Contemporary
CRAIG BARY
Craig was born in Palmerston North, New Zealand, 1977. He attended the New Zealand School of Dance from 1996 – 98, during which time he was twice awarded the Poul Gnatt Scholarship, was the recipient of the Anne Rowse Scholarship for Modern Dance, and was seconded to both Footnote Dance and the Royal New Zealand Ballet. Craig graduated from the NZSD at the end of 1998 with both a Certificate in Dance Performance and a Diploma in Dance Performance. For his graduation performance Craig had the honour of having a solo, 'Rhapsody', created for him by Michael Parmenter.
Since graduating, Craig’s career has flourished. He has worked with numerous companies and choreographers in New Zealand and internationally, including Garry Stewart’s Thwack Dance Company, Australian Dance Theatre, Douglas Wright Dance Company, TasDance, Raewyn Hill’s Soapbox Productions, Gideon Obarzanek at Chunky Move, Sue Healey Company, and Leigh Warren and Dancers. Over the last few years Craig has began the process of exploring his own choreography, initially with a short work called 'Tetrad', which was given the critics choice award of most promising choreography in the 2001 Dance Australia magazine.
Craig was recently recognized internationally by being nominated for the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative.
HELAINA KEELEY
Originally from Tauranga, Helaina’s dance career has spanned sixteen years and she continues to actively contribute to the dance sector in New Zealand. She graduated from the New Zealand School of Dance in 1989, receiving the award for Best All Round Student and spending her final year seconded to the Royal New Zealand Ballet. From this point, Helaina moved into the freelance contemporary world and was quickly picked up by Michael Parmenter. Over the following sixteen years she became known as one of New Zealand’s finest female contemporary dancers being described as “mercurial, daring and unforgettable”.
Helaina has had the pleasure of working and performing with many of New Zealand’s leading choreographers and contemporary dancers, most notably appearing in all major works by Michael Parmenter since 1992 and all major works by Douglas Wright since 1994. Her most recent appearance with the Douglas Wright Dance Company saw her touring nationally and in a season at the Sydney Opera House with Black Milk (2006). As a key member of Michael Parmenter’s Commotion Company across these sixteen years she has performed most recently in Commotion; A Michael Parmenter Retrospective (2005).
With the support of a grant from the QEII Arts Council, Helaina travelled to Europe in 1996 to attend key international dance festivals, bringing a broader perspective to her approach to dance.
To support her arts development, Helaina has undertaken numerous roles in the dance sector including Project Co-ordinator for DANZ under Executive Director Amanda Skoog, Assessor on the Dance Funding Assessment Panel for Creative New Zealand, teacher, rehearsal director and External Assessor for the Contemporary Course at the New Zealand School of Dance. Helaina’s contribution to dance was recognised by inclusion on the distinguished Honours Board at the New Zealand School of Dance in 1999.
While Helaina has travelled internationally for her career and lived in the UK for 4 years, she has always remained firmly committed to supporting and progressing dance in New Zealand. With experience gained working in London, Helaina returned to New Zealand in 2004 to take up a position in the Arts Development Team at Creative New Zealand, the Arts Council of New Zealand, where she currently holds portfolio responsibility for Dance.
