Summer Intensive 2014

The Toi Whakaari Summer Intensive offers an immersive week-long professional educational experience, combining fun, experiential, interactive workshops with direct, practical learning.

9.30am – 4.30pm, Monday 27 – Friday 31 January 2014.

Whatever your previous experience, Summer Intensive offers a focused environment where participants are alternately pushed and encouraged to polish their craft.

If you’re a designer, a tech, or an actor, there’s a chance for you to galvanise your own creativity and further your skills and learning surrounded by other passionate collaborators.

Summer Intensive is suitable for those 16 years and older.

The programme for 2014 is yet to be confirmed but here is a taste of what was on offer in 2013

DESIGN

The Design Summer Intensive will teach a wide range of skills – from research through design and construction. You will construct a scale model of a set, through which you will engage with:

• Creating a ground plan
• Elevation drawings
• Creating paint effects
• Researching architecture, furniture, costume
• Calculating sight lines and audience layout
• Producing a costume drawing
• Building a character’s back story
• Making a scale figure
• Sourcing costumes

The course will be taught by Theo Wijnsma and Rose Kirkup, both design graduates of Toi Whakaari. Since graduating, Rose has worked for Circa on Spector (with The Beat Girls), Taki Rua on Awhi Tapu, for Toi Whakaari on The Pohutukawa Tree and was the design mentor for Young & Hungry in 2012. She has designed sets and costumes for many Fringe events, short films and music videos.

Theo was set and costume designer for Twelfth Night and set designer for Someone Like You and Big Trouble in Small Newtown at BATS. He was co-production designer for NZ short film; Broken Glass and is currently working on Anthony and Cleopatra - the 2013 Summer Shakespeare.

SOUND AND LIGHTING

This course will be split equally between introductions to lighting and sound.

Lighting will include an introduction to the equipment, rigging and safety, fault-finding and problem-solving, operation, focusing and an introduction to lighting design. Lighting will be tutored by Paul Tozer, Toi Whakaari’s Production Manager and a graduate of the Entertainment Technology course.

Sound will include an introduction to the equipment, set up, problem solving, operating, an introduction to ProTools and sound design. Sound will be tutored by Matt Eller a professional sound technician who graduated from Toi Whakaari in 2011 and has been in constant employment since then, including at Park Road Post, Circa, BATS, The Basement and Downstage.

ACTING

The Acting Summer Intensive will cover a wide range of acting skills and techniques, including:

Screen Acting (double session) – Brita McVeigh is one of NZ’s top acting for film coaches. She has worked with Taika Waititi, Bret McKenzie, Robyn Malcolm, and many other luminaries of screen. Brita honed her craft through years in script development in New York City, full time screenwriting and directing and producing her own films which travelled widely on the international festival circuit. She now works with the NZ Film Commission as an assessor.

Voice – Jon Hunter, Toi Whakaari’s resident Senior Tutor in Voice & Speech. Jon is NZ’s only Certified Master Teacher of Estill Voice Training™, he has worked at UNITEC , South Seas Film and Television School, The Performing Arts School of NZ, Auckland School of Rock, Excel School of Performing Arts and has acted as vocal coach for several kapa haka rōpū.

Acting Technique (double session) – Anya Tate-Manning graduated from Toi Whakaari in 2005 and since then has worked as a director, actor and writer. She won Best Female Newcomer in the 2004 Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards and won a Hackman Award in 2011 for Glorious. She also has several Fringe NZ awards for performing and acting.

Stage Combat – Alan Henry graduated from Toi Whakaari in 2006. Since then he has worked as a Fight Choreographer for many of NZ’s best theatres and as a motion capture performer for movies, including Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter, The Adventures of Tintin and The Avengers. He teaches Stage Combat at Toi Whakaari.

Devising – Aaron Cortesi completed a Master of Theatre Arts in Directing in 2012 and is the Artistic Director of Long Cloud Youth Theatre, where he has directed Assisted Living. Aaron received Chapman Tripp nominations for Best Supporting Actor for Mark Twain and Me in Maoriland and Most Promising New Actor for Settling.

