There are only three nights left of this fabulous play, Crimes of the Heart, the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama 1981, Best American Play 1981, Oscar nomination - Best Screen adaptation 1987, at The Pumphouse Theatre. Starring Equity national performers committee member Natalie Beran, Equity members Alex Walker, Gina Timberlake and Breigh Fouhy,  and directed by Equity member Geoff Allen for Galatea Theatre. 

BUY TICKETS HERE         pics by Galatea Theatre

Love and Money had a brilliant opening night at TAPAC in Western Springs, Auckland this week. The show, starring proud Equity members Mike Edward, Eve Gordon and Ascia Maybury is only on until Saturday 24th November, so don't miss out.

Buy $35 tickets for Equity members here

Don't miss out! Register online now for these full day masterclasses:

On 26, 27 and 29 November, Simon Burke (Mary Poppins) and Daniel Edmonds will do full day music theatre masterclasses in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Professional performers will be able to draw on Simon's 25 years experience as a leading man in musical theatre both in Australia and the West End, as well as Daniel's vast experience as vocal coach, accompanist and musical director.

Register here for the Simon Burke and Daniel Edmonds masterclasses

Multi-million dollar screen production incentives hit the spotlight this month following John Key's visit to Hollywood. Has the local industry benefitted from tax breaks for big studios? What about government's relaxation of immigration laws which have seen imported crew, directors and actors flooding into NZ, and locals losing out on jobs?

The Listener's Hamish Keith says "sweeteners" to big overseas studios "seem less acceptable by the day", and argues that the tax breaks and changes to the labour laws don't help the bulk of the industry.

Equity vice-president Tandi Wright told Radio NZ that, in other countries, big producers are only given incentives if they employ a certain number of actors, crew, directors etc. This boosts the local industry and increases the number of local stars. "Eventually those stars are able to attract productions to that country", says Tandi. Listen to the full interview here.

Another Listener article argued that government should make public the findings of their Screen Sector Review.

This November, 40 New Zealand actors will get the chance to hone their auditioning, acting and accent skills with top casting agents from Australia, the US and New Zealand.

The Casting Hothouse will take place at the Q Theatre in Auckland from Tuesday November 20 to Thursday November 22, 2012.

The line-up includes:

Matt Skrobalak, CBS Paramount (The Good Wife, NCIS)
Margery Simkin, US-based casting director (Avatar, Marley & Me, Hope Springs)
Nikki Barrett, Nikki Barrett Casting (Great Gatsby, The Railway Man, The Sapphires)
Mike Dwyer, Barefoot Casting (A Song of Good, The Devil’s Rock)

The Casting Hothouse is a major initiative by Equity to give members an opportunity to develop the skills and confidence they need to tackle the casting experience head on.  The Casting Hothouse is not designed to assist NZ actors to leave NZ permanently.  Rather it is an opportunity to equip NZ actors with the tools to work overseas as well as in NZ and to show overseas companies that NZ has a professional talent pool. It will assist NZ performers to maintain a long lasting career.

APPLICATIONS CLOSE THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25.

For further details and applications here.

Equity president, Jennifer Ward-Lealand, has just returned from Toronto where she represented the union at the International Federation of Actors (FIA) world congress.

The congress, which takes place every four years, brought together more than 100 actors' unions from all over the world. Australian Equity's federal president, Simon Burke of the MEAA, was elected as a new FIA vice-president and is sure to put the issues of Trans-Tasman actors firmly in the spotlight for the next four years.

FIA also produces useful documents, like this safety guide for live performers. The message is clear: do not let anyone gamble with your safety and health and that of those around you!