February 24, 2015

ELI KENT AWARDED INAUGURAL AUCKLAND THEATRE COMPANY PATRONS’ PLAYWRIGHT FELLOWSHIP 

Auckland Theatre Company (ATC) is thrilled to announce Eli Kent has been awarded the inaugural Auckland Theatre Company Patrons’ Playwright Fellowship prize.

Eli is one of New Zealand’s most exciting and original playwrights. His first play Rubber Turkey, written when he was just 19, earned him the Peter Harcourt Award for Outstanding New Playwright of the Year at the 2008 Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards. The Intricate Art of Actually Caring, originally presented by Eli and his mate Jack Shadboltin his Mount Victoria bedroom, went on to tour throughout New Zealand and won Best Theatre in the NZ Fringe Festival 2009 and the Montana Award for the Most Original Production at the 2009 Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards.

In 2010 Eli completed a Master of Arts in Scriptwriting at the Institute of Modern Letters at Victoria University. That year his play Thinning also premiered at the Young and Hungry Festival of New Theatre, in both the Wellington and Auckland seasons. 2010 was capped off with Eli being awarded the Bruce Mason Award, recognising the work of this outstanding emerging playwright.

In 2011, with the support of ATC Patrons, Auckland Theatre Company commissioned Eli to write Black Confetti. The play was work-shopped and presented in a semi-staged performance as part of Auckland Theatre Company’s The Next Stage Festival of New Plays. Further recognition of Eli’s development was recognised by a major award, this time an Arts Foundation New Generation Award.

In 2012 Black Confetti, again with the generous backing of ATC Patrons, was included in Auckland Theatre Company’s Main Bill Subscription season and saw Eli hailed as “the voice of a generation.” Together with Eleanor Bishop, Robin Kerr and their company, The Playground Collective, Auckland Theatre Company presented the highly acclaimed youth theatre project Like There’s No Tomorrow.

Auckland Theatre Company has commissioned Eli to write an adaptation of Ibsen’s Peer Gynt. The play is due for development in 2015.

“It’s extremely rewarding to establish rapport with a young writer and to see the work grow and mature when they are offered sufficient support. We’re so lucky at ATC to have Patrons who recognise the worth of making an investment in the next generation of writers and theatre makers,” says Auckland Theatre Company’s Artistic Director, Colin McColl.

“Eli’s talent and potential never cease to amaze me. He captures perfectly the essence of his generations angst and draws characters and relationships that are intelligent, searing, desolate, tender and funny all at once,” McColl says.

Of being awarded the ATC Patrons’ Playwright Fellowship prize, Eli says, “I’m blown away to be honest. This is such an amazing opportunity. I can’t wait to get stuck into the new play and get involved in the ATC Literary Unit; to help sew together a modern, innovative and adventurous playwriting community.”

Eli has recently completed his first short film project working alongside Leon Wadham, and has another in pre-production. He participated in the inaugural South Pacific Pictures Emerging Writers Programme. Eli has performed as an actor in numerous theatre and film projects and has had poetry published in Landfall and The Lumiere Reader. Eli has collaborated with the Playground Collective to create the theatre works Bedlam and The Tinder Box.

About the ATC Patrons’ Playwright Fellowship prize:

The six-month fellowshipis to reward and develop the work of playwrights who have an on-going commitment to write distinctive and ambitious plays that engage vigorously with contemporary New Zealand society. Applicants are invited to submit proposals for a mainbill play and will complete  the first draft during the fellowship.

The awarded writer will receive a weekly stipend to a total of $24,000 and be an integral member of the company for the period.

 “We are justifiably proud of the ATC Literary Unit. We have a history of giving scripts a rigorous workout before they reach the stage” says Auckland Theatre Company Artistic Director, Colin McColl.

“We encourage playwrights to stretch form and explore big ideas because that’s what excites us as practitioners as well as our large and loyal audience.  A developmental workout is a crucial part of getting a new New Zealand play before audiences. ”

“There are a lot of good plays and talented playwrights out there, but many of them are working to a scale that isn’t viable for us to present. We encourage writers to challenge our approach to theatre and to development; we want to be inspired by new ideas and approaches. But we’d also like writers to think about and take account of the scale on which Auckland Theatre Company operates.  For main bill shows, ATC is looking for plays that will fill a 450 seat theatre each night over a season of four weeks, and our new Waterfront Theatre will be even bigger,” says McColl.

The ATC Patrons have provided the new fund for the inaugural playwright’s fellowship. They are strong supporters of new writing having already invested a significant amount in commissions, including Trees Beneath the Lake and On The Upside Down of the World by Arthur Meek and Paniora! by Briar Grace-Smith.

“Initially we looked at a playwriting award but decided there is more benefit to the playwright and to ATC if they join us as part of the company. As well as the work on their play, and taking part in all aspects of the Literary Unit, we’re looking forward to the exchange of ideas throughout the entire operation of the theatre,” says McColl.

“In terms of proposals, we are interested in contemporary stories that reflect the lives, loves and concerns of Aucklanders, but that also have a universality about them. We are keen for the writer to work with a research too. We don’t have any limitations on who that research partner may be; it could be a community organization or a scientist. The important thing is that the writer works in a rigorous way and provides meaty, complex work.”