April 11, 2013

BATS Theatre Announces 2013 STAB Commissions   

BATS Theatre is thrilled to announce The 24/7 Project and Trick of the Light Theatre as the recipients of its annual STAB commission, worth a total of $80,000. Both companies will premiere their innovative new works Pandemic and Broken River in November 2013. 

The 24/7 Project is a Wellington-based company led by experienced theatre practitioner and previous STAB recipient Kerryn Palmer, whose 2004 STAB work, Sniper, threw audiences headlong into the stark realities of war in Sarajevo. 

In 2013, Pandemic will lead the audience through an experiential and visceral portrayal of Wellington in 1918, drawing comparisons with the comparatively minor scare of the 2006 H1N1 virus, and posing the very real question “What would happen if another deadly flu virus entered the country?” 

Trick of the Light Theatre is an inventive young company whose recent productions include 2011’s The Engine Room, which explored the 1981 Springbok tour and the 2008 New Zealand general election in a biting political comedy, and The Road That Wasn’t There, a dark fairytale for children and adults that toured New Zealand earlier this year after a season at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

In Broken River playwright Ralph McCubbin Howell will tackle the complex issue of water rights in the South Island through an exciting collaboration with Canterbury visual artists Sam Mahon and Chris Reddington.

BATS Programme Manager Cherie Jacobson can’t wait to see the debut of these challenging new works created with the support of BATS and with financial assistance from Creative New Zealand. “The STAB commission is an essential part of the BATS annual programme. It’s the one time of the year where professional practitioners are actively encouraged to take huge theatrical risks in a supportive environment.”

STAB began in 1995 and is now the biggest commission of its kind in the country – made possible due to generous funding from Creative New Zealand. STAB is an annual commission of cutting edge performance works that aim to defy theatrical boundaries and confront audiences with unique experiences. Previous participants that have gone on to success both here and abroad include the illustrious Flight of the Conchordsboys, Jo Randerson, Taika Waititi, Duncan Sarkies and Hackman – whose 2008 interactive STAB production, Apollo 13, recently toured to America and last month announced significant financial investment from Walking with Dinosaurs: The Arena Spectacular creator Bruce Mactaggart.