Winner of the NZ Fringe ‘Melbourne Fringe Tour Ready Award’ 2025, How to Art returns for three nights only!

Fresh from charming the art connoisseurs of Pōneke, the bananas are making a quick stop back in Tāmaki Makaurau before leaping the ditch to Melbourne this October.

“One of the funniest shows I have ever seen anywhere” - Lexie Matheson, Theatreview

Two bananas wake up duct-taped to the wall of a prestigious art gallery and meet their maker. Three artists, two auctions, one audience… Will anyone get paid?

Birthed from the burnt-out brains of Katie Burson and Georgie Llewellyn, How to Art is a post-post-post-ironic-clown-fruit-mash-up about making art, surviving, and chasing mass a-peel. In a world that values youth, perfection and mass production, can two bruised bananas go the distance? Ripe with potential, can they find their place before they’re put up for sale?

Jesters, collectors, and narcissists reign in this low-brow exploration of the cost of creativity and the art of living.

You'll never eat a ladyfinger the same way again. (We certainly can't).

Find out how starving these artists truly are. Watch out, Picasso.

How to Art is presented by Ratbags, a playful place for performance-making in Tāmaki Makaurau, led by Katie Burson.

“The design elements – Production design by Rob Byrne; Props and Object Design by Tse-Yu Lin; Costume Design by Dan Collings; Sound Design by Fia Haugh; Lighting Design (and technical operation) by Alylai Flynn – flawlessly contribute to a whole that is a living artwork in itself.” - John Smythe, Theatreview

“The care lavished on the work is obvious – it’s fluid, seamless, manic, and oh so much fun. Performances by Katie Burson herself, Georgie Llewellyn, and Bronwyn Ensor are absolutely outstanding” - Lexie Matheson, Theatreview
“How to Art is the type of fun show that many of us really need right now. At its core, the show is bonkers in a weirdly fascinating and exceedingly entertaining way”. - Sharu Delikan and Tim Booth

“A superb clowning commentary on the contemporary art scene.” - John Smythe, Theatreview

How to Art was developed over two years, supported by artistic residencies with Wellesley Studios, Capital E, and TAPAC.

Production design and build by Rob Byrne, Costume design and construction by Dan Collings, Object design and construction by Tse-Yu Lin, sound composition by Lucas Haugh, directorial support from Hayley Dallimore, choreographic support from Tash Kohler, and dramaturgical support from Dan Goodwin.

Produced by Charlie Underhill for Ratbags Theatre.

Ratbags is an emerging collaborative hothouse for multidisciplinary performance works in Tāmaki Makaurau, led by Katie Burson. Ratbags seeks to fortify and enrich the theatre community in Tāmaki Makaurau, championing new theatre forms and providing a platform for new artistic collaborations.

www.ratbags.co.nz