Freedom & Focus 2025

Nau mai, haere mai ki Aotearoa! 

It’s been an invigorating and uplifting time this month as the proposals for workshops and performances at Freedom and Focus in Aotearoa have rolled in.  Offers to present work and share research have come from all over the globe.  The conference scheduling team of Micha Espinosa, Lynn Watson, Rachel Finley, Amy Chaffee and Julia Moody are drawing this diverse research and practice together into a beautiful tapestry for Freedom and Focus participants. Some elements of the Conference schedule are consistent:

Every day we will begin with a karakia and waiata (a Māori prayer and a song), this initiates an opportunity to collectively share our thoughts and perspectives on the theme for the day. Morning discussions will weave in the knowledge of our kaumātua, senior practitioners and invited guests. Each day the workshops will explore different aspects of our theme ‘Voice Is Action’, and as always, you can select the workshops that you are drawn to. At the close of day, there is an opportunity to rest and digest what we have experienced, and we close with karakia and waiata. Each night, the Performance Festival will showcase work from our fellow Trems and local performers.

Day 1 Collaboration in Action - On our first day together we ground ourselves and arrive fully at Toi Whakaari through the process of a pōwhiri (Māori welcoming ceremony). Drawing inspiration from this ceremony, we will be guided by Mana Whenua (the People of the Land) renew our relationships,as we forge new connections to arrive fully at Freedom and Focus in body, mind and spirit. Later in the day we will be guided by a kaumātua to a deeper understanding of what underpins this process.

Day 2 The Teacher and Coach in Action - On the second day we embrace our roles as teachers and coaches: what is required of us in this relationship? What inspires or confines us?  How do we map progress in our students and ourselves, and what can that mean for us? 

Day 3 The Performer in Action - On the third day we examine how Fitzmaurice Voicework inspires the performer and connects us inwardly to our creativity, and also how it connects us outwardly to other methodologies and sources of learning. To make our practice and that of our students sustainable, we explore holistic approaches to nourish our creative action.

Day 4 The Changemaker in Action - During the final day, we turn towards how we can use our voices in this world - right now. What is the role of advocacy and how can we support positive, creative, conscious change? At the end of the day, we will gather to say farewell, breathing out together.

We can’t wait to welcome you to Aotearoa and the Conference.

 Perry and the Conference Planning Team

REGISTER HERE FOR TREMDAYS
and also
REGISTER HERE FOR THE F&F CONFERENCE (Trems choose the Description ‘Full Fee’ in the Description pulldown menu and then use code TREMNZ which is a 30% off Trem discount code on the final page of registration)

Venue: Toi Whakaari 
Date: 31 July - 3 August 2025 (Trem only dates are 30 July & 4 August)
Full Price: $350USD/$560NZD
Student Price: $150 USD/$240 NZD

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Before you go - Please note that US Citizens will need a Visa/Electronic Travel Authority (NZETA) to visit New Zealand. More Info can be found here.

LINKS FOR MORE:

• TREM DAYS PAGE - Certified Fitzmaurice Voicework® Teachers.

• The CONFERENCE TEAM!

• THE CONFERENCE BOOKLET with travel suggestions and tentative schedule and more.

• SCHEDULE at a glance - subject to change

• Conference Waiver as a Google Form