Aotearoa NZ Festival of the Arts celebrates 40 years
Sunday, 4 May 2025
Next year is the 40th anniversary of the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts, marking four decades of unforgettable experiences.
The first festival opened in March 1986 with 21 days of arts, creativity, experimental performances, opera, rock, ballet, jazz and music. It was a game-changer for Wellington’s cultural identity, and 40 years later the festival continues to invigorate the city and touch the lives of New Zealanders. Since its debut 22,000 artists have performed to more than 6.2 million people.
To celebrate the occasion the Sunday Star-Times asked a range of patrons, performers, technicians and creators who have been involved in the festival across the years to reflect on its legacy.
Lady Gillian Deane, long-time patron of Aotearoa NZ Festival of the Arts
GD: It was a balmy late summer in Wellington in 1986 when the then-NZ International Festival of the Arts was launched. Opening night at Wellington’s Michael Fowler Centre captured the excitement of the programme with the famous and much-loved Australian soprano Dame Joan Sutherland opening the festival. The buzz of the audience climbing the stairs and the swish of the silk dresses were unforgettable, it was a night I will remember forever.
There has always been a close relationship between the performers and the audience. We were invited to a special luncheon to meet the wonderful Sutherland. This was the beginning of real cooperation between different arts organisations in Aotearoa as the festival morphed into NZ performances being an integral part of the programme. Music, theatre and dance patrons came from all over the country and Wellington became the arts capital of Aotearoa.
**Paul O’Brien, head of technical and production at Tāwhiri, *the producers of the Aotearoa NZ Festival of the Arts***
PO: I was fortunate enough to be involved with the festival as a technician from the early 1990s. In 2002, then-festival chief executive David Inns shoulder tapped me to be the lighting designer for The World’s Wife. At the time I knew this was a big deal and huge leap of faith by David – the company list was effectively the All Blacks of the NZ performance world, and I was the rookie being given a chance.
Working in a company where everyone brought their A-game in the supportive environment of the festival meant we smashed it – it was a beautiful experience and one I will never forget. To be surrounded by great performers and technical practitioners gave me a benchmark that is with me to this day.
The World’s Wife was a huge success and in my first major gig as a production manager, we ended up touring throughout NZ to sell-out audiences.
Marinus Vroom, artistic director Vis à Vis, 1994 and 2002 festival artists from the Netherlands
MV: What I especially recall about my first festival experience is the warm welcome we encountered by the festival staff and the audience. Such a pleasure to participate, we felt so appreciated. When we returned the second time to perform PICNIC in 2002 we were overwhelmed by the fact that even after all those years since our first visit, so many people were sharing their memories of Topolino (1994) with us, showing us pictures they took of the ferry terminal venue and performance. After all these years, I’m grateful to express our appreciation for Wellington’s generous hospitality and the best audiences a theatre company could wish for. Never say never, so see you next time.
**Tory Whanau, mayor of Wellington and board member of *Tāwhiri***
TW: The festival plays an instrumental role in shaping Pōneke’s creative scene and is a highlight on our cultural calendar. It brings the best and brightest of talent to Pōneke. Just like our city, the festival is diverse and exciting, meaning there is something for everyone to enjoy. When we showcase the arts, we also showcase the very best of Pōneke: creativity, culture and community.
The biennial festival is always one of my favourite occasions, and it has given me so much joy to watch so many performances over the years. What makes it so special and memorable for me is that my koro, Rongo Do Kahu, was a performer in John Broughton’s Marae which was commissioned by the festival in 1992, so this festival is a chance for me to celebrate both the arts and his legacy. In 2024, I was a huge fan of Light Cycles by Moment Factory. It was absolutely incredible.
Tanea Heke, tumuaki/director of Toi Whakaari, festival artist and producer
TH: Back in 1986 a mate of mine suggested, at the last minute, that we attend one of the events at the new, then-called International Festival of the Arts. The actual gig? Can’t remember (terrible of me), but I do remember sitting in the foyer of the Michael Fowler Centre in a big crowd, who were all totally into it. I do remember being intrigued and liked the feeling of being in that space… It was my first attendance at a formal arts gig.
