This is a project to increase content and improve the quality of performing arts information from AotearoaNew Zealand on Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons. It is being coordinated by Lisa Maule. Lisa is a theatre designer and arts manager with a keen interest in preserving and celebrating the performing arts landscape of Aotearoa. In April 2021 she was awarded a grant by the US-based Wikimedia Foundation for a four month project to increase content about performing arts in Aotearoa on Wikipedia. This was funded partly because of Lisa's focus to ensure good representation of women, Māori and Pacific Island artists and projects.
Existing editors please add yourself to the 'participants' section below for news and updates. There are lots of short articles with expansion possibilities in lists below.
New editors get in touch. Email to express an interest and to learn next steps (lisamauleinfo@gmail.com)
The initial stage of the project ran over four months 17 May - 10 September 2021, with three edit-a-thons and 107 new articles created.
The next project focus is Pacific Arts which includes a pilot Wikipedian in Residence with Creative New Zealand.
Performing arts scope
Performing arts is defined as theatre, dance, cabaret, music performances and other cultural forms. Other events, festivals, musicians and composers are also encouraged.
The article Performing arts in New Zealand was created in 2023. Sections can be expanded and there are redlinks to suggested articles too.
Redlisted articles in these sections have enough information available on an internet search to create an article of at least stub status. This project aims to especially include content on women and people of colour on Wikipedia. If you are new it is easier to write about an organisation or event than a biography of a living person. Note - for international editors the word Pākehā means a white New Zealander.
Suggested articles lists
Here is a shared google document with suggested articles and references. Comments can be made with suggestions.
Summer City, Wellington based employment scheme in the 1980s for artists performers musicians centered in the public parks of Wellington that started in 1979 - "The Summer of 79".
Tahi Festival - theatre festival of solo works
Pasifika Arts Aotearoa Project
A related project to increase quality content on Pasifika arts and practioners.
Makerita Urale - (article can be expanded). Senior Manager, Pacific Arts at Creative New Zealand. Actor, writer, producer, film and theatre. (she / her - Sāmoan)
Helen Todd (lighting designer) - Lighting designer known for work with choreographer and director Lemi Ponifasio, tutor at Toi Whakaari (she/her, Pākehā)
Te Rākau Hua o te Wao Tapu - longest running Maori theatre company also know as Te Rākau Theatre led by Jim Moriarty and Helen Pearse-Otene based in Wellington
Prayas Theatre - based in Auckland, South Asian theatre and cultural group, celebrated 15 years in 2020
The Conch (theatre company) - director Nina Nawalowalo
Barbarian Productions - company formed by Jo Randerson
Theatre Corporate - Auckland company established in 1974 by Raymond Hawthorne (Ref1, Ref2)
World of Wearable Art - currently is a museum type entry, rather than an event. Suggest it is split into the museum in Nelson (existing article) and the event which is now held in Wellington but started in Nelson (new article). A technical and research editing job. This is an example of an article layout Dunedin Writers & Readers Festival
David Geary - playwright (he/him - Māori) lacks citation Done
Katie Wolfe - director, actor (she/her - Māori) needs additional citations for verification, lede needs expansion. Done
Take photos of NZ performing arts related people, places or events and upload them to Wikimedia Commons. Look through your photo archives - have you taken images of festivals, street performances, venues? You famous friend or auntie? (Please find out about copyright, privacy and permissions).
Suggested commons categories
Theatre Companies in New Zealand, Playwrights from New Zealand, Actors from New Zealand, Designers from New Zealand, Dance in New Zealand, Dancers from New Zealand, Choreographers from New Zealand, Theatre directors from New Zealand, Theatre of New Zealand, Opera vocalists from New Zealand, Entertainment venues in New Zealand
Upload a photo you take of your local community hall, theatre or performance venue
Upload images of performing arts people from the New Zealand governor generals website (check it has the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.[1])
Upload images from Digital NZ - this list shows images with reuse licences although always check on the original website. Link
Notable people - you can upload photo's of yourself and your work if you own the copyright - get in touch for guidance (lisamauleinfo@gmail.com)
Images of venues which hold performing arts are needed. Please use Category:Entertainment venues in New Zealand plus any more localised specific categories.
Please email the url of any uploaded images to lisamauleinfo@gmail.com so the categories and other technical details can be checked.
Please add your new articles to the bottom of the list. The initial four months of the project created 107 new articles (that were recorded here).
Edit with VisualEditor
The Tahi Festival is a festival of solo works that has been running for a few years. Participants and interested folk are getting together to 'Wikify' it. This means putting into Wikipedia and Wikidata people, companies and shows. The article Tahi Festival also needs to be created.
