Brian Rudman: Drama even before festival curtain rises

COMMENT

Auckland's latest attempt at an arts festival might be 2 1/2 years late and suffering from anorexia, but who cares? The miracle is that it is here at all.

Unlike some of us, festival trust chairman Lex Henry has always had faith that everything would be right on the night. Such faith, in fact, that over the past few days he's been holidaying around the East Cape.

"If I'd ever doubted the festival taking place then frankly I wouldn't be the chair of it," he said.

He's been more confident than most. This latest attempt at an Auckland festival has had many shakey moments since February 2000, when Auckland City's city attraction committee voted to launch a biennial festival in a year's time.

The push came from committee chairwoman Victoria Carter, and the dream was outlined in a report from consultant Briony Ellis. Ms Ellis offered two models. The adventurous option was a Pacific Rim arts festival presenting the best from the west coast of the Americas, Asia and Pacific Islands. The other option was a more introverted, feel-good affair "celebrating the distinct and unique characteristics of Auckland, in particular its Pacific style ... "

This option also included international acts "to lift public awareness and impact of the event".

The councillors went for the latter version. In the end though, the content of AK03 is more a matter of happenstance, than planning. The intervening years have been all about survival, not programme building.

Most of 2000 was spent appointing trustees and "developing the vision", the latter presented to the public in the weird, one-off "taster festival" event of March 2001 when Aotea Square was flooded for the Mike Mizrahi-Gareth Farr happening, "The Launching".

That came with the ill-fated attempt at a new city slogan, "Auckland Eh".

It wasn't until December 2001 that a festival executive director was appointed, an Australian, Renato Rispoli, who came from a field of "outstanding applicants".

Seven months after his appointment, the planned summer festival to coincide with the America's Cup regatta was cancelled and a new target of September 2003 set. Two months later Mr Rispoli was back in Australia on "extended leave", never to return. Little cash or sponsorship had been raised.

Things were grim. With $500,000 of the $1,050,000 Auckland City had pledged as working capital already spent, staff were axed and councillor Carter led the rescue as acting director. Mr Rispoli had budgeted for a $7.4 million festival. This was cut to $4.9 million.

Finally, in March this year, with enough money for a $3 million festival, former Auckland Theatre company chief Simon Prast was hired as festival director to try to pull something together for this month worthy of the festival brand. Remarkably, he has.

OK, so if you dig too deep you'll discover several of the shows and concerts were going to be on in town anyway. But I'm happy to celebrate the miracle that there's any festival at all.

Now it's up to Aucklanders. If we want the festival to survive and grow, the answer is simple. Turn off the telly and join in the fun.