What is Massive Nui Ensemble?

Massive Nui Ensemble is the heart of our company. It is our ongoing, term-based training programme, where participants can continue their development through the year, meeting and learning every fortnight during the term, with intensive ‘labs’ during the school holidays that usually end with a showing/sharing for friends and whānau.

Tane (Marketing and Development Coordinator and Massive all-rounder) spoke to four of our Massive Nui Ensemble participants (Manunui, Tyla, Greta and Tom) recently about their experience this year, and in particular as part of the Massive Nui Ensemble lab that has just finished. Tom and Manu have both been in Massive Nui Ensemble for around two years, Tyla for three terms, while this is Greta’s first term.

TYLA
I would say it's like my little safe haven especially since I don't have any background in the performing arts. Coming here, I've started from scratch and it's been the best place to start from scratch! I always refer to it as home because it just feels like home. That's what it is for me, because after being here you just don't really want to go, you know? You always get drawn back. Whether it's the space, whether it's to workshops, you really build connections fast and I think the kaupapa of Massive Nui Ensemble is really strong.

GRETA
I’ll say similar to what Tom said, it’s the gym but also the playground. Prior to coming to Massive Nui Ensemble I felt I had really lost the fun and a lot of why I think I was initially drawn to acting or just performing in general. I came to a workshop and then joined the ensemble because I felt I needed more of this - whatever it was - that I was getting in the workshop. It felt really important to have more and it felt really important to seriously play. I think that playfulness spills out into all areas of your life and it feeds everything that you do creatively, not just performing.

TOM
I feel like the ensemble is almost like my gym for acting, so it’s getting me to always keep working on my craft and always keep practicing acting, directing and teaching to advance my skills, and it’s doing that on a continuous basis. It’s allowing me to feel that acting muscle grow and keep it fit.

MANU
I don't want to reiterate anything anyone’s said but it is like a gym, it's like a playground. I like those two metaphors because it gives that rigorous and serious play, and I think the best part is that it's for free. It's a good continuous, rigorous thing like the gym that you can keep going to, and all you got to do is be committed to the work, committed to going. You can show up, but you've got to actually be there.

TOM
The lab for this term has been a little bit different than previous intensives. Usually for the intensives in term one and two of Massive Nui Ensemble we will go into a space for six days, Monday through Saturday and work from 10 till 5 with the idea of having a showing at the end of the work that we've created which is led by the teaching artists for that term. For term three, the lab has been overseen by teaching artists but all of the direction, ideas and working has been of our own inspiration. We've been using the skills that we've learned from exercises we’ve done throughout the term to create our own pieces based off our own provocations. Some of us have also been practicing our directing and working on our training as teaching artists and how we practically teach something.

GRETA
There's something special about this week in the sense that creating can sometimes be quite a lonely process. I think that there's such an awesome structure day-to-day here. We come in and we do these warm-ups, we play games, we do things so that you are kind of like fizzing internally and you are ready to make. It's lovely not having the pressure of having to perform anything, there could be the essence of, or a curiosity about something, that could be what you come out with for this week.

TYLA
I was just thinking about overcoming your own personal insecurities of what you make and being in a dedicated space where you feel good enough to be able to share. If you didn't like it, it wasn't the end of the world, you move on, feeling the support, have a go and see what your mind can come up with because there's so many beautiful ideas that you have that are just waiting to come out. That's what this lab was for me, to support others and their journeys and see what we can do. If we love it, we love it, if we don't, we don't.

GRETA
I came in with something that I really wanted to work on. I kind of did it and then mentally, I felt I needed to follow through with this idea but then I got to our final day and that idea kind of felt done. It's nice to listen to where you are on each day because you're different on every single day, and today it was really fun to start from scratch and make a really fun physical piece, drag in some people to direct us and have fun doing that.

TOM
I think it's really given me a confidence in my curiosity as a performer and director. I want to see if it works and if it doesn't work, that's all good. I can backtrack and I can go - okay that was the wrong way, let's try this way instead.

TYLA
I loved seeing everyone take that leap. It was so rewarding just to be there in someone else's vision and help that come to life. There's no better feeling than serving others in whatever capacity. I love that. I was just thinking this whole week reminded me of how Massive puts you at a height and pulls the best out of you. And sometimes you've got to go through the trenches to really get there. We expect so much of each other and of ourselves because we know we can get there. And so that's what this whole lab reminded me of. You're going to be held to a high standard, and we expect nothing less because that's who we are and that's who we know you can be. And so, yeah. Boom.

MANU
My main focus this week was to teach more confidently and authentically. I felt like on Tuesday I taught something, and it felt really good. I knew why I was teaching it and I could feel in the room. But then I taught something Friday and it felt not as good, but I didn't want to see that meaning I shouldn’t teach it. It just happened. Then I had a good discussion with someone about why it wasn't as strong as what I did at the beginning of the week. So it felt like spring cleaning in terms of cleaning up and sorting everything out. And now I have this empty room and all this stuff behind me that I've got to scaffold into place. You're going to find no other place like it.

ALL
Do it!

TOM
Give it a go!

GRETA
Go and do one of the workshops and then you’ll accidentally fall in love, and you'll find that you have to come here because it’s important for you as an artist. I think it suits your artist’s soul. It suits your child. Your inner child needs this. Don’t kid yourself that you don’t. Get on the playground.