Touch Compass is a professional disability-led arts and accessible education organisation in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

established in 1997 as a disability-integrated dance company. They have been at the forefront of access arts, dance and theatre in New Zealand and have 'paved the way for many dancers and performers and companies across the country.' They create contemporary dance, theatre and digital performances, accessible arts education programmes and have run workshops, weekly community classes and education for schools.

Organisation

Touch Compass was established in 1997 and has been a registered charity under the name The Touch Compass Dance Trust Board since 2008. They are based in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

. Their mission statement includes:

Our mission is to explore the intersection of disability,
Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
and Pasifika culture as our unique contribution to the arts. Our performances reflect disability aesthetics and practices that are culturally informed. They are interdisciplinary but rooted in movement practice and choreographic forms. We explore cultural diversity through authentic and multi-dimensional performance.

Touch Compass recognise principles of

Te Tiriti O Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi (), sometimes referred to as ''Te Tiriti'', is a document of central importance to the history of New Zealand, Constitution of New Zealand, its constitution, and its national mythos. It has played a major role in the tr ...

and in 2019 the organisation after a review made an agreement to 'move to a disability-led business model, in which artists with disabilities hold leadership positions'.

People

Founder of Touch Compass and director for over 20 years is Catherine Chappell MNZM. Chappell brought with her a background in

contact improvisation Contact Improvisation (CI) is a postmodern dance practice that explores movement through shared weight, touch, and physical awareness. Originating in the United States in 1972, contact improvisation was developed by dancer and choreographer Steve ...

and from the first performance the company created work that involved aerial techniques, with performers suspended above the stage. During her directorship many new works were brought to New Zealand and international stages.

Chappell left at the end of 2019 and Pelenakeke Brown was appointed as interim director. Brown had been in the company when she was young from 1997 to 2000. Brown is an interdisciplinary artist with a disability who had been based in New York for six years. Brown is of Samoan and Pākehā heritage. Following Brown, in 2021 Rodney Bell, Suzanne Cowan and Lusi Faiva were appointed to the Artistic Direction Panel. Rodney Bell was introduced to dance by Chappell. He was another dancer that left and came back as he was also a founding dancer. After several years with Touch Compass in 2007 he went to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and joined

AXIS Dance Company AXIS Dance Company is a professional physically integrated contemporary dance company and dance education organization founded in 1987 and based in Oakland, California. It is one of the first contemporary dance companies in the world to consciou ...

where he created acclaimed work.

Lusi Faiva Lusi Faiva (born in Wellington) is a New Zealand- Samoan stage performer and dancer and a founding member of Touch Compass. She was recognised for her work with a 2020 Pacific Toa Artist Award at the Arts Pasifika Awards and in 2021 received a ...

was also a founding dancer of Touch Compass, and has featured in and developed lots of work with the company included her solo ''Lusi's Eden''. The first work programmed by Bell, Cowan and Faiva on the new Artistic Development Panel was the 25th Anniversary performing arts festival hybrid-event that took place on 15 February 2022 called ''/rītaha/''. People the company has collaborated with include BodyCartography Project's Olive Bieringa and Otto Ramstad, composer Claire Cowen, choreographers Carol Brown and Sarah Foster Sproull. Touch Compass dancers over time have included Alex Smithson, Duncan Armstrong, Tess Connell, Rodney Bell, Suzanne Cowan, Lusi Faiva, Daniel King, Eden Mulholland and Julia Milsom. The dancer Jesse Johnstone-Steele won the Arts Access PAK’nSAVE Artistic Achievement Award at the

Te Putanga Toi Arts Access Awards The Te Putanga Toi Arts Access Awards, formerly called the Big 'A' Awards, are New Zealand arts awards, presented annually by Arts Access Aotearoa. Introduced in 2007, they were initially called the Big 'A' Awards, but were renamed as Te Putanga ...

in 2018. He has been 17 Touch Compass seasons.

Works include

''Lusi’s Eden'' first performed 2001, remount 2002 and for Touch Compass’ tenth birthday celebrations 2007 ''Lighthouse'' ''DanceBox'' - short film series ''Triple Bill'' ''Acquisitions'' (2015) - multi-media contemporary dance ''Somatechnics'' (2017) - with dancers Lusi Faiva, Rodney Bell, Alisha McLennan Marler, Julie Van Renen and Duncan Armstrong. ''I’mPaired'' (2019) - with a programme of work including ''Clasp!'', (co-creators Alisha McLennan Marler & Georgie Goater, performers, Alisha McLennan Marler, Julie Van Renen), ''Drift'' (film)'','' (choreographer Sarah Foster Sproull, performers Julie van Renen, Rodney Bell), ''The Language of Colour'', (by dancer Julie van Renen and artist Yung Chen), ''Rhythms of Sameness'', (performers Duncan Armstrong and Mabingo Alfdaniels), and duets by Touch Compass's hip hop crew ''Integr8''. ''AIGA'' (2024)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Touch Compass 1997 establishments in New Zealand Arts organizations established in 1997 Dance companies in New Zealand Contemporary dance companies Physically integrated dance