Annual Report — 2018

ANNUAL REPORT — 2018 COVER: ABIGAIL BOYLE AND ALEXANDRE FERREIRA IN THE PIANO: THE BALLET, PHOTOGRAPH BY STEPHEN A’COURT THIS PAGE: PŌHUTUKAWA FLOWERS IN ACT II OF THE NUTCRACKER, PHOTOGRAPH BY STEPHEN A’COURT Nau mai, haere mai, Welcome 2 Salute to Sir Jon Trimmer 7 2018 at a glance 8 Repertoire and engagement 10 Critical acclaim 16 Education, community and access 18 Our digital year 20 Partnerships and philanthropy 22 Our extended family 24 Our people 26 Financial Statements 2018 28 Auditors’ report 29 CONTENTS Statement of comprehensive revenue and expense 31 Statement of changes in net assets/equity 32 Statement of financial position 33 Statement of cash flows 34 Notes to the financial statements 35 [Sir john image?] 1 NAU MAI, HAERE MAI WELCOME Ballet has the power to express our humanity and Dancing with Mozart brought works by two of bring communities together. The Royal New Zealand the greatest choreographers of the 20th and 21st Ballet is driven by our vision to transcend the centuries to New Zealand stages, together with a everyday through dance and to share our art form landmark commission from New Zealander Corey with the widest possible audience. Baker. Corey Baker’s work The Last Dance was the first ballet ever created in the frozen wilderness of 2018 marked the 65th anniversary of the Royal Antarctica, and was performed alongside works by New Zealand Ballet. It is fitting that this occasion legendary Czech choreographer Jiří Kylián and the was heralded by a stellar year at the box office, great Russian-American choreographer George artistic excellence onstage and a renewed emphasis Balanchine, founder of New York City Ballet. on engaging with communities and audiences the length and breadth of Aotearoa. The year finished with the Ryman Healthcare Season of The Nutcracker. This sell-out national tour offered It was also a year of change as the organisation festive enchantment for all ages in a new production, laid the foundations which will take the Royal New with choreography to Tchaikovsky’s magical score Zealand Ballet into the future. This is not only seen by Val Caniparoli. The production also involved in our commitment to reflecting Aotearoa on stage, 362 children dancing alongside the artists of the but to reviewing our internal culture and practices to company on stages across the nation, breaking box ensure we are fit for purpose as the company grows office records. and develops. REACHING NEW ZEALANDERS THE SEASON AT A GLANCE A total of 69,650 tickets were issued to The year started with a bold production of performances by the Royal New Zealand Ballet The Piano: The Ballet based on Jane Campion’s in 2018. Whilst ticket sales in in the metropolitan award- winning film, presented in association with markets of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch the New Zealand Festival and the Auckland Arts account for 72% of all ticket sales, the Royal New Festival. The re-imagining of this iconic New Zealand Zealand Ballet remains committed to touring movie was greeted with rave reviews and audience extensively to regional theatres. enthusiasm across the six centre tour. In a first for the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Māori advisor Moss In 2018 the Royal New Zealand Ballet performed Patterson (Ngati Tūwharetoa) joined choreographer in 16 centres from Kerikeri to Gore, with the Jiří Bubeníček and designer Otto Bubeníček to confirmation of the highly popularTutus on Tour establish the cultural context for presenting this as an annual season. ballet. A record number of 31,778 participants took part Reflecting New Zealand stories on the stage in the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s Education and was also the impetus behind the Strength and Community programmes, which reached 39 cities Grace season to celebrate 125 years of women’s and towns. A comprehensive range of activities suffrage in New Zealand. The company invited continue to be offered for dancers and schools, four internationally acclaimed choreographers to as well as participation in free or low cost events mark this historic occasion by bringing their unique available to the wider community. perspectives to the Royal New Zealand Ballet. The Special mention needs to be made of the work sold out performances at Wellington’s Opera House undertaken by the Education team who presented reaffirmed our commitment to commissioning works workshops at the Arohata Women’s Prison and which resonate with New Zealand audiences and celebrate our own stories. 