Technical Stream

NYDS is thrilled to be back at Toitoi, Hawke’s Bay Arts and Events Centre for a second year, and invites all those students interested in working behind the curtain to apply for this exciting and practical course.

NYDS is all about pushing your performance envelope and every performer needs to know their instrument whether it be your body, your voice, a pen, or an entire building! Students will explore the other side of the curtain with two Technical Theatre classes working out of the NYDS base, Havelock North High School, and off-campus at the beautiful Hawke’s Bay Opera House. Both classes will include light and sound rigging, plotting, show operation, stage management, design elements, and more.

Beginners Tech is open to students who are completely new to the backstage world and those students who might have done one or two shows before. Students who have done a previous tech course at NYDS or who have worked extensively in their school or local theatre are invited to take the Advanced Tech class. There will be times when classes work to support each other and both classes aim to instil safe, professional, and industry accepted tech practices in an environment where you are encouraged to experiment. Taking either tech class means you like to sweat, walk a little on the geek side, are keen to work as a team, and generally want to make the magic happen.

Please indicate your preference for either the Beginners or Advanced class when you apply, but be aware that the teaching team may make final placement decisions after assessing student skill level during the first day of class.

Please note: A Technical T-Shirt is required and is available to techies for $35.

Wendy Clease has been working in the technical and creative aspects of the arts and entertainment industry for most of her adult life, mainly as a specialist in lighting and technical management. Her work regularly takes her around NZ and also globally, seeing many sights including the inside of many a theatre and airport. Currently technical director of two regional Arts Festivals and a regular fixture at many others, she still manages to take time out from pen pushing, chin scratching and lugging, to do some button mashing for live music and theatre. She also enjoys sharing experience and knowledge with the pool of others associated with her craft. This will be Wendy’s 8th NYDS and she loves coming back to Hawke’s Bay each year to share her knowledge with the next generation of those creatives who make thing happen.

Shane Cross entered tech for the same reason as many techies, to get out of class and “help” with the PA for assembly. Turns out he was quite good at making things work. He earned an EIT Video & Electronic Media Diploma, learning how the film and theatre industry differ, and which skills work between both. He worked at Toitoi Hawke’s Bay Opera House, then moved to Wellington for work in pyrotechnics and film special effects. After traveling abroad, he became Lead Technician back at Toitoi in Hastings, where you’ll find him today.

Advanced Acting

For those looking towards a career in acting for stage or screen or wanting to prepare for tertiary training auditions. This class will work with scripts and narrative works focusing on performance skills, the ability to work with a director, additional skills actors can use to do their best work, as well as demystifying the industry for those looking at a career as an actor. The class will challenge each individual in skill workshops and with the Directing class on scene work and connection with a scene partner.

Students will need to prepare one 2-minute monologue – from any medium they’re drawn to: theatre, film, television, or even poetry. It’s recommended this is a piece new to the student. Students may receive further work to be completed prior to the week’s start. 

Prerequisite: This is an advanced class designed for older, more experienced students. Applicants should be 16+ and provide a CV of experience or a letter of recommendation.

Circus Skills

Open to everyone – you don’t have to be a gymnast!

A fantastic course involving aerial tissu and rope skills, static trapeze and aerial ring (lyra), acrobatic balancing and tumbling, group and partner work, object manipulation (hoops, balls, scarves, clubs, poi and more), unicycle and rollabola. You don’t have to be a gymnast to give it a go, but a good level of strength and fitness will help you make the most of this course. You will have the thrill of presenting some very exciting and spectacular work after only one week with skilled and supportive tutors!

Pipi-Ayesha Evans is a circus and physical theatre performer and tutor. In performance, Pipi specialises in aerials and stilts, in particular combining them with physical theatre and aerial dance. She aims to create work that is provocative and beautiful, combining physicality with innovative storytelling to create compelling theatre. Pipi has performed and trained extensively throughout New Zealand and internationally, including trapeze off a hot air balloon in the Wairarapa, and stilts in the Himalalyas. For the past two years Pipi has been working with Dreamcast Theatre in the Solomon Islands. She worked with them teaching circus skills, and mentoring Dreamcast to continue teaching circus in the Solomon Islands. This will be Pipi’s 6th time teaching at NYDS.