Fast-forward to my student days at Toi Whakaari in the 1990s, my friend Lynnette Crawford-Williams had met Carla van Zon (artistic director of the festival at the time) who has been such an influence for change in my life. Toi Whakaari students were lucky enough to act as kaiāwhina (assitants) for overseas artists attending the festival and in return, we were invited to a wide range of performances. We had such a blast!
Since 1996, I have been a producer, actor and/or audience member at every festival. Productions commissioned by the festival have given me the opportunity to travel the world with Hone Kouka’s work The Prophet and Witi Ihimaera’s Woman Far Walking.
The festival has been my pou (post) as an artist. It has provided me with the opportunity to view the world and expand my horizons. I’ve met and worked with some amazing people. The works that inspired and mesmerised me were Robert LePage’s work The Seven Streams of the River Ota (never in my life thought I could sit through a seven-hour performance of anything) and commissioned works from Aotearoa - Waiora by Hone Kouka and A Frigate Bird Sings. I remember seeing Nancy Brunning in the Young Vic’s production of Beauty and the Beast – spellbinding.
Kristina Russo, senior head of department for assets at Wētā FX, long-standing partner of Aotearoa NZ Festival of the Arts
KR: The most incredible show that left me in awe was BELLE - A Performance of Air by Movement of the Human from 2024. It was beyond imagination and hard to describe the emotion of being part of an air performance and a harmony of multiple senses. The play of light, sound and colours never ceased to surprise, and it revealed a unique experience for the audience.
My 10-year-old daughter and I attended a Q&A session with the makers, who shared insights into the planning and execution of something so incredible. To this day, this incredible performance sticks with me and compares to European festivals I’ve attended over a few decades.
I always enjoy the events in the moment. The details fade and become part of a memory of a performance I've been part of. Thinking back, I do recall Lisa Reihana’s Kura Moana, it was impossible to miss that giant octopus Te Wheke-a-Muturangi on the waterfront! As a Wellingtonian with young kids it was really enjoyable how it was part of the city, something everyone could appreciate in their own time with a different level of engagement. Having time to discover and absorb oneself in the installation as you walked around the waterfront is something certainly memorable about the experience.
Dolina Wehipeihana, festival co-director at Tāwhiri
DW: The first festival I attended was in 1996. I was a fresh dance graduate and high-tailed it to Wellington to perform in a Fringe show at BATS called Secrets must Circulate. My Secrets cast mates were both also involved in festival events, so I tagged along wholeheartedly. I watched dancer Ta’i Paitai from the Opera House gods seats as he swept across the stage in a beautiful ensemble in Aotearoa choreographer Eric Languet’s Les Noces, and Tasha Lee swept across the Civic Square in a Ford as part of Susan Jordan’s Car Ballet. I was caught up in the magic of the festival ‒ new experiences, the buzz of artists at work, throngs of people out and about. Festivals make anything feel possible.
Angela Green, executive director at Tāwhiri
AG: I moved to Wellington in 2000 to attend Toi Whakaari: NZ Drama School. That year, I saw Iets Op Bach by Les Ballets C de la B. While watching I felt like my idea of theatre exploded into a million stars. I was gripped. I couldn’t breathe. I never wanted it to end. It was a real turning point about what kind of theatre-maker I wanted to be, telling stories through movement.
My classmates and I took full advantage of the festival atmosphere and partied for three weeks, which made 8am dance classes rather a struggle. Fourteen years later, I produced a sold-out performance of Strike Percussion’s Between Zero and One in the Festival. That was another pinch-yourself moment. I’ve been in the audience at every festival since 2000, and — something I couldn’t have imagined back then — I’m now part of the team that creates it.
Jon Bittman of Släpstick, 2020 festival artists from the Netherlands
JB: While it’s tempting to say the most memorable moments of our trip to NZ were playing four shows to a sold out Opera House, or our impromptu performance on the Cable Car hundreds of metres above the city, in reality the most unforgettable event was the mad scramble to figure out a plan for ourselves as Covid-19 broke loose around the country!
That led to some wild adventures involving various crew and band members being stuck on a ferry between the two islands, camping out in front of convenience stores, dashing on bicycles to remote airfields to liaison with a camper van, and a 40-hour layover in Japan! Luckily (and with the help of the lovely festival staff) we all made it home in one piece. And… that means we still owe the festival one show!