Paradise or the Impermanence of Ice Cream

Written by Jacob Rajan & Justin Lewis Starring Jacob Rajan & Jon Coddington Directed by Justin Lewis

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DANCE INTO VILLAGE LIFE SEARCH RYMAN HEALTHCARE

Written by Jacob Rajan & Justin Lewis Starring Jacob Rajan & Jon Coddington Directed by Justin Lewis

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Jacob Rajan - Writer/Actor Justin Lewis - Writer/Director Jon Coddington - Puppet Design/Build/Puppeteer Adam Ogle - Sound Operator Sam Mence - Production & Tour Manager/Lighting Operator Murray Edmond - Dramaturge John Verryt - Set Design Elizabeth Whiting - Costume Design David Ward - Composer & Sound Design D. Andrew Potvin - Lighting Design Bala Murali Shingade - Projected Imagery Photographer/Editor

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Indian Ink Theatre Company Acknowledgements: Jude Froude – General Manager Pene Lister – Producer Naomi Campion – Administration and Development Manager Te Huamanuka Luiten-Apirana – Next Gen Programme Leader Olivia Brinkmann – Digital Marketer

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The Court Theatre Company Acknowledgements: Alex Wilson - Production Manager Jo Bunce - Head Stage Manager Giles Tanner - Head Tecnician Geoff Nunn - Lighting and Sound Technician Matthew Duffy - Workshop Manager Emma Finlay - Production Coordinator Seth Edwards-Ellis, Edward Roche - Workshop Daniella Salazar - Costume Manager Findlay Currie - Costume Technician Julian Southgate - Properties Manager Rochelle Wright - Properties Assistant Alison Walls - Artistic Director Tim Bain - Associate Artistic Director

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Running Time: 70 minutes with no interval Content Advisory: References to death.

Paradise or the Impermanence of Ice Cream staged at The Court Theatre 19 - 28 September 2024.

Proudly printed by Caxton

GRAB YOUR ICE CREAM & ENJOY THE SHOW!

NAU MAI HAERE MAI Indian Ink is an iconic Aotearoa New Zealand theatre company. In both form and subject, the company, founded

by Jacob Rajan (MNZM) and Justin Lewis, have developed theatre that is uniquely their own since 1997. The Court Theatre is thrilled to have Indian Ink bring Paradise or the Impermanence of Ice Cream to our stage.

The Court Theatre is a producing company, but we are privileged to also open our stage and offer our audiences those pieces of theatre that could only be produced by the creatives who generated the work. Paradise is just such a piece. As with all Indian Ink productions, it is strong in humour, technique, and human connection.

Jacob is renowned for his ability to inhabit multiple characters, drawing on global traditions of mask and clown, and here takes on seven. It is also a joy to see puppetry created and performed with superb artistry by Jon Coddington.

Despite being one of the oldest forms of performance across a huge variety of cultures, puppetry outside

of children’s theatre is a rare treat in Aotearoa. Paradise is ambitious in scope, partially inspired by American cultural anthropologist Ernest Becker, author of the Pulitzer Prize–winning 1974 book The Denial of Death, Parsi funereal rites and Mumbai’s disappearing vultures; it is funny, profound and poetic.

We are grateful to our—very appropriate—sponsor Tip Top Ice Cream, for helping us to bring this special work to our stage. We are grateful too to Creative New Zealand, and to our season sponsor Ryman Healthcare for their continued and essential support, enabling us to do what we do, alongside the generous support, as well as hard work and dedication, from many others.

Enjoy the show!

Gretchen La Roche Executive Director Dr Alison Walls Artistic Director

INDIAN INK THEATRE COMPANY We’re guided by the ‘Serious Laugh,’ a love of mask and of story. We aim to make theatre that is beautiful, funny, sad and true – to leave an indelible imprint on your heart.

Indian Ink began 27 years ago as a partnership between Jacob Rajan and Justin Lewis. Since then we’ve gathered a team of long-term collaborators, made 11 shows together and had the great pleasure of performing around the world.

Our home is Aotearoa New Zealand and it’s a long way from our islands to India. We’ve always had to use our imaginations and be led by our curiosity with the theatre we make so please forgive the artistic licenses we take. We hope to capture something of the essence of what makes us all human while celebrating the flavours that make each of us unique.

JACOB RAJAN Justin and I went to Mumbai around the beginning of 2019 to work on a completely different project and stumbled on the Towers of Silence. Set amongst some of the most expensive real estate in the world is a vast green area with these forbidden Towers.

We became fascinated with this idea of a sky burial where you lay the bodies out, you don’t burn them, you don’t bury them, you leave them out for the vultures. That then took us into the Parsi faith, and all of this caught up with us when we came home.

As a playwright I’m led by my curiosity. I’m curious about things I don’t know about and then I research them and write about them as if I do. Which, of course, I don’t. Not really.

