Kaiako Workshop
Led by acclaimed UK playwright Simon Stephens as part of The Masterclass Project 2026, Auckland Theatre Company and Whakaari Aotearoa will host a half-day professional development workshop for kaiako teaching drama in schools and kura across Aotearoa.
The workshop is designed in partnership with Whakaari Aotearoa Drama NZ with tools for your kete to initiate ideas, activities for developing scripts and tips specifically for teachers in the classroom.
Due to capacity, places are limited and participation is fully subsidised. Expressions of interest close Fri 30 Jan 2026 at 12 p.m. and should be submitted via the ATC website.
A primary outcome of the workshop will be a resource for all kaiako to use in schools and kura, available through Auckland Theatre Company and Whakaari Aotearoa Drama NZ, courtesy of Networks of Expertise.
This workshop is designed for a cohort of up to 15 kaiako teaching drama in schools and kura across Aotearoa.
This workshop is for kaiako who are interested in strengthening their approach to writing for performance in the classroom – whether that is within junior drama programmes, senior NCEA playwriting standards or integrated drama/literacy contexts.
We invite applications from kaiako who:
- Are currently teaching drama, theatre, performance and/or literacy in a school or kura setting
- Are interested in developing tools for scriptwriting, and in supporting student writing for the stage
- Work with years 7–13
- Are available to attend the full workshop (10am–1pm, Friday 20 February 2026)
- Are based in Aotearoa, and can travel to Tāmaki Makaurau for the workshop.
Kaiako may be at any stage of their teaching career. Applications are welcomed from beginning teachers as well as more experienced kaiako who are seeking to deepen, refresh or reframe their practice – for example, those responding to assessment feedback, redesigning junior programmes, or exploring new approaches to drama and literacy learning.
A primary outcome of the workshop will be a resource for all kaiako to use in schools and kura, available through Auckland Theatre Company and Whakaari Aotearoa Drama NZ, courtesy of the Networks of Expertise.
Selection Process
All expressions of interest received by the deadline will be reviewed together by Auckland Theatre Company and Whakaari Aotearoa. If the workshop is oversubscribed, selection will focus on balancing a range of teaching contexts, experience levels and geographical representation.
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A half-day professional development workshop with Simon Stephens, designed for Aotearoa kaiako, and developed in partnership with Whakaari Aotearoa. The session is grounded in the cultural, artistic and educational contexts in which drama and literacy are taught in Aotearoa schools and kura.
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Access to the wider week of Masterclass Project events, including the public performance of Sea Wall by Simon Stephens on Saturday 21 February 2026.
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Connection to peers and sector leaders, creating space for kōrero, shared learning and networks that extend beyond the workshop itself.
Participants will also be invited to provide a short written or video reflection following the workshop, to help document and share learnings with the wider kaiako community.
The Kaiako Workshop process is a short Expression of Interest, designed to be accessible and to respect the time of all applicants.
Expressions of Interest close at 12pm, Friday 30 January 2026.
To apply, please complete the Expression of Interest form linked below.
A primary outcome of the workshop will be a resource for all kaiako to use in schools and kura, available through Auckland Theatre Company and Whakaari Aotearoa Drama NZ, courtesy of the Networks of Expertise.
About Simon Stephens
Simon Stephens is one of the UK’s most influential contemporary playwrights. His work includes The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (staged by ATC in 2016), Sea Wall, Blindness (presented at the 2021 Auckland Writers Festival), Pornography and Birdland, and has been produced internationally across Europe, Asia, Australasia and the Americas.
He is an Associate Artist of the Royal Court Theatre and Lyric Hammersmith in London, and is widely recognised for his clarity of craft, dramaturgical rigour and contribution to contemporary playwriting pedagogy.
Simon’s visit to Aotearoa marks his first return in nearly two decades.
“We are living and working in a cultural moment when travel will act as a life source for the arts and creativity. In coming decades creativity and collaboration will be more urgent than ever before. I think the arts can be at the heart of such a collaboration and to be a part of that excites and moves me. I can’t wait to return to work with New Zealand theatre makers next year.”
With sincere thanks to Cynthia Braithwaite and Peter Macky for their generous donation, and the British Council New Zealand and the Pacific for support through their Connections Through Culture Programme.
