In Conversation at the Auckland Arts Festival

IN CONVERSATION

12.30 – 1.30pm in the Pacific Crystal Palace Spiegeltent, Festival Garden, Aotea Square - FREE

Wed 2 March – Te Radar talks reviewing with a panel of critics

Self-proclaimed opinionist and sometimes art reviewer, Te Radar, is joined by a panel of erudite Auckland critics, amongst them Metro’s Simon Wilson and Auckland Arts Festival Director David Malacari to present a ‘how-to-guide’ to arts reviewing in this fair city.  Assess Auckland’s arts review landscape alongside these arts experts.

Thur 3 March – Spoken Word with Witi Ihimaera and Toi M?ori

Icon of New Zealand literature and leading indigenous writer Witi Ihimaera reads from the lyrics he composed for Ihimaera, a special Festival concert featuring 12 New Zealand recording artists performing songs inspired by his rare and moving words.  This is a chance to hear Ihimaera’s thoughts on the unique song writing process. Also adding their fresh new voices to the mix are performance poets Tarah Rudolph Ahikau and Troy and Luther Hunt from Toi M?ori currently touring with the project Words in Motion.

Fri 4 March – Loin… (Far…) Rachid Ouramdane in conversation with Dr Nick Rowe

Rachid Ouramdane, a second generation French performer of Algerian heritage, and a powerfully athletic and intellectually compelling choreographer is joined in conversation by Dr Nick Rowe, lecturer in dance at the University of Auckland. Ouramdane creates interdisciplinary dance-theatre that explores the political, sociological and psychological impacts of geo-cultural upheaval while Dr Nick Rowe has researched, created and taught dance in some of the world’s most traumatised communities in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.  In this vital and potent session the pair talk about the origins of Loin… (Far…), Ouramdane’s semi-autobiographical work which explores colonialism, history and the damaging affects of war by drawing on testimonies from his mother and the journals his father kept while in the French Army during its occupation of Algeria.

Mon 7 March – Massive Company and UrbanYOUTHMovement: Emerging artists in conversation with Ben Crowder

Massive Company and UrbanYOUTHMovement are performing arts companies focused on providing professional opportunities for emerging artists. Alongside projects run by the Young & Hungry and Play it Strange Trusts, these companies point to a bright future for young New Zealand artists. Join this panel of creatives as they share with Ben Crowder, theatre director and teacher, their perspectives on what it is like to be a young artist in New Zealand performing arts.

Tue 8 March – Gregory Maqoma speaks about Beautiful Me

Rising South African choreographer Gregory Maqoma, hailed as a dance-hero in his home city of Johannesburg, refers to himself as a cultural cocktail, saying that life in a city like Johannesburg provides a perfect platform for cross-cultural production, especially in dance.  Meet Maqoma and hear first-hand about the creation of Beautiful Me – an autobiographical dance work developed in collaboration with three prominent choreographers from different cultures and with different dance languages – Akram Khan (UK), Faustin Linyekula (Congo) and Vincent Mantsoe (South Africa). 

Wed 9 March – Performance/Art: Mark Amery, Emma Bugden, Sue Gallagher, Tracey Collins in conversation with Ariane Craig-Smith

What is the role of performance in visual art? Performance art and performing arts – what is the difference? The re-staging of Jim Allen’s seminal 1974 performance series Contact signals the strong presence of performance as both theme and method across several Festival exhibitions. These include performance design survey Fly-Tower and group show Alicia Frankovich / Laresa Kosloff / Ruth Proctor at Starkwhite, bringing together the work of three international artists who address the relationship between performative body and artwork object. Curator, art writer and former Playmarket Director Mark Amery, ARTSPACE Director Emma Bugden and the creative team behind Fly-Tower, Sue Gallagher and Tracey Collins join Festival Visual Arts Manager, Ariane Craig-Smith to discuss the relationship between performance and art. 

Thur 10 March –  Dance Theatre: Maguy Marin Compagnie in conversation with Dr Carol Brown

Master choreographer Maguy Marin’s seminal work May B celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2011.  This once radical dance-theatre work undergoes some smart analysis at this lunchtime discussion as members of Marin’s company and Dr Carol Brown, award winning choreographer, and senior lecturer at the University of Auckland’s Dance Studies programme, assess the ongoing relevance of the work and its place in the contemporary dance scene.

