Festivals and Venues
The NZ Festival of Solo Performance gathers soloists from around the motu, and beyond – from established to emerging practitioners – to present work, collaborate and make connections across the industry. The Pōneke festival provides opportunities for practitioners to extend the life of their solo performance work, to develop new work, share practice and to network through an integrated programme of performance, workshops, and talks. We began in 2019 as a three-day festival with 7 solo shows presented at BATS Theatre. By 2022 we were two jam-packed weeks, across three venues and 18 different shows. We are a small festival doing a lot. By our fifth birthday in 2023:
When creating a substantial new art project, there is a critical opportunity to begin in the way you wish to continue, to plant the seed. The New Zealand Festival of Solo Performance is aspirational and ambitious. One of the most helpful processes for the Festival was to work with tikanga right from the start and use those values as pou to support our growth. Those pou are our foundational work on Tikanga, Hauora, Accessibility and Environmental Sustainability.
It made complete sense to us that a new, small festival like ours could be ‘green’ - that we could find ways to reduce our carbon footprint. That we could in some way honour the Te Tiriti o Waitangi with kaitiakitanga. Maybe we could encourage others to do the same - make our production team, our technicians, our presenting artists, the venues and our audiences take some consideration of the environmental impact of art. And a solo festival has an imbedded green, minimalist, economical ethos:
“Solo performance is characterised by a heightened presence in both performer and audience, incited by a minimalism that abandons the theatrical premise of artifice and turns to primary storytelling.”
We are in the business of storytelling, in the mode of Brook’s ‘empty space’, suitcase in hand. Thus, we have made some bold statements:
“TAHI New Zealand Festival of Solo Performance acknowledges that we must work to preserve the sustainability of our planet. TAHI is committed to improving and promoting sustainable practices in theatre events and festivals. Our hope is to become leaders in improving environmental sustainability in the arts.
TAHI aspires to minimise its impact on the environment and maximise the effective use of our resources. We hope to achieve this by increasing communication and awareness of our efforts and fostering responsible environmental behaviour amongst members of our board, staff and artists.” (https://www.tahifestivalnz.com/green-theatre)
The initiatives came from research in the sector, initially talking with advisors at Creative New Zealand who put me onto the Theatre Green Book from the UK, and connecting with The Sustainability Trust. The kaupapa was also apparent in our wananga on festival tikanga - it was a shared ethos in our team. The challenge was the capacity and resources to focus on Green Theatre, amidst the pressures of building and delivering the Festival, and during the disruptions of Covid. Thus we considered what we might be able to achieve, particularly with immediacy. We have been asking our team and artists to engage with the following key initiatives:
Transport
We encourage audiences, artists and staff members to use public transport when possible
When public transport is not available, we encourage carpooling within our team
Note: We get this messaging out to artists and team when we contract them - in fact our contract sets out the Festival’s tikanga including our Green Theatre focus. We supply public transport information to help people navigate this. We use a team group chat to car pool trips.
Digital
Our programmes and tickets are available via QR code to minimise printing
Note: There has been some resistance to not having a hard copy of the show programmes available but we know audiences are gradually adapting. It was also great to use the QR code for further insights about a show. For example, we had lots of media about the show Verbatim that audiences could access post or pre show.
Consumables
Our technical team is using reusable consumables where possible. For example, using velcro straps instead of gaffer tape, or mats to cover cables rather than taping them down.
We facilitate the sharing of technical resources across all programming.
Note: Technical teams love a challenge, and to be resourceful. Our Verbatim designer recycled set materials from a previous show in the space. Often the Green Theatre measures also bring down costs.
Sourcing
Reuse, reduce, recycle.
We are sourcing sustainable materials for merchandise and consider where materials are sourced from and working on sustainable procurement for the festival
Source hospitality from sustainable organisations.
Recycled paper for poster and brochure printing
Notes: This year our emerging artists’ programme Hatch pretty much dispensed with any new purchases. The presentation of these solos was beautifully simple, focused on story-telling. Again, the rōpū received the Green messaging early on so included it as part of their making process.
Our merchandise this year, branded keep cups, were made from rice husks.
We brought small bins for food scraps into the venues. This ended up happy in my home compost and maybe nudged venues into their own action. NB. Don’t leave them behind!
Communication
We will communicate successes, results and resources with our partners, including other festivals.
Note: This is part of the Festival’s mahi in 2024. To work in partnership with others. A cursory look over the websites of arts festivals around the motu shows no reference to Green Initiatives. There is work to do.
We have allocated funding and personnel to Environmental Sustainability, ensuring it is an important budget line. In 2021 we trialled numerous initiatives with our artists, team, venue and audience, including using QR codes for programmes, documenting waste production, recycling and encouraging car-pooling and more. In 2022 we had a team member dedicated to supporting this initiative and we held a community sustainability hui in collaboration with the Sustainability Trust - presented as part of the Festival. The session was attended by the Festival team, artists, venue representatives and the wider community. This archived video was made available online as a shared resource for all.
