The plight of the arts and humanities being put on the chopping block at Victoria University of Wellington (VUW) is heading to the crunch.

As previously stated on The Big Idea - this "unforgivable attack" on theatre education sees staff set to lose their jobs and the stand-alone theatre programme amalgamated with others.

Submissions from the community to support departments like theatre and music are open until 4 September - details on how to do so can be found in this #saveVUWtheatre linktree.

To add more context, VUW's Dr. Kerryn Palmer sought out concrete proof of the impact the course has - stretching far beyond the arts. A theatre practitioner who has worked as an arts educator for 30 years, Palmer has taught Preschoolers, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary students as well as people in their 80s and 90s, working in schools, prisons, the community and retirement villages. 

She tells The Big Idea she is tired of the arts being undervalued and underfunded.

As an arts educator, I know that studying arts opens the world and leads to wonderful enriching careers in a variety of disciplines.  

I studied theatre at Victoria University of Wellington in the 1990s with the powerhouse team of Phil Mann, John Downie, and David Carnegie.  It rocked my world. For the first time after growing up in a small country town, I realised that I was not ‘weird’ or ‘different’  - but that I just had not yet found my people. 

Many of those people are still in my life today. They are my friends, my collaborators, my workmates.  

Recently I made a call out to graduates from the 53-year history of the VUW theatre programme. It was a desperate call to action: 

“Due to the threat of the VUW Theatre being severely reduced under current cost-saving proposals, I am consolidating graduate pathways to show where a degree in theatre can lead and what the VUW theatre programme meant for you ….”

A week later, I had over 100 testimonies. These testimonies went back as far as 1970 - the first year of the theatre programme - and up to our most recent grads. They all speak eloquently and passionately about the way studying theatre courses has impacted their lives.  

One of the most common threads reported resonates with my own experience in ‘finding my people’:

"I have been an actor for over 30 years and I count myself lucky to have studied Theatre & Film at VUW from 1989-1991, it changed the trajectory of my life.  It was there I first met my people - a curious, joyful bunch of students and tutors who didn’t fit anywhere else." - Tandi Wright (student 1991-1993)

Current students also resonate with this notion of finding their community (a concept that in this post-COVID world surely is more important than ever):

"The community that is the Theatre department at Te Herenga Waka embraced me with open arms when I first moved to Te Whanganui A Tara and has continued to support both my friends and me in every endeavour we've made. 

"Theatre is an encapsulation of Whanaungatanga, especially at Vic. This environment provides enrichment, support, and family at a time when most young adults are struggling to find any of those things on their own."  - Teddy O’Neill (3rd Year Theatre Student.)

Values such as Whanaungatanga and Manakitanga are often touted as core strategic values by institutions such as VUW, but programmes like theatre encapsulate these values on a daily basis: in class, in rehearsals, and in epic productions, where whānau and friends are invited to share the tangible results of the student’s hard work. 

University can be a challenging place, in particular for those living away from home - subjects such as theatre and music are often safe havens where young people find a network of like-minded creative people.  

It is an understatement to say it is frustrating that in 2023, arts educators are STILL having to fight for the right for the arts to be valued in tertiary education. 

The graduate profiles shared with me were inspiring in the way they spoke of the life-changing effects that a programme like theatre can have on an individual’s growth.  

All the world's a stage

Studying the arts is a proven way to strengthen your ‘soft skills’ such as; communication, leadership, problem-solving, work ethic, time management, and interpersonal skills. While I believe the term soft skills is a misnomer (surely they are life skills!!), it is precisely the honing of these skills that have led to such a diverse and successful range of career paths carved out by 53 years’ worth of graduates. 

A significant number of them are leaders in Education, Law, Journalism, Communication, Health and Business. They are; school principals, teachers,  lawyers, science communicators, finance managers, IT developers, entrepreneurs and marketing executives.VUW theatre graduates have been awarded  QSM’s, ONZM’s and prestigious arts laureate awards. They have won Emmys and Oscars.    

It was challenging to summarise over 100 testimonies, but overwhelmingly the same narrative came up time and time again: the skills learnt from doing a theatre degree are life skills, and have led to productive, stimulating and successful careers in a variety of fields. 

Sara Denby was my classmate during the 90s - she now is Head of the Unstereotype Alliance Secretariat at UN Women.  

