ELLING
Funny. Lonely. Brave.
What does it take to find the courage to live an ordinary life?
29 OCTOBER – 7 NOVEMBER 2026
ARTWORKS THEATRE · ONEROA
Two very unlikely heroes
Elling and Kjell Bjarne have spent years living in an institution. Now they’ve been given an apartment in Oslo — and two years to prove they can live independently.
Elling is sensitive, fiercely observant and a secret poet. He is suspicious of the outside world and would be perfectly happy never to answer the telephone again.
Kjell Bjarne is a big-hearted mechanic with an enormous appetite for life, an enduring fascination with women — and absolutely no idea how to talk to one.
Now they have to negotiate shopping, neighbours, friendship, romance — and all the apparently simple business of making a life for themselves.
For Elling and Kjell Bjarne, ordinary is quite an adventure.
And then the outside world starts coming in.
First there’s Frank Asli, their social worker, responsible for making sure their return to independent life succeeds.
Then come new friends. A poet who has lost his muse. A woman who takes a particular interest in Kjell Bjarne.
Suddenly their carefully negotiated little world is getting considerably more complicated.
And then Kjell Bjarne meets Reidun.
And for Elling, there is Alfons — an unexpected guide into the literary world Elling has only dreamed about entering
A comedy about friendship, courage — and finding your place in the world.
ELLING is funny, tender and gloriously unpredictable: a story about two unlikely heroes discovering that independence doesn’t mean having to face the world alone.
“It is very funny, and then suddenly it breaks your heart, and then it makes you laugh again.”
Bringing ELLING to Waiheke
Following the success of Stones in His Pockets on Waiheke and at Q Theatre in Auckland, Waiheke On Stage returns to Artworks Theatre with a new ensemble production.
Simon Deighton, one of the two actors at the heart of Stones in His Pockets, returns to the stage as Elling.
Sam Downes, well known to Waiheke theatre audiences, plays Kjell Bjarne.
Cian Jones plays Frank Asli, the social worker charged with overseeing Elling and Kjell Bjarne’s return to independent life.
Haley Delamore plays Reidun, as well as Gunn and Johanna.
Kim Whitaker plays Alfons, the ageing poet who opens a door into a world Elling has only imagined.
ELLING is directed by Janis McArdle and Simon Deighton, and produced by Jackie Havercroft for Waiheke On Stage.
ELLING
29 OCTOBER – 7 NOVEMBER 2026
ARTWORKS THEATRE · ONEROA
Evenings 7.30pm
Sunday 1 November · 2pm matinee
Waiheke On Stage 