Emerging Talent Takes Centre Stage in TAHI Festival's Student Showcase

“Valuing and fostering emerging artists. Providing them opportunities to develop their craft"

As Aotearoa’s only dedicated solo performance festival, TAHI Festival is a supportive platform for new talent to showcase and develop their work. Key parts of our kaupapa include valuing and fostering emerging artists. Each year we work closely with students of acting programmes from Te Auaha, Toi Whakaari: NZ Drama School, and Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington.

Most acting programmes use solo creative practice as a way for students to tell their own stories, in their own way and test their growing kete of performance skills and story-telling. Each institution takes a different approach and each individual takes their own path. HATCH is a place for this practice to meet and for emerging artists to connect with each other, with mentors and venues.

Over the course of a few months, these student performers develop their craft through personalised workshops with industry professionals. 

The structure of this programme is that two participants from each institution are selected through an expression of interest and advisory panel. The practitioners then work with design interns and the HATCH team over a period of six months to develop a 10-minute solo at BATS Theatre - as part of the wider HATCH showcase.

The process and development of this programme have been integral and core to the TAHI Festival over its last four years. HATCH is a great opportunity for these six students to gain experience, skills and networking opportunities. 

The result of this hard work is HATCH, a polylogue with each student performing their piece in a full scale production at BATS Theatre.

HATCH ARCHIVE

2024 - HATCH Alumni Event


Photo credit: Dianna Thomson

Video credit: Daniel Nodder

  • People sitting in a circle in a room with large windows, participating in a discussion or meeting, with a large television screen in the background showing a construction site.

  • Group of people performing in a theater, some arguing, some making expressive faces, in black and white.

  • A group of four diverse people signing or drawing on a piece of paper at a table, surrounded by pens and cups, with a busy background of people and posters in an indoor space.

  • Three men engaged in a conversation indoors. The man in the middle is gesturing animatedly with his hands, while the other two listen attentively.

  • Two men engaged in a conversation indoors, with one gesturing with his hand while the other listens attentively.

  • A diverse group of people posing together on stage, with many making expressive gestures, smiling, and interacting.

2023

  • A young woman wearing a scarf, feathered headband, and feathered accessories, looking at crumpled maps against a dark background.

    The Last Farewell, by Aimee Dredge

    she/her

    How much do you share with the person you love? The joyful and heart-wrenching story of a young couple separated by war.

  • A man wearing a black beanie, sunglasses on his head, a green and black checkered jacket, and jeans, holding a handgun. A balloon with drawn sunglasses, orange hair, mustache, and beard floats beside him, with a surprised or confused expression.

    Heart of the Bush, by Tom Hayward

    he/him

    Only death will stop Forrest Bush from finding Bigfoot in this wacky, high-octane comedy about one man's perilous search for proof.

  • A young woman wearing a pink shiny cowboy hat, surrounded by people holding colorful glow sticks in each hand, with a serious or contemplative expression.

    I am not afraid of sadness, by Joey Sheppard

    How do you help a child navigate loss? Through laughter and a really good boogie right?

  • Man with dark curly hair wearing a denim shirt, holding his hands together near his face, looking intensely at the camera with a serious expression, against a plain background.

    This World Of Yours, by Ngahaki Gardiner

    Ngāiterangi, Ngāti Whakaue and Ngāti Tūwharetoa

    A monologue about the Māori experience in Aotearoa.

  • Person with long hair holding a hairbrush, wearing a red beanie with 'TONGA' written on it and a white garment, with hair covering the face.

    The Ghost Of Tongan Language Week, by Nova Moala-Knox

    An insecure Tongan ghost tells stories at a Pasifika shared lunch

  • A woman in a business suit surrounded by falling and flying papers, looking overwhelmed or stressed.

    Think, Before You Overthink, by Bo Jarratt

    she/her

    Inside the mind of an overthinker. How making a simple choice can feel like life or death, but what if it actually was?

2022

  • Person with curly hair wearing a yellow shirt and gray sweatpants holding a vintage camera, making a framing gesture with one eye closed, against a bright green background.

    Manuia Ie Po, Manuia Ie Aso by Gideon Smith

  • Woman lying on the ground wearing a colorful beanie and glasses, with a microphone, speaker, and DJ equipment around her.

    Plug, by Isaac Cooper

  • A woman with a shaved head wearing a black hoodie stands behind a pile of cardboard boxes and appears to be speaking or explaining something on a dark stage. There is a black bag with a fingerprint logo hanging on a stand and a small framed picture on an easel behind her.

    The Collector, by Parekawa Findlay

  • Person holding a shoe on a stage set with clothing rack and black curtains.