Photo Credit: Dianna Thomson, Hatch
Our 2023 TAHI Talks (annual festival panel) was dedicated to Green Theatre in Aotearoa. From the Playmarket offices, we live streamed a discussion with festival director Sally Richards, Hannah Smith and Ralph McCubbin Howell from Trick of the Light Theatre Company, Track Zero’s Sarah Mead and Kena Duignan from Wellington City Council. We talked about ways to make green theatre a priority in Aotearoa, some tips and tricks as well as using resources to track and calculate your carbon footprint.
But how hard is it, what did we learn and where to now? Tikanga takes commitment and time.
Questions:
Where is the information?
What is best practice?
Are we Green? Environmentally Sustainable/Friendly? Eco? Carbon Neutral?
What is unique about our efforts in Aotearoa?
How do we track our efforts?
How do we create our message?
How do we inspire change?
How do we get venues to engage?
Who is doing this already?
Who financially supports this work?
Do people care?
How do we consolidate what we learn and create systems?
Successes:
Our biggest gains were in the positive response to our kaupapa. We made good connections with like-minded organisations and have built relationships. The festival team and participating artists are keen to support mahi in this area. We surveyed over 2021-2023. Here is a snapshot of those responses:
I really liked this goal for TAHI and it actually helped me with building my show. Originally I had tons of props and set but on further reflection about this goal I wondered how I could do the show with the least waste possible while maintaining the meaning of my piece.
I supported this by using a sustainable set and costume I had either borrowed or can reuse in the future.
In this current climate every step helps and having this festival include steps like this is commendable.
We were aware of the initiatives - and (in particular, the rubbish box) it was a good reminder that our own team could be doing far more in this space. TAHI's own efforts have encouraged me to weave these elements into our next production.
Our practical lights used LED bulbs.
Yeah, I dig this. I asked for stuff that we can source without spending. 👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾
My set was reused, the consumables are paper and biscuits. I usually make my lunch every day and brought my team a ready cooked meal from home on performance day.
I most definitely could have worked on my food wastage and sustainability practices....something I am going to take with me and focus on in the future.
Loved the digital programme. Have found paper flyers in the past a waste of resources so I was really happy there were no paper flyers. I also walked in and back to the venue too.
And I found that a lot of the set and prop items that would've never been used again, weren't necessary. It was a choice facilitated and supported by the director and I felt supported by TAHI all the way.
We used the bus system for transport between some rehearsals and when using cars tried to make as few trips as possible. We used predominantly second hand set pieces and props. A few new items are going to be reused in the future.
I think this is a really important subject. I am committing to not fly this year so will be training down to Welly and bussing back up to Auckland after the Fest. Tautoko this conversation!
Photo Credit: Dianna Thomson
Challenges, kōrero and discoveries:
Personnel: The dedicated team member needs support to deliver our initiatives. They need to know exactly what we can do - a solid job description. Maybe this should be a small commando team. They need to get venues on board with the kaupapa.
Planning: We need greater forward planning, including finding the funds to support our work. Timelines and lead in is important. Tikanga takes commitment and time.
Connections: Where/how do we connect to tangata whenua? The Festival’s pou are all interconnected, eg. our environmental sustainability contributes to hauora. How do we connect for local bodies and other festivals?
Message: The kupu “sustainability” is tied to artists’ ability to maintain their creative careers so “Green Theatre” became a clearer message. We have successfully weaved our Green initiatives into our media output.
Awareness of conflict: There can be tension between Accessibility needs and Green initiatives. For example, some older people struggle with digital ticketing and programmes, some printed signage is critical for supporting others. We need to be aware of these needs.
The future: We would like to do better. 2024, our first year without a Festival, provides an important opportunity to consolidate our mahi. We want to create systems for the Festival that are fit for purpose - accessible and succinct instructions for how all the moving parts can be part of the effort. I think festivals and venues can be more proactive but creatives can also keep asking them to consider Green alternatives and action. And I wonder when more of the stories presented at the Festival will provoke more environmental action. In solo performance there are opportunities for political agendas and marginalised voices to take centre stage. The audience become acute listeners and there is an opportunity to use this attention as a way of examining broader, collective and urgent concerns.
Thanks for your mahi on this kaupapa: Beth Barclay, Anna Barker & Brooke Werner.
Dr Sally Richards
Dr Sally Richards has a PhD in Theatre from Victoria University of Wellington, holds a Master of Theatre Arts in Directing from Toi Whakaari: NZ Drama School and Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University, and a Bachelor of Theatre with Honours from James Cook University of North Queensland. Sally has twenty years of experience in directing and devising solo theatre. Her PhD research examined the rehearsal room relationship between the director and the solo performer. In 2019 she created TAHI New Zealand Festival of Solo Performance, now a biennial fixture in Pōneke. Sally’s most recent directing work includes the polylogues Batch, Joy, Whānau, and Ono – six Māori and Pasifika writers on the theme of Aroha/Alofa/Love.
