This year’s arts festivals in both Wellington and Auckland were distinguished by a superb New Zealand theatre work, Gravity & Grace, developed in Wellington’s Hannah Playhouse, now referred to as The Hannah. Although focusing on the portrayal of spectacular creative failure, the show was, in fact, a masterpiece of contemporary intermedial design. It seamlessly integrated performing bodies with setting, sound, lighting and moving image, including live camera feed overlaid from varying angles. Much of the success of Gravity and Grace – by award-winning duo Eleanor Bishop and Karin McCracken (EBKM) – is owed to Meg Rollandi’s performance design, as well as access to a well-equipped venue in which to incubate and develop such technically innovative work.
Last October, Aotearoa’s performing arts community gathered in The Hannah
