Tena koutou katoa
We hope you all are well wherever you may be across our two countries.
We are all living in such uncertain times which sees events across Australia and Aotearoa new Zealand) being postponed and cancelled, schools shut with teaching and learning happening online and businesses closed.
Last week our two Presidents Emma Bishop, Drama New Zealand (DNZ) and John Nicholas Saunders, Drama Australia (DA) along with Annette Thomson (DNZ) and Nina Rossini (DA) met to discuss the proposed 2022 combined international conference between DNZ and DA to be hosted by DNZ.
We are all passionate about having the opportunity to again be together and all agreed that this would be best in person rather than via online mediums. With the current uncertainty around the next six months, our associations have come to the consensus that moving forward with planning for our planned combined international conference in Wellington in April 2022 is not a viable option and that we will once again push it out to a date yet to be confirmed.
We are looking at ways to uphold the objectives of our associations memorandum of understanding through the provision of other combined outputs such as more regular zooms allowing a space for discussions and sharing of best practice and more.
Both associations are now looking at when and where our 2022 National Conferences will be held and also considering ways, if possible, to incorporate each other into these.
We are sure you will all be disappointed, as we are, however we are also sure you will all understand our positioning on this.
Nga mihi
Emma Bishop
President Drama New Zealand
John Nicholas Saunders
President Drama Australia
