It's a special week for the capital's creative cornerstone, BATS theatre. 

The launchpad of many performance careers in Wellington, BATS is celebrating its 35th birthday on Friday (16 November) with a Flight of Fancy event, as well as an auction to raise funds so it's able to do more creative good in the region.

Even taking into account the pandemic blows, BATS has presented over 2500 performance events since 2019 - nearly all the shows are New Zealand work, with over two thirds of them featuring emerging artists.

As important as it is to revel in such a well-deserved milestone and reflect on what's been achieved, it's also a time to talk openly and honestly about the challenges creative organisations like BATS face in the current climate.

Jonty Hendry has experienced everything BATS has to offer as a student performer in the '80s, a director in the '90s and Chief Executive since 2018. He shares with The Big Idea why its kaupapa is so vital and the reality it has to battle through.

Despite the challenges we face as a community, BATS continues to adapt and implement a strategy founded on building a partnership matrix to assist our sector to work effectively. 

This is increasingly challenging in the current fiscal environment. 

We’ve looked at how we can best contribute from our ‘corner’ of the world, ensuring limited resource duplication with others and challenging ourselves to meet the needs of not only emerging practitioners but all stages of career activity in Wellington’s arts ecology. We drive this through an approach informed by whakawhanaungatanga and hauora principles.

BATS vision is to light-up lives through our work. We do this by identifying and realising the value BATS brings to its whānau, and developing new and dynamic ways to co-create. 

To fulfil this vision we ask the right questions; test new ideas through significant community involvement; as well as keep what we’re doing, but do it even better.

We regularly broker new partnerships and reframe existing ones to better our ability to make a difference. As a relatively small organisation - with a large remit that sees over 100 shows a year and over 450 performances which includes close to 1,000 independent contractors - partnership is key to our success.

Our support letters speak to the significant shift we’ve made over the last few years. The positive impact our work has had on the sector is a product of a team and community effort.

Assisting others to achieve their goals and being helped back in return is core to the journey we’re on. Audiences and artists speak positively about the impact BATS has on their well-being and our low cost model enables us to grow an increasingly diverse participation.

As we experience our 35th birthday, we find ourselves at a critical financial tipping point. Whilst we continue to deliver accessible, affordable and vibrant developmental theatre, we recognise that financial support is needed right now to avert a potential crisis.

As prudent managers, we have always retained sufficient reserves to weather cashflow pressures. However, after successfully navigating recent challenges, 2023 was our toughest year yet and these reserves were severely depleted going into 2024. 

Last year the unexpected two month closure for maintenance - coupled with the long tail of COVID causing many cancellations, diminishing spend from patrons in the Lumen bar and an arts funding crisis - has significantly impacted on our reserves.

There is much to celebrate however. As a small and dynamic arts space, we are conservative financial risk takers while artistically, we are at the forefront of risk taking and experimentation within New Zealand’s artistic eco-system.

Continuing BATS’ mission to adapt to meet need, over the last few years we have become much more than a performance venue, providing opportunities for residencies and space to develop and innovate. 

During the intensity of the pandemic, we facilitated artists receiving additional funding and opportunities to kick-start art making again. For example - the production Gravity and Grace by Bruce Mason Playwriting Award-winning duo Eleanor Bishop and Karin McCracken premiered at both the Auckland and New Zealand Arts Festivals recently after being developed from a residency here at BATS. Our 2021/22 co-pro model has enabled work such as Mokomoko to have return seasons at local and regional arts festivals. Recently we received $13,500 from ANZ to live stream work for the disabled community with both captioning and audio described performances.

Core to BATS’ next 35 years is seeking support from those who can help us continue to make a positive difference in people's lives.

Flight of Fancy: BATS Turns 35 takes over the entire building on Kent Terrace on Friday 16 November. There is also a range of auction items.