If you haven’t heard of the Parsi community then you’re not alone but I can almost guarantee that you’ve been influenced by at least one. Parsis have made an enormous contribution to India and the world. In politics, industry, medicine, finance, science, music, art and theatre this ethnic group has been extraordinarily influential out of all proportion to their numbers.

The eclectic bunch of Parsis portrayed in this play are entirely fictional and I hope cause no offense to a people I hold in extremely high regard.

If you’re reading this and happen to be Parsi I cling to one generalisation about your kin I dearly wish to be true: they have a great sense of humour.

JUSTIN LEWIS When I met my wife, she was an actor but in recent years she has also become a director – a funeral director. Consequently, death has become a part of my daily life although often I really, really, really don’t want to think about it. Then I discovered Ernest Becker’s Pulitzer Prize winning Denial of Death, where he argues that that the fear of death drives our culture and the idea for this show was born.

The play really found its form when Jacob and I were in Mumbai. There we discovered a cosmopolitan city buzzing with life, whose skies were once filled with thousands of vultures but were now empty. I viewed vultures as brutishly ugly harbingers of death. What I discovered was a creature whose most repulsive features are entirely functional, that does humanity an incredible

service by cleansing the environment and in flight is one of the most magnificent birds on earth.

We hung our story loosely on the Persian epic Gilgamesh. It’s a tale of friendship, a hero who journeys to the underworld seeking eternal life and finds happiness only by accepting their mortality. Perhaps the things we fear most can set us free – like the vulture.

Nobody noticed the disappearance of India’s vultures until it was too late. It’s the fastest extinction of all time. In Paradise, we aim to celebrate the passion of youth and the wisdom that comes with age, to imagine peace found through acceptance and speak of the need for action.

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Mon 30 Dec 2024, 5:15pm–10:30pm

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OUR PEOPLE Jacob Rajan – Writer/Actor Jacob is a founding partner of Indian Ink and co-wrote all of Indian Ink’s plays as well as performing in many of them. He is a graduate of Toi Whakaari: NZ Drama School, Otago University (B.Sc Microbiology) and Wellington Teacher’s College. Jacob is an Arts Foundation Laureate and a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to theatre.

Justin Lewis – Writer/Director Justin is a founding partner of Indian Ink. He has co-written and directed all of Indian Ink’s plays. He was one of the founders of Auckland’s Q Theatre and received a Kaupapa Oranga Award for his services to theatre. Justin is a graduate of the John Bolton Theatre School and the University of Auckland.

Jon Coddington - Puppet Design/Build/Puppeteer Jon is a theatre designer and collaborator, illustrator, animator and sculptor, but has been primarily working as a puppeteer and puppet-maker for the past eight years. Highlights include hit show Puppet Fiction (2012-18) selling out everywhere it has performed.

Adam Ogle – Sound Operator Adam Ogle is a guitarist, multi-instrumentalist and composer. He received the Frank Winter Memorial Award awarded for his outstanding contribution as a young instrumentalist. For Indian Ink Theatre Company, Adam has toured around New Zealand with The Elephant Thief, and internationally with The Elephant Wrestler and Krishnan’s Dairy.

Sam Mence – Production & Tour Manager/Lighting Operator Sam is the Director of Creative Ambiance Stage Technologies Ltd (CASTL. nz). A talented designer and stage technician, his specialty lies in musical theatre and building bespoke technical systems to amplify storytelling in new and creative ways.

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Murray Edmond - Dramaturge Murray has been dramaturge on all of Indian Ink’s productions. A poet and founder of Town and Country Players (NZ), Murray has recently retired from his role as Professor of Drama at The University of Auckland where he headed the drama programme.

John Verryt - Set Design John has worked on all of Indian Ink’s productions bar one. With over 40 years’ experience John is a leading New Zealand stage designer with an extensive portfolio of work including NZ Opera, Auckland Theatre Company, The Large Group and many others.

Elizabeth Whiting - Costume Design Elizabeth, a Chapman Tripp Costume Design Award winner, has represented NZ twice at the Prague Design Quadrennial. Her opera designs have seen global success in the US and Australia. She has designed for almost every performing arts company in NZ, including WOW since 2012.

David Ward – Composer & Sound Design David is a musician and composer who has enjoyed a long creative collaboration with Indian Ink. In 2010 and 2014 he was awarded Most Outstanding Composer at the Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards for Guru of Chai and Kiss the Fish.

D. Andrew Potvin - Lighting Design Andrew has been working with Indian Ink since 2015, touring domestically and internationally. He is the Director of Andrew Potvin Designs Ltd which specialises in tour management, business development and lighting design.

Bala Murali Shingade – Projected Imagery Photographer/Editor Bala Murali is a writer, filmmaker and videographer based in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. He is also an inaugural Arts Foundation Springboard recipient.

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THE COURT COMPANY OUR VALUES MĀIATANGA COURAGEOUS | MANAAKITANGA WELCOMING | WHĀNAUNGATANGA BELONGING | KOTAHITANGA ONE TEAM

The Court Theatre Company is made up of full and part-time, casual and contracted staff, and volunteers.