Fri 11 March – The Manganiyar Seduction: Roysten Abel in conversation with Justin Lewis

 Join Royston Abel artistic director of The Manganiyar Seduction as he explains to Indian Ink writer, producer and director Justin Lewis his staging of this incredible performance. The Manganiyar Seduction is an innovative and astounding theatre production born from a fascinating musical practice. Considered the bearers of tradition, it is the responsibility of the Manganiyars – the largest hereditary musician caste in India – to keep the musical repertoire and folk knowledge of their caste alive. Come and hear about the staging of this masterpiece in a new cultural context.

Mon 14 March – Ng? Hau e Wh? – The Four Winds: Leilani Kake, Luisa Lefao-Setoga, Ema Tavola in conversation with Kolokesa Mahina-Tuai

Luisa Lefao-Setoga a Samoan mother of four was 6 months pregnant when video installation artist Leilani Kake filmed her for the thought provoking installation Nga Hau e Wha – The Four Winds. In a panel discussion moderated by Kolokesa Mahina-Tuai, the artist, her subject and Ema Tavola, curator of Fresh Gallery Otara where the installation is exhibited, examine taboos in Pacific Island and Maori communities and their impact on women’s bodies and health.

Tue 15 March – O Cambodia’s Him Sophy and Chinary Ung in conversation with Annie Goldson

Contemporary Cambodian composers Him Sophy and Chinary Ung recollect their experiences during the Pol Pot regime – Sophy spent four years in a Khmer Rouge labour camp and Ung, living in the USA at the time, assisted Cambodian refugees, many of them musicians, to record and perform Khmer music there.  The pair share these experiences with Annie Goldson (QSM), award winning documentarian and director of Brother Number One, an exploration of the history of Cambodia and the devastation of the Pol Pot Regime. 

Wed 16 March – U Theatre in conversation with Anna Marbrook

High above the city of Taipei on Laochuan Mountain U-Theatre’s artistic director Liu Ryo-Yu and musical director Huang-Chih-Chun combine Western theatrical techniques with Zen Buddhist philosophy to produce a unique theatre of movement and percussion such as The Sound of the Ocean.  In conversation with film and theatre director Anna Marbrook, the pair discuss the way their Buddhist practises and understandings shape their art.

Thur 17 March - The Show Must Go On: Cast and directors speak with Mark Harvey

French choreographer Jerome Bel’s restaging of The Show Must Go On involves a group of locals brought together for an intensive development period in preparation for performance.  They are a mix of professional and amateur performers of diverse ages, ethnicities, shapes and sizes.  The tour directors, Auckland based cast, and Jerome Bel enthusiast Mark Harvey from The University of Auckland’s School of Dance come together to interrogate Bel’s process, his conceptual approach to performances and audiences and the particular flavour New Zealanders bring to his signature piece.

Fri 18 March Conor Lovett and Judy Hegarty Lovett in conversation with Professor Chris Ackerley

An hour of enlightenment ensues as Professor Chris Ackerly, Samuel Beckett scholar from Otago University, and esteemed Beckett interpreters Conor Lovett and Judy Hegarty Lovett tackle the masterful Irish playwright’s oeuvre. Professor Ackerley addresses Beckett’s texts, examining his apparent preoccupation with the Bible, and with cemeteries in First Love, as well as the lasting impact of Beckett’s father’s death on his writing.  The Lovetts, who have considerable experience bringing Beckett's prose works to the stage, focus on the humour, compassion and accessibility of Beckett's writing and shift the conversation from page to the stage. Be sure to join in what will be, without doubt, an entertaining and intelligent conversation.

Brokentalkers post-show talk

Join the Silver Stars writer Sean Millar and directors Feidlim Cannon and Gary Keegan after the Friday night performance, along with the actors, many of whom point to Silver Stars as their first appearance on stage, as they share their experiences of being openly gay in Ireland. Actors explore their motivations for being involved in such an emotionally challenging project and Millar, Cannon and Keegan discuss the inspiration for the show and the creative processes used to bring it to the stage.

When Fri 4 March, 8.30pm

Where Concert Chamber