    Unpredictable Mind, By India Worsnop

  • A young man with dark hair wearing blue headphones and a navy work uniform, holding a mop and a yellow wet floor sign, with a tired or bored expression, against a plain grey background.

    Caution Wet Floor, by Jackson Burling

2021

  • Person in martial arts attire in a combat stance, illuminated by pink and purple lighting, standing on a wooden floor with a wall in the background.

    Actor Android, by Louise Jiang

    In a world where talent means money, SEVEN is born: an AI programmed to dominate the screen acting industry.

    >>>import android_actor.version_7

    >>>import android_emotion.zip

    >>>export human

    Failure

    Failure

    Failure

    wevtutil el | Foreach-Object {wevtutil cl "$_"}

  • A woman with tattoos and dark hair is on all fours on a white sheet, sniffing a trail of orange snack food on the sheet. The scene has pink and purple lighting.

    Eat Me, by Chloe Jaques

    Baked Beans

    Amount Per 100 grams:

    Calories 155

    Total Fat 5 g

    Saturated Fat 1.9 g

    Cholesterol 5 mg

    Sodium 422 mg

    Potassium 358 mg

    Total Carbohydrate 22 g

    Dietary Fiber 6 g

    Protein 6 g

    Vitamin C 1%

    Iron 11%

    Magnesium 10%

    Vitamin B-6 5%

    *Percent Daily are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

  • Woman with dark hair in a fighting stance wearing red gloves and a leopard print top, illuminated with pink and purple lighting.

    Fragments , by Amy McLean

    An exploration of femininity through movement and spoken word.

  • A man with glasses, a beard, and dark hair appears to be performing on stage, wearing a pink shirt and a light gray hoodie, with a dark background and stage lighting.

    Franklin and Perry, by Viki Moananu

    Franklin returns home one day to his rundown Uni flat and is accosted by a voice seemingly coming from nowhere. Is it God? No it’s Perry, an omniscient Time being, who offers him the chance to go back in time to confront the night he was sexually assaulted.

  • A shirtless young man crouching on a wooden floor, reaching into a black and blue pouch in front of him, with a plain background and a shadowed corner.

    The Monster in my Living Room, by Kealan Schmidt

    The Monster in my Living Room follows a humanoid creature, who has been confined to an incredibly vapid living room. In these confines, he lives a heavily monitored and restrictive lifestyle, particularly regarding eating habits. These restrictions provoke negative behaviours and outlooks, especially both towards and on himself.

  • A woman speaking at a podium during a presentation or speech, with a large black-and-white photograph of a woman with a headwrap in the background.

    All Roads by Maea Shepherd

    Whiskey, memories, and Rome. All Roads, a solo show about a woman retracing her life trying to find closure. From hot nights under the Italian moonlight to the cold fog on a winter’s morning in New Zealand, this story is just a bite out of the life of Miriam Taylor.

2020

  • A woman with dark hair and hoop earrings smiling outdoors in front of green bushes.

    Hibiscus Tupua-Wilson

  • A young woman with shoulder-length blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a light-colored shirt and small earrings, sitting indoors near a window.

    Zoe Stokes

  • A young woman with long blonde hair, wearing a green long-sleeve shirt, smiling softly with a neutral background.

    Olivia Chelmis

  • A young man with dark hair, light facial hair, and a broad smile taking a selfie outdoors at night, wearing a shirt with a black and white leaf pattern.

    Kaisa Fai'itu

  • A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a black T-shirt, standing against a plain white background.

    Albert Latailakepa

  • Close-up portrait of a woman with curly brown hair in a bun, wearing hoop earrings and a necklace, smiling slightly, against a dark background.

    Teherenui Koteka

Previous Performances

  • Zoe Christall, Dylan Hutton, Daniel Gagau, Ethan Kalani-Morse, Ola Ratka, Jeremy Hunt, Georgia Kellet, TJ Snow, Bella Petrie, Mycah Keall, Albert Latailakepa.

  • Hibiscus Tupua-Wilson, Teherenui Koteka, Zoe Stokes, Olivia Chelmis, Kaisa Fai'itu, Albert Latailakepa

  • Student Production Crew: Caleb Grainger (Lighting Designer), Morgan Dean (Stage Manager) and Gina Hudenkruger (Production Manager).

    Student Performers: Chloe Jacques, Louise Jiang, Maia Diamond, Kealan Schmidt, Amy McLean and Viki Moana.

  • Student Designers: Renee Heyans, Anna Secker and Angela Pelham

    Student Performers: India Worsnop, Jackson Burling, Parekawa Finlay, Isaac Hooper, Gideon Smith