ignite05 and STAMP III to Make Their Mark on Auck

ignite05 and STAMP III to Make Their Mark on Auckland

AUCKLAND, March 15, 2005— Last night in the company of Auckland’s artistic community,
THE EDGE® launched two of its flagship creative development projects. Assisted by a range of performers, Chief Executive Greg Innes officially launched the third season of STAMP, which gets under way on March 20, and the third ignite festival, ignite05 – new voices, new pathways, which begins on April 5.

Both programmes sit at the heart of THE EDGE®, reflecting its three creative development principles. These are: developing individuals by actively supporting emerging and professional artists to embark on new projects; developing infrastructure by supporting the growth of Auckland’s art companies and festivals; and developing audiences – for contemporary work and new genres, and for the classical artforms that already exist and excel in Auckland.

“STAMP III and ignite05 embody these principles and will once again make their mark on Auckland,” said Greg Innes. “One of the major creative initiatives at THE EDGE® in 2004 was the introduction of STAMP. STAMP is THE EDGE® commitment to new work, to New Zealand work and, in particular, to supporting independent producers and practitioners in getting their work to the stage. Since it began, thanks to the generous support of Auckland City and the boundless energy and imaginations of the companies we have worked with, STAMP has delivered 228 performances of 38 different productions.”

Over the next six months, THE EDGE® will present a total of 202 performances of 32 new productions. Among those putting their STAMP on Auckland will be action playwrighting in Urbis 24 Hours Deadline Theatre, the world premiere seasons of Stephanie Johnson's Strange Children by Potent Pause Productions and Diana Fuemana’s My Mother Dreaming, the New Zealand premiere of Freak Winds directed by Paul Gittens, and much more.

“ignite05, on the other hand, is rather unique with regards to the age group it plays to,” continued Mr Innes. “It is a five-day festival that speaks to and engages with the 15-25 age group and, in line with our commitment to accessibility, it is mostly a free festival.

“To fire the imaginations of this group, one of the ignite05 leadership initiatives has been to bring together Playmarket and the artistic director of Contact Theatre in Manchester, John McGrath for Flip The Script. Another is an outdoor programme with street artist Doodlebug from the UK working in partnership with Auckland’s own Disruptiv crew. We also have a new partnership with Auckland’s Moving Image Centre, which has brought over d>art04 from d-lux media arts, one of Australia's leading and longest established screen and media arts organisations. And we’re delighted to have increased our partnerships with Auckland’s tertiary education sector, this year with Auckland University of Technology, and the University of Auckland, and, for a second year, UNITEC. This year’s festival will well and truly ignite!”

For full programme details, visit http://www.ignite.co.nz and http://www.the-edge.co.nz

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