Clown - Thomas LaHood has been clowning professionally since 2006 and works as a clown doctor at Wellington Hospital. He is also General Manager of Barbarian Productions, which produces Jo Randerson’s theatre work.

Improvisation – Dan Pengelly is a current directing student at Toi Whakaari. He is a professional improviser and is involved with Theatresports and improvisation classes for 5-year-olds to adults.

Movement – Ria Simmons will graduate from Toi Whakaari in 2012. Whilst studying she worked alongside John Bolton, Leo Gene Peters, Long Cloud Youth Theatre Company, Red Leap and Original Scripts Theatre School. Ria attained her National Certificate in Dance Performance from the NZ School of Dance in 2007.

Play - Alice Canton has been a member of the Court Jesters at the Court Theatre in Christchurch as an actor, tutor, and corporate entertainer since 2003 and takes regular teaching spots in holiday programmes and schools. Alice has a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and is a recent graduate of Toi Whakaari: NZ Drama School’s acting degree.

KOIWI

Each day of will start with a 45 minute Koiwi session. Koiwi is a place where skills, ideas and practice are tested, applied and challenged. Koiwi means bones – the framework of a body. We have found that working like this more quickly establishes an environment of trust and aspiration in which true creativity can flourish. Koiwi will include a warm up and group singing. It will be taken by the following tutors:

Koiwi - Holly Chappell and Tom Eason founded Original Scripts Youth Company and worked with them on new devised work. OSYC devised For Real, which travelled to Wellington and Auckland Fringe festivals, receiving a nomination for Best Newcomers. Holly graduated with a Master of Theatre Arts in Directing from Toi Whakaari and Victoria University and Tom has a Bachelor of Performing Arts in Acting from Toi Whakaari. They are currently developing another work for performance in early 2013 in Christchurch. Holly is also a trained teacher.

Singing - Hayley Sproull received her acting degree from Toi Whakaari in 2011. She is a trained piano teacher and singer, and tutors Long Cloud Youth Theatre in singing and composition. Hayley received rave reviews for her solo show Miss Fletcher Sings the Blues, which toured NZ in 2012 and received the Best Newcomer award in the NZ Comedy Awards. She also worked on West End Girls at Circa and Toys at BATS

DETAILS

Dates: 9.30am – 4.30pm, Monday 27 – Friday 31 January 2014

Cost: tbc

Suitable for: 16 years upwards

Bookings:

More information will be available closer to the time. Please watch this space for details!

Venue:

Te Whaea National Dance & Drama Centre, 11 Hutchison Road, Newtown, Wellington. http://goo.gl/maps/gCDlm.

There is ample parking at Te Whaea and several bus routes are very close by. There is an onsite cafe at Te Whaea, which will be open between 9am and 3pm. The Nola Millar Library will also be open and available for browsing.

We are located just south of the central city between Massey University’s Wellington Campus and Wellington Hospital, at the top of Wallace Street & John Street. Our building is sometimes identified as the former Wellington Show Buildings. We are only a short walk – 25 minutes from Central Wellington up Taranaki and Wallace Streets.

Wellington has an excellent public transport system of trains and buses. We are a short 10 minute bus ride from central Wellington Cuba/Courtney quarter, and about 25 minutes by bus from the Central Railway station. The no. 10 and 11 bus go right past our door from Wellington Railway, and central city. Use the Metlink website to plan your journeys – http://www.metlink.org.nz/

If you are visiting Wellington this website may be valuable  http://www.wellingtonnz.com/

Accommodation:

Wellington has a number of very good backpackers hostels including :
Wellington YHA – http://www.wellingtonnz.com/accommodation/yha_wellington_city
Base Backpackers – http://www.wellingtonnz.com/accommodation/base_wellington
Nomads – http://www.wellingtonnz.com/accommodation/nomads_capital

There are also several motels nearby – Wallace Court is the closest.