at 021 428 568 or jenine@torkington.com

Whangateau Hall will be re-opened as of Monday, 18 May 2020 under Covid19 Alert Level 2, subject to the guidelines below.

1. Maximum occupancy of hall grounds (within picket fence) to be limited to 10 people.
2. Events in the hall and grounds are limited to 2 hours in duration.
3. Hirer must complete an attendance register with names and phone numbers for all people present and submit to hall Supervisor (Jenine Abarbanel, jenine@torkington.com, 021 428 568) immediately upon completion of hire. 
4. Hall hirer must see that social distancing of 1m is maintained at all times.
5. The wearing of masks is encouraged but not required.
6. In addition to the usual required cleaning, all surfaces and doorknobs are to be sprayed down and wiped with provided disinfectant sprays and cloths. All used towels and wiping cloths to be left in hall foyer in bucket provided. 
7. All other conditions of hire and post-use cleaning requirements for Whangateau Hall remain in place and unchanged.
8. These guidelines may be updated in response to any new guidelines issued by the New Zealand Government or Auckland Council. For more information: https://covid19.govt.nz/alert-system/alert-level-2/

For more information about using the hall, contact Jenine at 021 428 568 or jenine@torkington.com

In the light of the current recommendations against public gatherings, and the risk to older members of the community, we will be postponing all concerts at the hall for the time being, unless something changes for the better in the next few weeks.  In the meantime, Enjoy a playlist of over 30 videos from past concerts at the hall:

Eight time winner of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Bass Player of the Year, Missy Raines and her trio are at the hall tonight. Tickets available at the door, $25. Show starts at 7:30pm.

Hailing from West Virginia, Missy Raines was a member of Alison Krauss’ first all-female bluegrass band and has backed greats such as Claire Lynch, Mac Weisman, Kenny Baker, and Peter Rowan. With a smoky and seductive alto, Missy Raines heads up her own innovative and genre-bending trio out of Nashville, Tennessee.

Tickets to Missy Raines Trio at Whangateau Hall are now available through Event Finder. Don’t miss this legendary musician as she tours through our area! Tickets are $23 online, $25 at the door.

https://www.eventfinda.co.nz/2019/missy-raines-trio-featuring-george-jackson-and-ben-garnett/auckland/leigh

The art exhibition by Arapeta Ashton June 28-30 2019 was very well received and attended. Below are some photos.

We have three outstanding evenings of music coming to Whangateau this spring that have the funniest thing in common: they all feature outstanding musicians named “Jackson.”

On 30 September, fiddle player Krissy Jackson and her husband Peter from New Plymouth will be your hosts for Club night. They will also be your second half special musical guests with Peter accompanying Krissy on keyboard with a diverse set of cross-genre folk music.

On 9 October, The Trio Jackson from Nelson are playing a special show hosted by local Jo Evans. Miles Jackson is a very fine classical and flamenco guitarist and Margarita is a classical trained violinist. For many years they performed as Duo Jackson but now their daughter has joined them after studying violin in Europe. They live in Nelson and teach at the Nelson Centre of Musical Arts.

On 30 October, Missy Raines, 7 time IBMA Bass Player of the Year winner is coming to Whangateau with her Missy Raines Trio, consisting of herself, Ben Garnett of Arlington, Texas on guitar, and New Zealand’s very own George Jackson on fiddle. Missy is one of the First Ladies of Bluegrass, and absolute royalty amongst both women in bluegrass and bass players in general.

And as if that wasn’t enough, October is also host to a non-Jackson centric event with You, Me, Everybody stopping in on their inaugural tour on Monday, October 14th. You, Me, Everybody is a collaboration formed by Laurence (guitar) and Sam (mandolin) Rhodes of RhodeWorks, with Nat Torkington from the Pipi Pickers on banjo, James Geluk of the Frank Burkitt Band on Bass, and Kim Bonnington of Kim and Dusty on guitar and vocals. This band is already making waves across the New Zealand bluegrass scene and getting attention internationally. This is guaranteed to be one of the best shows of the year.

Tickets for all of these shows will go on sale in August.

There will be no club night in October.