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Wellington District Theatre Federation
Best Musical
The Wedding Singer
Directed by Chris Cox
Hutt City Musical Theatre
Best Overall
Best Drama
The Heiress
Directed by Meredith Dooley
Stagecraft Theatre
Best Comedy
Pack of Girls
Directed by Felicity Cozens
Porirua Little Theatre
2026 Adjudicators
Shannon Tubman
Shannon has been heavily involved in the Wellington community theatre scene for the past 25 years. Shannon’s experience comes from her roles as a director, performer, production manager and dramaturg. Shannon has been adjudicating since 2015 and finds this to be a rewarding and satisfying use of her time. Shannon supports the mantra of The Association of New Zealand Drama Adjudicators; Engage, Assess and Inspire. Shannon is a firm believer in giving praise, but feels it is just as important to give constructive feedback. This type of feedback is designed to encourage individuals to grow in their chosen roles and to be brave enough to try out new or more challenging roles within theatre.
Shannon’s top tip for those entering this year’s festival…...get the technical teams on board early, let them bounce their ideas off each other. Not only does this make for amazing designs from an audience perspective, but it fosters a stronger appreciation of each departments skills and challenges. Performers also shine brighter (pardon the lighting pun) when they can see and/or feel the technical vision falling into place.
Shannon is excited to be sharing the Adjudication role with Lindsey Rusling, who is a supremely talented theatre practioner and a stellar human to boot.
Lindsey Rusling
Lindsey last adjudicated for Wellington District Theatre in 2020 but sadly only managed a couple of shows before Covid closed things down. She did manage a full season as adjudicator in 2015. She is currently a drama teacher at Chilton Saint James School in Lower Hutt where she regularly directs large-scale shows. In addition to school productions Lindsey has performed in, directed, and Choreographed numerous amateur and professional productions in the UK, the Netherlands and New Zealand.
Lindsey has adjudicated a number of competitions in the region and is excited to be joining Shannon to adjudicate our Festival this year. She is looking forwards to enjoying some magnificent theatre and to supporting the incredible enthusiasm, creativity and talent in our local theatre community.
Lindsey has adjudicated a number of competitions in the region and is excited to be joining Shannon to adjudicate our Festival this year. She is looking forwards to enjoying some magnificent theatre and to supporting the incredible enthusiasm, creativity and talent in our local theatre community.
The Green Room Podcast
Hosted by Carl Johnstone and Neil Brewer, The Green Room Podcast gives you your weekly insight into all things theatre around the district. Featuring interviews with cast and creatives for upcoming shows, reviews about the recently watched productions, as well as listing all the upcoming shows and auditions - all with some light hearted banter and a few tangents.
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