Te Puna Toi - Performance Research Project

Te Puna Toi (est. 2001) is the performance research arm of Free Theatre. Te Puna Toi works between the local and the international and between the avant-garde and the traditional in theatre, performance and film. It is especially interested in hosting and creating performances and educational events and supporting research and publications which produce ideas about the performance of encounter and identity between cultures – in particular, between European and Māori, but also amongst European, Māori, Pasifika, Asian and other peoples, as New Zealand becomes increasingly multi-cultural in its orientation. 

Archive

As the research and events branch of Free Theatre, Te Puna Toi is committed to preserving and promoting the work of New Zealand artists, providing an essential resource for those wishing to study and to make performances and films in Aotearoa/New Zealand as well as to make the work of international artists available locally. We have operated in collaboration with partners, the Centre for Performance Research (Aberystwyth, Wales) and Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision.

History

Te Puna Toi was established in 2001 by the Department of Theatre and Film Studies at the University of Canterbury and co-founded by Te Rita Papesch (Waikato-Maniapoto, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Whakaue and Czech), Peter Falkenberg and Sharon Mazer (Falkenberg is current director of the centre) in order to provide a New Zealand-centred platform for performance research and has hosted conferences such as PSi - Performance Studies International (2003) and artists including filmmaker Barry Barclay (2001), performer Cristina Castrillo (2001), Professor Jörg Drews (2004), Atamira Dance Collective (2005), pianist Gao Ping (2007), Professor Manfred Waffender (2008), playwright Werner Fritsch (2008 and 2010), filmmaker Lech Majewski (2009), Professor Richard Gough (2011), director Taiporoutu Huata (2001 and 2015) conductor Hamish McKeich (2019) and Professor Mark Menzies (2019). 

Since the disestablishment of the Theatre & Film Studies Programme by the University of Canterbury in 2013, Free Theatre has continued the work of Te Puna Toi.
Advisory Panel Members during the formation of Te Puna Toi: Anton Carter, Cathy Downes, John Downie, Hone Kouka, Jonathon Mané-Wheoki, Te Rita Papesch, Michael Parmenter and Terry Ryan.

Current projects

As part of an ongoing archiving project Free Theatre are currently working on a book about Free Theatre.