2 RNZB Annual Report 2018 coordinated audio-described performances and sign interpreted tours, as well as our second relaxed and sensory performance for young people on the autistic spectrum. Finally, our digital footprint continued to grow, connecting the Royal New Zealand Ballet with participants, audiences and communities both domestically and internationally. In 2018 we had over 872,000 video views, representing a 12% increase on the previous year. FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE The Royal New Zealand Ballet performed well at the box office in 2018, contributing to a surplus of [Sir john image?] $302,000 (2017: $496,000 loss). Box office revenue is volatile and varies from year to year. It is heartening to note that the surplus achieved in 2018 restores the company’s reserves to a prudent level. The ability of the production team to contract services to WOW: The World of Wearable Arts, the New Zealand Festival and Tulsa Ballet (Oklahoma, USA) enables us to optimise this valuable theatre- making resource and generate additional revenue. We are grateful for the opportunity to work on these external projects. We simply couldn’t operate without the support of the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, major funders, charitable trusts and foundations, sponsors and individual donors. Government support accounted for 42% of total turnover, with other non-box office revenue accounting for 30%. The on-going support from non-box office revenue Madeleine Graham and Massimo Margaria in Sechs sources is vital to our sustainability and ability to Tänze from Dancing with Mozart deliver high quality ballet experiences nationwide. PHOTO: STEPHEN A’COURT THE FUTURE OF THE ST JAMES THEATRE The theatres we perform in around the country are the connection between the Royal New Zealand Ballet and our audiences. The St James Theatre, Wellington is particularly special as it is also a much 3 loved home where our dance studios, costume department and administration are located. With seismic strengthening required at the St James Theatre we will be relocating to temporary premises in 2019 while essential strengthening work is undertaken. During this time the Royal New Zealand Ballet will continue to perform at the Opera House. The Royal New Zealand Ballet is extremely grateful for the support of Wellington City Council in providing us with temporary premises. The St James Theatre is a flagship cultural asset for Wellington. We are committed to working with Wellington City Council and other stakeholders to return the St James Theatre to its full glory when it reopens at the end of 2021. WE ARE A PEOPLE BUSINESS The performances that the public sees onstage are the culmination of the efforts of many people; from the talented dancers themselves, to the outstanding creative teams and choreographers that make the work, and the dedicated professionals behind the scenes. Many people have a stake in the success of the Royal New Zealand Ballet including our audiences, our supporters, past members of the company, theatres and orchestras. We are a people business first and foremost. During 2018 the Royal New Zealand Ballet commissioned two reports which go to the heart of the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s commitment to Mayu Tanigaito in Divertimento No. 15 from Dancing people – both those who work at the company and with Mozart those who are engaged with it externally. PHOTO: STEPHEN A’COURT The first of these was an independent review of our complaints policies and procedures. We are pleased to report that all the recommendations made in this report have been implemented, and that the Royal New Zealand Ballet has a robust framework for managing any complaints going forward. 4 RNZB Annual Report 2018 The first-ever Stakeholder Engagement Report, stepped in as Interim Executive Director to bridge which involved people around the country, the time before Lester McGrath joined us in demonstrated the importance of the Royal New January 2019. Zealand Ballet to the communities we serve. The 2018 brought three sad farewells for the RNZB report gave a strong mandate for the company to whanau. In July we were devastated by the death, seek ways of funding more regional and international after a sudden illness, of long-serving Office tours, as well as live music. The report also Administrator Nigel Boyes. From the reception desk recommended that the Royal New Zealand Ballet on level 3 of the St James Theatre, Nigel kept the be more articulate about what sets us apart as wheels of the Wellington office turning. Over the New Zealand’s national ballet company and that we years he welcomed thousands of visitors to the Royal needed to connect more strongly with our alumni. New Zealand Ballet, and conducted many behind It was heartening to see so many of our past dancers, the scenes tours with warmth, generosity and great staff and board members at the 65th birthday pride in sharing the company’s work with diverse celebrations and we look forward to strengthening communities. He collaborated[Sir john image?] with the Friends of the relationship with our alumni in future years. the Royal New Zealand Ballet to develop fundraising merchandise and undertook invaluable work on the The company remains committed to facilitating and company's archives, especially in the lead up to the supporting professional development opportunities company’s 60th anniversary in 2013.

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