Irene Göed has been performing and teaching various circus skills for over 25 years. Her passion lies with object manipulation like juggling, hula hoops and aerial acrobatics. She has been performing stilt and street theatre, as well as juggling and firedance in her native Austria and other European countries. Since moving to New Zealand in 2000 Irene has finished a diploma in Circus Arts at Christchurch Polytech where she specialized in swinging trapeze and other aerials. For the last 14 years she has been performing in her very own circus – Circus Aotearoa – which she runs together with husband Damian and son Matthias. Irene is also teaching circus skills and yoga-based movement to people of all ages in rural Raglan.  Her fascination with circus is never ending as there are always new things to explore and learn – regardless of age and abilities.

Directing

This class focuses on engaging with and developing the actors’ relationships to illuminate the text / narrative / story / characters. We will cover investigating the basics of directing; articulating your own directing style; leading the creative rehearsal room; and tools to coach actors. We take a peer-supportive approach wherein we learn to discuss each other’s work, addressing challenges by seeking solutions together. The theoretical work is matched with practical application as students will direct the Advanced Acting class in multiple short scenes with the guidance of the tutor. This is an intensive week and students may receive text work to complete prior to the start of school.

Prerequisite: This is an advanced class designed for older, more experienced students. Applicants should be 16+ and provide a CV of experience or a letter of recommendation.

Playwriting

From a desire to nurture the telling of our stories on the stage, this class introduces the craft of writing for the theatre. Students will explore the basics of plot and character development, scene structure, theme and dialogue, and will touch on production considerations and the role of the dramaturg. With an emphasis on finding a unique voice, students will work on exercises designed to inspire ideas and creative risk-taking and will be supported to write scenes and work on an original one-act play over the course of the week.

Sam Brooks is an award-winning playwright and journalist, who while still in his twenties, wrote over twenty plays. He has been longlisted for the Adam Awards 11 times, and four of his plays have been highly commended. He has made a significant contribution to representing queer male voices on New Zealand stages. He was awarded the Bruce Mason Playwrighting Award in 2016. Most recently, his plays Lads on the Island and The Perfect Image were performed at Circa Theatre and as part of Auckland Pride respectively.

Songwriting

Write songs from scratch in a supportive, collaborative environment for the entire week. Discover how to take a basic idea, a possible title or a chord progression and turn it into a finished song you’re proud of. Learn how to work with other musically minded folk to present your song live. Prerequisite: 1. A passion for music. 2. A creative spirit – be willing to try things out and share ideas.

You will need a reasonable competence on a chordal instrument (piano, keyboard, guitar or ukulele).

Eden Iris is a songwriter from Auckland, New Zealand, who has been described as “an artist working in a new space” (Jordan Luck, Exponents) “ with the ambition to carve out her own niche on the immense tree of folk-inspired music” (Tobi, Demerara Records). Recording and producing out of her home studio, Eden combines her love of infectious pop melodies and the grit of Americana stringed instruments to create a unique and compelling storytelling experience through her music. 

Moving to Los Angeles at twenty years-old with just a suitcase and a guitar, Eden’s music has taken her to cities such as Nashville, Austin, and New Orleans, to perform and co-write with established songwriters. Commanding a strong live performance with her dynamic rhythm guitar technique, she has supported touring artists such as Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Gin Wigmore (You Are Us Concert, LA, 2019), Nik Kershaw (NZ Tour 2014), and Mark Scibalious (Hotel Cafe, LA, 2018). In January 2020, Eden received a grant from the New Zealand Music Commission to travel and perform at the Folk Alliance International Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana, where she opened for Tami Neilson and Troy Kingi.