Friday 18 April 2008, Christchurch Town Hall
Free Theatre members and students of University of Canterbury's Theatre & Film Studies Department protest a proposal to close our programme because our work wasn't considered by Vice-Chancellor Roy Sharp and Pro Vice Chancellor for the Arts Ken Strongman to be "core" to the University.
Efforts from students, staff and public pressure saved the department.
Students also used performance to protest the next attempt to disestablish the Theatre & Film Studies programme four years later in 2012 with the Big Heads Protest, see here.
Students also used performance to protest the next attempt to disestablish the Theatre & Film Studies programme four years later in 2012 with the Big Heads Protest, see here.
MediaLooking to the Future Ken Strongman, The Press, 1 February 2008 Cutting to the core D1, D2 John McCrone, The Press, Sat & Sun, 2-3 February 2008 Time for Kiwis to lift up not tear down Jeff Bell, The Press, Sat & Sun, 2-3 February 2008 University job cuts distressing, but hardly a bolt from the blue The Press, Editorial, Sat & Sun, 2-3 February 2008 Spurious reasoning, misguided thinking The Press, Thursday, 7 February 2008 What a Drama Martin van Beynen, The Press, 9 February 2008 Varsity plan 'devastating' Rebecca Todd, The Press, 13 February 2008 Staff cuts weaken teaching quality Ian Lochhead, The Press, 14 February 2008 Varsity urged to save Film Studies Rebecca Todd, The Press, 27 February 2008 Mounting anger over university's proposed course cuts - front page Mounting anger over university's proposed course cuts - cont. page 3 Megan Ferguson, Nor'West News, Wednesday, 12 March 2008 Study of our Times D1, D2 Philip Matthews, The Press, Sat & Sun, 15-16 March 2008 
This week the University of Canterbury will release the final implementation plan for "changes" to its College of Arts - after a review panel has spent three and a half weeks considering some three hundred submissions on the original Change Proposal. As you may know, the most disturbing aspects of this proposal were plans to disestablish Theatre and Film Studies, as well as this country's only American Studies programme. So a good number of students, academics and general staff around the University are nervously awaiting this week's announcement. |
...words are merely one part of this sensual and dynamic production that skilfully interweaves elements of song, nonverbal sound, film and music with movement, gesture, mimicry and dance to create an exciting, pulsating theatrical event.... the vigorous sense of dynamic is refreshing, an approach sadly lacking in many contemporary productions that remain committed to staid and traditional forms of storytelling.... this questioning of power has a more immediate, local resonance, and one that surfaces most explicitly in Hermann Göring's (George Parker's) powerful final monologue. Spoken by Hitler's second in command and leader of the Nazi state theatres, Göring's monologue makes explicit reference to University of Canterbury's Vice-Chancellor Roy Sharp's condescending comments in the Christchurch Press denunciating theatre as merely "faddy," and therefore presumably unworthy of serious consideration. Indeed, during the play's early performances the Theatre and Film Studies department at the University of Canterbury, many of whose staff and students are intimately involved in the Free Theatre and Faust Chroma, was threatened with disestablishment as part of a larger planned series of changes to the College of Arts. Thankfully, such a proposal did not go ahead, although it clearly highlights the dangers to art in a world where utility threatens to triumph over creativity. It is precisely in times like these that we need relevant and intelligent theatre like Faust Chroma.
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