About
WHO WE ARE
Voice Arts Trust is a non-profit organization, based in Wellington, New Zealand. We work with communities that are often isolated, at risk or without a voice. We seek to engage, empower and educate via the theatre arts.
WHAT WE DO
We deliver projects that focus on creative self-expression. In a process that aims to generate positive personal and social change, we challenge participants to find, develop, and present their voice while exploring their own beliefs, choices and aspirations. We seek to work in partnership with communities, groups and organisations to shape the delivery of our projects to reflect the context and the needs of the participants.
HOW WE DO IT
Voice Arts Trust has no physical base. We take our work into the community, utilizing existing community halls, schools and open spaces. Our projects are workshop-based with an emphasis on play to encourage maximum participation. We seek to create an environment where participants are safe to share and create together, to learn from each other, to be both student and teacher. We welcome the incorporation of other art forms and many of our projects have been multi-art based.
OUR TOOL BOX
- Games, games and more games
- Role Play
- Improvisation
- Movement
- Music
- Spoken Word Poetry
- Image Making
- Journal keeping
- Creative writing
- And much more …
BEHIND THE SCENES
Voice Arts was established in October 2005. We have no permanent paid staff but a voluntary board of trustees and a director who manages the trust on a day-to-day basis. We contract from a small pool of highly experienced theatre art facilitators skilled in working with diverse groups within open and closed community settings.
Our projects have been supported by the Wellington City Council, Radio New Zealand, Department of Labour, Museum of Wellington, Te Puna Whaiora Children’s Heath Camps, United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), NZ Lotteries Grants Board, JR McKenzie Trust, The Winton and Margaret Bear Charitable Trust, Pub Charities and a small number of private donors.
PRINCIPLES
The Trust is committed to:
- Using arts-based education to empower individuals and communities to greater self-reliance.
- Using arts-based education to facilitate positive change and encourage greater community cohesion.
- Working with young people at risk and other people on the margins of society.
- Focusing arts-based education on issues of health, justice and social welfare;
- Respecting and implementing the dual heritage of the partners of Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi);
- Respecting the cultural diversity of people and encouraging people from all nationalities to utilise the Trust’s services;
- Inspiring people to reach their full potential;
- Maintaining the highest standards of professionalism and integrity.
PURPOSE
The purpose of the Trust is to:
- Conduct arts-based educational workshops for young people at risk and marginialised groups, with skilled professional artists as leaders.
- Support educational processes that lead to the creative exploration of the complex connections between personal behaviour, choice and responsibility.
- Direct participants towards a creative expression during workshop experiences.
- Provide support and assistance in taking that expression to the wider community with the aim of encouraging further communication and dialogue.
- Provide ongoing support and assistance for individuals and communities of people on the margins through workshop follow-up.
- To develop partnerships with other local art service providers and art galleries.