DANZ QUARTERLY No 7 April 2007
Amanda Skoog and the RNZB
By Tania Kopytko
Amanda Skoog is the new General Manager of the Royal New Zealand Ballet. From 1998 to 2001 Amanda was the Executive Director of DANZ. Tania Kopytko interviews her on the challenges at that time and in her current role with the Ballet Company.
What were the main problems DANZ faced when you were Executive Director?
We had to prove ourselves to the dance community: that DANZ was worth the funding it received from Creative New Zealand and that having an infrastructure organisation for dance in NZ was worthwhile - value for money for that investment.
This was difficult because DANZ was new and there wasn’t a New Zealand model. DANZ shared offices with Playmarket, but as a model Playmarket was different, specifically there for the development of scripts and they had a history and track record which didn’t exist for dance. Competition for funding was fierce. Funding for an infrastructure organisation is not about the next immediate project but about looking forward. Effect and change is not immediate. What was useful was that AUSDANCE had such huge success because they had been going for so long in Australia. They were an excellent model and very supportive. But at the same time we needed something tangible to show to the dance community and CNZ and the opportunity to educate people as to what DANZ could do. The tangible things we did were workshops – utilizing people who came in from overseas, and communicating - talking to people, improving the magazine and getting information and resources out there.
What were the main problems and opportunities facing dance at that time.
Funding, which is always an issue, but also a lack of communication and support between the sectors. The spectrum of dance activity was huge – for DANZ it was big. My angle was that the professional dance community needed the help immediately, because they didn’t have the backup of organisations such as the RAD or other societies. They were very much out there on their own and so that is where I put my energies.
After a while I looked at where the growth area could be - how could we get more leverage and develop? There was a gap in the education arena, with few dance professionals going into schools. This was a huge opportunity for DANZ, the professional dance sector and schools. The Ministry of Education gave us another funding source - for an LEOTC (Learning Experiences Outside the Classroom) education outreach worker. It was a very proud moment to have got that together and was breaking new ground for the dance community. It showed that if we worked together and communicated across the sectors, we could achieve and raise the profile of dance outside the dance community itself. It was making dance relevant.
What changes and developments do you see in New Zealand now?
From the Ballet Company’s perspective it is wonderful because we get funding directly from the Ministry for Arts and Culture, which allows the organisation to be far more creative and to plan ahead. Our energies can be put into really positive work rather than worrying about where the next dollar will come from.
I haven’t yet engaged with the contemporary freelance community as much as I would like, but watching Footnote’s Choreolab this week was fantastic and I thought Malia Johnston’s piece for the New Zealand School of Dance Graduation Season was a real highlight – a choreographer who has come a long way. Dancing With The Stars sounds like it was a real hit and gave dance a positive profile.
What new ideas and skills have you brought back after working overseas in arts administration?
The more you see and do the more you learn and can bring back. My recent work in arts administration in the UK was not related to dance - I imported and sold NZ applied arts and jewellery. It was wonderful to present gorgeous NZ product and change perceptions about us. People were taken aback by the high level of artistry coming out of this country. I then worked for the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre. Children’s books are a passion of mine. I worked on the trading and business side. This opened a whole new area of work for me, working with publishers and seeing the way they promote their books – they are a big money making machine. Their PR ideas, the way they market is huge, their thinking is global and outside the square. Those ideas are transferable to other art forms including dance.
What plans are there for the ballet company?
The scheduling model is an excellent one – we do three national seasons with the biennial road tour or Triple Bill, a box office winner, and a new production each year. There is no reason to change this. However for the dancers we need to do four seasons a year, so I would like to see an international tour on the schedule each year, not as an add-on but as part of what we do. International touring helps maintain international standards, which is crucial.
The area I would really love to take forward is education and community development. I feel this is one of my strengths. With Tutus on Tour we really go to heartland NZ where we dance on people’s doorsteps and make dance accessible. We have to think long term and big picture and how can the work we do make a difference to New Zealand communities. We have a new Education officer, Stacey White, who is hugely enthusiastic and is a big part of the plan.
What is the Ballet Company’s role in New Zealand dance?
After 54 years the core role is still to provide our audiences with great dance. We also have an obligation to provide work for New Zealand dancers, choreographers and designers. At present we have two young New Zealanders, Andrew Simmons from Christchurch and Cameron McMillan home from Rambert Dance Company, who are choreographing new works for the company. Also Moana Nepia, who was a dancer with the Company and is also a visual artist, is designing Cameron’s piece. Dear Russell Kerr, who is a NZ icon, is coming back to do Swan Lake. Tracy Grant is designing the new production of Cinderella. So we provide an opportunity for New Zealanders to be creative within the dance environment and are supporting our arts community.
Internationally companies have followed global trends and become global in their employment of directors, choreographers and dancers. But recently there have been some rumblings in the UK and elsewhere that companies should employ their own nationals. What do you think of that in relation to RNZ Ballet?
This is a cyclical issue that comes and goes – I have certainly seen it with the English National Ballet. Currently 47% of our dancers are New Zealanders. We always employ and give opportunities to New Zealanders first and foremost, but we also need to maintain a level of excellence, so it is a balance. But the wonderful thing about dance is that it doesn’t have a language barrier, it is an international art form, people do move around the world and we would be very silly if we didn’t engage people from overseas because it allows us to lift our game. It allows us to be an international company and have international links. Within the company it is healthy to have dancers from different backgrounds as they learn from each other. This is really important.
When I worked with the English National Ballet there were other New Zealanders - Martin James and Adrienne Matheson. I married a Swede and we had friends who were Italian, French, Spanish and English all working with a Danish Artistic Director. It was such a wonderful melting pot of talent and views and the way people did things. It made for a very vibrant, exciting dance company. It adds another dimension to the mix.
It works both ways. With Giselle we had a lighting designer over from Australia and he was overwhelmed by the professionalism and how we do things in New Zealand. It is important for us, as a New Zealand company, to know this.
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is a very positive working environment, I feel very fortunate to be here, everybody wants the same thing, we want to produce fabulous dance for everybody in New Zealand and to do that we employ the best of NZ and get something else from those coming from overseas – we are very, very lucky. It is hugely exciting.
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