"I have no doubt that my arts degree in Theatre & Film and Sociology equipped me for my current role at UN Headquarters in New York. Here, I work with the world’s corporate giants and creative agencies to produce advertising and media messaging that is progressive, inclusive, and devoid of stereotypes. 

"My degree trained me to be a storyteller, to consider all perspectives and to frame narratives in ways that increase understanding across communities and nations - pushing back against division and hate to drive positive social change. My theatre training also prepared me to stand in front of influential leaders and tell them when their actions are misguided, shortsighted, and prompt exclusion." - Sara Denby 

Other graduates such as Sherilee Kahui, Fiona McNamara, Sherryn Arthur and Jody Burrell have set up or been instrumental in running change-making NGO’s such as CoLiberate, RespectEd, and The Wellington Sexual Abuse HELP Foundation, as well as leading change in government agencies.

"Alongside my theatre practice, I am working in the public sector, leading the creation of a national behaviour change campaign, promoting protective factors to prevent sexual violence. My practice currently centres on weaving the strands of my career together to interrogate the following working question: How can live art be used in the primary prevention of sexual violence?" - Sherilee Kahui

Angela Meyer and Tania Domett studied theatre at VUW at different times but have recently joined together to spearhead Project Gender - a social change agency creating positive impact through insights research, breakthrough campaigns and real-world solutions.

"The knowledge and skills I gained in storytelling, visual communication, and understanding human emotions have allowed me to create compelling campaigns that resonate with diverse audiences, while promoting inclusivity and equal representation."  - Angela Meyer

And of course, many esteemed graduates have made brilliant careers in Theatre, TV, and Film nationally and internationally. 

These graduates; lead drama schools and arts programmes in tertiary institutes, they have PhDs that contribute valuable research to an under-researched field, they manage Theatres and Festivals; they tour work nationally and internationally. They encourage international companies to come to Aotearoa and invest millions into the  NZ economy.  

There are many recognisable names amongst our graduates; Robyn Malcolm, Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Neill Rea, Tandi Wright, Trae te Wiki, Simon Bennett, Katie Wolfe, Erik Thompson, Ahilan Karunaharan, Eleanor Bishop, Anna Robinson, Janaye Henry, Katherine McRae and, Gary Henderson, to name but a few.

Outstanding arts leaders Mīria George and Ahi Karunaharan (who studied together in 2003), both emphasise the importance of theatre in the way we tell our stories to the world:  

"Storytelling is a vital aspect of our society because it helps spark connections and communities. We communicate with one another by telling stories, to understand the world better and establish a shared sense of identity." - Ahilan Karunaharan (2020 Arts Laureate)  

"Aotearoa is the tūrangawaewae of a multitude of storytellers who have taken their work from this whenua to the world. Amongst those storytellers are artists who have significantly contributed to placing a Māori worldview on the global stage -  those artists include graduates from Te Herenga Waka’s Theatre Programme. - Miria George )Co-founder of Tawata Productions and Kia Mau Festival)

Stop undervaluing the arts

Reading these extraordinary testimonies and reflecting on a 30-year career in arts education, I am compelled to ask: why are we still fighting for fully funded arts education? Why aren’t the arts at the heart of our education system? Why aren’t the practices we teach embraced as a central kaupapa to all education in Aotearoa?

Imagine, a tertiary sector where instead of slashing the humanities and arts, Universities fully funded, supported and celebrated the excellent and pedagogically sound way we as arts educators engage with, teach, and empower young people.

Teaching through the arts is a way of embodying education to learners who learn differently. 

Arts educators often work in contrast to the eurocentric model of ‘I teach-you soak it up’ methodology. As recent graduate Ezra Seiuli remarks:

"VUW Theatre cultivates and strengthens indigenous creativity and learning. We do not all learn through reading and writing so taking away the program would be taking away an opportunity of learning from indigenous creatives, an opportunity that our parents and grandparents and everyone before them fought so hard for us to get." - Ezra Seiuli (MFA(CP) in Theatre)  

To the neo-liberalists who have designed a business model for education- spoiler alert- it doesn’t work. We have tried it your way for many years. How about trying something different?  

Imagine an education system where The Arts are at the centre. Imagine parents on university open days- making a beeline for the arts programmes - not because they think this will lead to their children having careers of extreme monetary wealth- but because an arts education will enrich their children’s hearts and minds, help them find community, make them more resilient, able to empathise, think critically, communicate, work well in a team and have courage in this ever-changing world.  

Find out more and join the campaign to #saveVUWtheatre.