My mum is a teacher and had been forwarded an email about an upcoming Foundations workshop in the April school holidays.

This was back in 2012, I was 19 and in my second year of uni. She signed my brother and me up and I took along one of my best mates. It was a three-dayer at Auckland Live, and Max and Wes were my teaching artists.

I remember doing an exercise where we had to look at our partner in the eyes and it threw me. It was the first time in a drama space, that I felt truly challenged, both physically and mentally. I was like, ‘damn, you gotta work hard to be great here’.

They didn’t hand out compliments and positive feedback freely, so you knew that they were honest about what was good and what wasn’t. On top of all of that, it was also just super fun. Running around, playing games, connecting in and jamming on the floor.

I love that 14 years later, those are still some of the same things I love about this company. We were lucky, during the workshop, Neil, Beulah and Dom (who were doing ‘The Brave’ at the time) came in and showed us a piece from the show, ‘Breathe In, Breath Out’. And that had me sold.

A whole piece, without speaking, without words, but so much said in their physical and connection. At the end of the workshop, they asked if anyone was keen to join the ensemble, and my hand shot up.

Photo: Denyce at one of her first Massive Theatre Company workshops.

Two things come to mind.

The first is the pursuit of excellence. Massive has this ‘straight up’ attitude to the work which I love. I want to make really good, hearty work. I have high expectations of myself and those I work with because I want us to be great. I know that looks different for different people, but what I appreciate at Massive is that often we’re looking at the work in a similar way, using a collective language to describe what we’re doing and what we want to achieve. It’s a good thing to want to be great, both in the process and the product.

The second is, a love for play. You don’t get through this work without finding a love to connect and play. The game isn’t always fun or cheeky, sometimes it can be dark, rough and intense, but there’s always a game to be had, we just have to work for it. I love the journey to find it, explore it and amp it up.

Photo: Denyce, in her directorial groove at a rehearsal for HOME MADE, 2026.

Who caaaaaaaaaares about anything else other than having fun and working really hard to be your most wonderful self. Make, make, make - jam the ideas, write the stories, get on the floor, share your ideas with your mates and keep the muscles pumping.

Photo: Denyce performing and playing in Massive Nui Ensemble, 2014

I think my job as the director, and especially because it’s a devised piece, is to make sure that each of the actors stories, flavours and performances sing true to who they are. I want the show to be theirs, I want them to shine brightly and brilliantly on stage both as individuals and as a solid ensemble. I’m a part of the journey getting it on stage, but once the audience is in and the lights come down, it’s theirs. All theirs.

Photo: Denyce looks on at the devisers and performers during rehearsal of HOME MADE, 2026

Is your heart happy?

Are you doing what brings you joy?

I sometimes get stuck on the idea that I need to do big, grand things to keep my heart happy, but I’ve really been leaning into the smaller moments that do. This show has been a lovely reminder of that.

Photo: Denyce yelling out during a Massive workshop, 2014

Young people coming through! I love the idea that there are young people out there who might walk into a workshop one day and have the same feeling I did 14 years ago. The feeling of finding something special, something that challenges them in the best way, something that will nurture and grow them into curious creatives who take the world by storm.

Photo: Denyce embraces Massive's founder and Artistic Director (Sam Scott) at Massive's 25th celebration, 2016