Ko wai mātou?
New Zealand Dance Festival Trust (NZDFT) is on a journey to nurture and share dance innovation in all its cultural and creative diversity. Dance is often described as the hidden language of the soul - its expression enhances mauri - of people, communities and society. While its positive impact on physical health is well recognised, its effect on people’s hearts, minds and connections to others is equally powerful.
We work with dance creatives, organisations and communities across Tāmaki Makaurau to produce and deliver dynamic dance projects in diverse environments. Our platform, Tempo Dance Festival, attracts lovers of dance who, as practitioners, participants and audience members, engage with meaningful, often joyful experiences that inspire and entertain, and at times, provoke and challenge.
Since its launch in 2000, our waka, NZDFT has had many journeys sharing the rich diversity and cultural plurality of dance in Tāmaki Makaurau. Our navigators have been creative professionals in governance, programming and organising roles. With partners and co-creators, they have delivered Tempo Dance Festival as an annual platform of outstanding dance experiences. We are humbled that this ocean of people and their achievements are our whakapapa.
A mātou whakaaetenga
Our commitments
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Fostering a culture of respectful and reciprocal relationships within the Trust and across communities, collaborations and connections the Trust is engaged in.
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Actively engaging with and learning from the past, ka mua ka muri, so we continue to be responsive as we facilitate and navigate purpose-driven, sustainable change now and into the future.
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Offering a diverse array of innovative dance experiences in Tāmaki Makaurau, by empowering and enabling dance creatives to connect with audiences here, there and everywhere.
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Promoting through visual and kinesthetic storytelling, the diversity, brilliance and imagination of dance creatives and dance communities working in Tāmaki Makaurau.
Kaupapa
We are on a journey to nurture, grow and share dance innovation in all its cultural and creative diversity to enhance the mauri of all people, their communities and society as a whole.
compass
We honour te Tiriti o Waitangi by respecting Te ao Māori, adhering to Tikanga, and highlighting Te Reo Māori across all our work.
We honour the essential life force within people, places and objects, and thus freely offer manaakitanga by showing respect, generosity and care for all who engage with us.
We maintain kotahitanga through responsive leadership, collaboration and co-creation processes across all aspects of our organisation and work.
Ngā Uara
We hold fast to seven corresponding values activated through our behaviours, actions and decisions:
Aroha
Love, compassion, empathy
Manaakitanga
Showing respect, generosity and care
Tau utuutu
Reciprocity
Mauri ora
Health and wellbeing for all and everything
Mana
Personal and collective strength, pride and identity
Whakaaro Māhorahora
Having an open mind
Ngākau tapatahi
Integrity
our waka
Creative journeys of exploration, co-creation and connection are navigated by our fleet of five waka:
Hāpori | Community
Whakapakari | Development
Whakakitenga | Performance
Hauora | Wellbeing
Taonga Tuku Iho | The Living Archive
OUR LANDING PLACES
Working together and supporting each other, our waka contribute to:
Enhanced audience experiences
Empowered dance creatives
Cutting edge delivery platforms
Exciting and inspiring programming
Effective media promotion of dance
A more resilient arts ecology
Zanetti
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR & FESTIVAL PRODUCER
Image Credit: Melissa Banks Photography
Zanetti comes from a contemporary dance background (FINALLY someone let them roll on the floor) with their dance whakapapa including Unitec’s contemporary dance programme, Tarrant Dance Studios, Footnote Dance Company Choreolabs, Hutt City Dance Centre, DANZ Producing Project, Old Folks Association, Short+Sweet Dance, Basement Theatre, Touch Compass and Tempo Dance Festival.
Since stepping into more of a creative producing focus in 2015, they have led Auckland Fringe (2017-2019), produced hundreds of national and international shows through their company Zanetti Productions (including Michael Parmenter’s Insolent River: A Tango in Tempo 2016), and from 2021-2024 they were the Artistic Director (and Executive for 22-23) of Nelson Arts Festival. They have called Tāmaki Makaurau home since moving here for dance school in 2008, and have been a huge advocate for Tempo since stage managing the many raucous performances in the Loft in the mid-2010s.
“I am so excited to be back on my tūrangawaewae - the incredible and truly world class community that is dance in Aotearoa. I can’t wait to throw all of my excitement and dreaming and commitment behind these artists, to bring them into conversation with beautiful audiences, and to advocate for this extraordinarily varied and innovative artform - truly one of our strongest offerings globally. Tempo Dance Festival has a rich lineage of showcasing the most exciting established and emerging artists in Aotearoa, and I can’t wait to honour and build on the incredible work done by all the Artistic Directors before me,” - Zanetti
Aaron Huata
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Image Credit: Te Waka Huata Creative
Aaron Huata is a kaitiaki of the New Zealand Dance Festival Trust, working in service to the dance and arts community of Aotearoa. As Executive Director, he holds space for artists, audiences, and the wider creative sector to flourish—guiding NZDFT and Tempo Dance Festival with a focus on legacy, integrity, and collective uplift.
In 2024, Aaron led the successful return of Tempo Dance Festival, delivered in collaboration with guest curator Moss Patterson (New Zealand Dance Company). Centred around Whenua Wāhi—stories of land and place—the programme honoured the deep relationship between people and whenua, offering audiences a moving tribute to identity, connection, and belonging. Under Aaron’s strategic leadership, the festival reclaimed its presence in Aotearoa’s cultural landscape and laid enduring foundations for its 25th anniversary in 2026.
With roots in music composition, film, digital media, and cultural strategy, Aaron blends visionary thinking with grounded leadership. Holding a Master of Technological Futures from AcademyEx, Aaron’s work is anchored in mana motuhake, future‑making, and systems transformation. His stewardship across diverse creative sectors centres on enabling artists and organisations to navigate change with clarity, courage, and care.
In this chapter of NZDFT’s voyage, Aaron stands not just as a director but as a guardian of whakapapa, vision, and possibility—ensuring the Trust remains a living vessel for artistic expression and cultural advancement.