Executive Director Gretchen La Roche ARTISTIC Artistic Director Dr Alison Walls Associate Artistic Director Tim Bain EDUCATION, LEARNING AND ENGAGEMENT Education and Outreach Manager Ben O’Brien-Limmer Education Administrator Madeleine Murphy FRONT OF HOUSE Customer Experience Manager Rachel Vavasour Box Office and / or Lead Hosts Helen Brocklehurst Margot Coleman Haydon Dickie Amélie Harris Annah Johnstone Leanne Kearney Mandy Perry Rebecca Radcliffe Rose Spoelstra Cécile Wagener Karyn Willetts Customer Experience Administrator Erin Hills Food and Beverage Manager Petra Laskova Duty Managers Anthea Johnson Jack Taylor Scott Willoughby Food and Beverage Teghan Bain Taylor Ballantyne Beatrice Billcliff Ben Cox Cameron Clayton Shannon Douglas River Evans Helen Fahy Bradley Grainger Sienna Holland-Reiser Lea McEwan Kaylee Morris David Patullo Danielle Reiser Ben Robertson Melissa Sheldon Tara Smith Helen Vessey

FINANCE Finance Manager Kevin Fee Administration Assistant Fiona Haines Payroll and Accounts Administrator Annah Johnstone Special Projects Assistant Claudia Fe Jambalos

THE NEW COURT IN THE CITY Artistic Adviser / Lead Director Ross Gumbley Transition Project Manager Flore Charbonnier Project Manager Tom Clisby

HUMAN RESOURCES Human Resources Manager Viv Palmer

TEACHING ARTISTS Daniel Allan Lisa Allan Nikki Bleyendaal Ryan Goodwin Ben Jarrett Hannah McDougall Myrna Mortada Ben O’Brien-Limmer Krystal O’Gorman Stacey Schembri Jamie Spyker Grace Von Huben

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS Sales and Marketing Manager Virna Smith Graphic Design & Social Media Specialist Georgia Bingham Marketing Coordinator Prue Griffiths Business Systems Coordinator Anisha Thomas FUNDRAISING Partnerships and Development Manager Sophie Hicks Partnerships and Development Account Manager Andrea Winder Grants Manager Anna Colthart PRODUCTION Production Manager Alex Wilson Production Coordinator Emma Finlay Head Stage Manager Jo Bunce Head Technician Giles Tanner Lighting and Sound Technician Geoff Nunn Properties Manager Julian Southgate Properties Assistant Rochelle Wright Costume Manager Daniella Salazar Costume Technician Findlay Currie Workshop Manager Matthew Duffy Set Construction Seth Edwards-Ellis Edward Roche

COURT JESTERS Daniel Allan Jorja Baylee (Apprentice) Harmony Beaven (Apprentice) Brendon Bennetts Kathleen Burns Nelly Campbell-Reeves (Apprentice) Jeff Clark Kirsty Gillespie Ryan Goodwin (Apprentice) Criss Grueber Maddie Harris Riley Harter Reylene Rose Hilaga (Apprentice) Bryony Jamison (Apprentice) Benjamin Kent Scott Koorey James Kupa Hannah McDougall Emma Nelis Henri Nelis Emma Newborn (Apprentice) Dan Pengelly Caitlin Penhey Ciarán Searle Jarred Skelton Vito Strati (Apprentice) Gabby Wakefield Tilly Walbom Jester Musicians Deen Coulson Kris Finnerty Criss Grueber Hamish Oliver Dan Robertson Jesters Producer Lizzie Tollemache

Information accurate at time of publication

TRUST BOARD Chair Steve Wakefield Deputy Chair Jenny May Board Andrea Bankier Paul Bryden Sela Faletolu-Fasi Pete Glasson Tanya McCall Anne Newman Georgina Toomey Steven van der Pol FOUNDATION BOARD Chair Laura Palomino de Forbes Treasurer Christopher Weir Board Hall Cannon Cilla Glasson Carolyne Grant FRIENDS Patron Ben Gough Chair Annie Bonifant Deputy Chair Cheryl Colley Secretary Charles Duke Treasurer Lynn Vandertie Membership Secretary Jay Pollock Committee Andrea Bankier Pat Braithwaite Helen Crooks-Scarf Carolyne Grant Jenny May Raewyn Raynel David Winfield (Theatre Chaplain) ASSOCIATES Bryan Aitken Stuart Alderton Paul Barrett Judie Douglass Tony Geddes Joe Hayes Geoffrey Heath Elric Hooper MBE Avril Lockhead Yvonne Martin Lynda Milligan Eilish Moran Stewart Ross FELLOWS OF THE COURT John Harrison ONZM John McSweeney Felicity Price ONZM

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FUNDERS AND MAJOR DONORS CORE FUNDERS

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Contact our team about sponsorship opportunities at fundraising@courttheatre.org.nz