To start with a list of the programme year by year:
2019
Tiny Deaths: Performers - Hannah Banks, Stevie Hancox-Monk, Brianne Kerr, Rebekah Adams, Maggie White, Katie Hill, Emma Katene and Freya Daly Sadgrove. Playwright - Uther Dean
Shot Bro: Confessions of a Depressed Bullet: Performer - Rob Mokaraka
There were four edit-a-thons / editing workshops as part of this project in 2021 to generate content in a collaborative environment and to teach new editors.
It was acknowledged by the participants that improvements were time consuming as base information (such as venues or production companies) is also missing
Ōtepoti Dunedin Edit-a-thon Sat 19 July 2021
An edit-a-thon took place in Ōtepoti Dunedin on Saturday 10 July at the Hocken Collections Library from 10.30am – 4pm, Wikipedia:Meetup/Dunedin 4. This was the first of three edit-a-thons. The coordinator Pakoire and co-host DrThneed were joined in person by seven others, which included six new editors from the performing arts community, and two people working remotely in Wellington and Christchurch.
There were two content focus areas for the workshop:
To improve content around the legacy of Allen Hall Theatre, which is the theatre venue of the Otago University theatre department and has been operating for decades
To celebrate the current performing arts companies in the city by increasing content on people and organisations in Wikipedia
In addition the Theatre Aotearoa Database was put forward as a resource useful for expanding theatre articles.
Comments from new editors after they had learnt the basics and started editing related to how accessible they found doing it. There was motivation amongst many in the group to continue to meet as a way of progressing the articles they are interested in. Conflict of interest is an area of consideration for editing in performing arts, since most subject experts are also practicing arts and producers. This edit-a-thon / meetup format was useful and people worked on unrelated articles but in tandem with others who knew where to get information.
Both the Otago Theatre Department and the Hocken Collections Library were keen to host this event but the timing meant the Hocken was a better option. It was a very suitable venue and the event was very warmly supported by staff with special thanks to Lynn Benson. The university subject librarian for Art and Humanities Alexander Ritchie has also expressed a desire to support Wikipedia events in the future.
Results over 12 hours tracked with a dashboard:
Articles Created
19
Articles Edited
53
Total Edits
474
Article Views
11.2
Editors
11
Words Added
48.1K
References Added
245
Commons Uploads
4
Notes: 4 new Wikipedia articles on the day and 15 new Wikidata items
The red door of Allen Hall is being used as a hook for a Did You Know feature on the Wikipedia homepage including two new articles created for this event, Allen Hall and Lisa Warrington.
Auckland Women in Performing Arts Wikipedia Edit-a-thon Sat 14 Aug 2021
Held at the home base of the Auckland Theatre Company with support from the Auckland City Council as part of their Open Studio programme. Focusing on notable women two new editors made a great difference as well as learning about Wikipedia, it was a small edit-a-thon with four people in-house and three contributing remotely. Lisa the coordinator had meetings whilst in Auckland with Te Pou Theatre, choreographer and dance archivist Susan Jordan, and the Audio Foundation, and managed to take images of Auckland places of interest for uploading.
New articles created because of the edit-a-thon include six biographies on women:
Results of the Auckland edit-a-thon tracked over 12 hours with a dashboard:
Articles Created
12
Articles Edited
69
Total Edits
352
Article Views
36.6K
Editors
6
Words Added
21K
References Added
200
Commons Uploads
6
Notes:
Articles include Wikidata
Wellington Te Whanganui-a-Tara Performing Arts Wikipedia Edit-a-thon. Sat 21 Aug 2021
Sixteen editors joined the event dashboard,. People joined our Zoom video meeting when they were able and breakout rooms allowed small group coaching and also social catch ups. There were four new editors - two from last weekend in Auckland, and two with accounts set up for the day. Out of the fifteen editors two were in Australia and one in USA, eight from Wellington and five dispersed around Aotearoa.
New articles created because of the edit-a-thon include:
Email Lisa to express an interest and to learn next steps. lisamauleinfo@gmail.com
Leave a message for Pakoire / Lisa Maule the project coordinator by starting a new section on this talk page.
Join an edit-a-thons / editing workshops in Dunedin, Wellington or Auckland. Having some one-to-one time with an experienced editor is recommended when you start out. You never know what questions you will have! Get in touch, on-line tutorials can also be arranged.
Conflict of interest (COI) editing involves contributing to Wikipedia about yourself, family, friends, clients, employers, or your financial and other relationships. Any external relationship can trigger a conflict of interest. That someone has a conflict of interest is a description of a situation, not a judgement about that person's opinions, integrity, or good faith.
Purpose of Wikipedia: As an encyclopedia, Wikipedia's mission is to provide the public with articles that summarize accepted knowledge, written neutrally and sourced reliably. Readers expect to find neutral articles written independently of their subject, not corporate or personal webpages, or platforms for advertising and self-promotion. Articles should contain only material that complies with Wikipedia's content policies and best practices, and Wikipedians must place the interests of the encyclopedia and its readers above personal concerns.