This Saturday we wrap up our Wānaka Festival of Colour sold-out season of “Elephant Talk”.

It has been the greatest pleasure working with past and present students on this original work. The honesty and vulnerability of the whole group while building the piece was humbling to watch. We thank them for their willingness to take risks and give the work their all. Our alumni of writers and our producer are very generous whole-hearted people and I am more than grateful for their part in this project.

Working alongside Mat Doyle and seeing the Level 3 Music students responding organically to the work's themes and concepts has been a fantastic collaboration experience in our new spaces. Their stunning final songs reflect the heart of the work beautifully. Anna Shaws' support in co-direction has been hugely appreciated. Her energy, skill and incredibly generous gift of time have meant so much to us all. I am so grateful for her mahi.

The team sincerely thank The Wānaka Festival of Colour for their willingness to continually support youth in performing arts and our school and community relationship. We would also like to extend thanks to the Jack Lethbridge Trust for their generous support, in enabling us to all gather together for an initial devising workshop which propelled us into making the work happen. A big thank you goes to our wonderful property staff Ronnie and Roger for constantly supporting us working around the school spaces and making sure we could be where we needed to be. Their ‘nothing is a problem’ attitude is hugely appreciated. To Joanna Hewson-Williams who always goes above and beyond to get things done. We are so thankful to have you on our team. Last but not least we thank all staff and community for supporting the work by attending as an audience. Community support means everything and shows our youth that they and their work matter. 

We live in challenging times forcing us to question how we live and spend our time. We hope that those who saw the show felt connected in some way to those around them through the shared experience of simple awkward conversations and original music. Please do visit the playlist again on Soundcloud and enjoy reflecting on life’s delightful challenges.

Emily McRae

Concept Creator and Co-director