Letting the light in on women in the theatre
For nearly four decades, Jennifer Ward-Lealand has performed on screens, across stages and behind the scenes in all manner of theatre roles. Born and bred in Wellington, WardLealand is bringing her wealth of experience to her home town this weekend, with Circa Theatre’s fourth Women In Theatre Hui.
‘‘I feel really lucky that most of my working life has been on stage,’’ the keynote speaker for the event said.
The hui celebrates women in the theatre and arts. The two days will be decked out with leading female figures in the industry speaking on their experiences, historical perspectives of women in arts and where the industry could be heading.
Other speakers include Green Party coleader Marama Davidson, National Council of Women chief executive Gill Greer, plus Kiwi writer, director and performer Jo Randerson.
‘‘As president of Equity NZ, I’m very conscious of the research that’s been done on equality,’’ Ward-Lealand said.
In the acting industry, some of that research touched on the differences in employment between male and female actors, and a key point for Ward-Lealand is the amount of film opportunities that dried up for an actress as she grew older.
Although in contrast, she said theatre specifically was one of the best places for women to work in the arts, especially if they were older. There were more opportunities on and around the stage.
Diversity was important to the arts, WardLealand added, as people wanted to see themselves reflected on stage. ‘‘Theatre holds a mirror up to nature. You want it to reflect the experience people have, good and bad.’’
Her keynote speech at the hui would be more of an interview-style talk, between herself, a panel moderator and, hopefully, the audience, she said.
As well as speakers and panels, there will also be a public reading tomorrow of pieces inspired by a Women On The Verge workshop that was held at the beginning of the month.
The Women In Theatre Hui is on at Circa Theatre tomorrow and Sunday. For details, visit circa.co.nz.