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the friday company

choreography / performance / theatre / education / reviews / adjudication



Brigitte Knight
Artistic Director

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Brigitte Knight, M.Prof.Studs (Edu. First Class Honours), BA, Dip. Teach (Sec) is an experienced and innovative choreographer, dance educator with the Royal New Zealand Ballet dance and theatre critic, and dance adjudicator. She has created work for Okareka Dance Company Summer School, Coca Cola Christmas in the Park, New Zealand Fashion Week, Māori Television, The Auckland Shakespeare Company, Tempo Festival, The Basement Theatre, Aotea Diwali Festival, University of Auckland Diwali Festival, Desi Showbiz International, The Radio Network, Short + Sweet Dance, NZ One Act Play Festival and many more. 

Brigitte works in a broad range of dance styles including ballet, jazz, contemporary, Bollywood and tap. She was the director of her own dance school for ten years, before relocating to Auckland and creating freelance work. She choreographs throughout New Zealand and has created an extensive selection of both dance and theatrical movement for dancers, actors and students working on stage and film. 

Brigitte is a fully registered, experienced secondary teacher, and the author of two of the Royal New Zealand Ballet's NCEA resources. She has guested, tutored and choreographed for many of New Zealand's leading dance education providers, including the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Okareka Dance Company Summer School, AUT Dance, New Zealand Performing Arts, CPIT, Auckland Academy of Adult Ballet, Carter Chan Dance Performance Centre, Auckland Academy of Dance, Auckland West Dance Academy and Corelli School of the Arts.

Brigitte is an experienced and creative dance educator and pre-professional dance coach, who has mentored and supported advanced dance students for successful entry to the New Zealand School of Dance, Unitec, AUT Dance, University of Auckland Dance, QUT Dance, Transit Dance, and Dance World Studios. 


Brigitte has over fifteen years adjudication experience, visiting dancing societies from Whangarei to Invercargill,  Greymouth to Gisbourne (and almost everywhere in between). She is highly proficient in adjudicating ballet, jazz, contemporary, lyrical, barefoot, tap, hip hop, musical theatre, national character, demi character, acro, and impromptu dance. She is experienced in both classical and modern PACANZ nominations, and was pleased to nominate 2015 PACANZ winner Ngaere Jenkins. Brigitte enjoys mentoring new adjudicators, and sharing her bespoke system of grading dancers, aiming for consistency, transparency and fairness at each and every competition.

She has recently completed her Master's degree in dance education, with a focus on the value of original choreography, which she achieved with First Class Honours. 

Brigitte is the Artistic Director of The Friday Company, senior ballet teacher at AWDA, ballet, contemporary and jazz tutor at AAAB, critic at ​theatrescenes.co.nz, whatsgood.co.nz, theatreview.org.nz, danz.org.nz, a founding member of Ballet Collective Aotearoa, and a freelance adjudicator.


Rebecca Hale
​Dance Tutor / Adjudicator
Ballet, Contemporary, Jazz


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Rebecca (Bex) Hale, BFA (Dance Perf. Distinction), RAD Adv. II, is a professional dancer, dance educator and freelance adjudicator. She has choreographed works for Auckland Academy of Adult Ballet, DanceBeat Academy, Bev Birch School of Dance, Bays School of Dance, and Albany Senior High School.

Bex started her training at age three, and danced in local and national competitions throughout New Zealand for over ten years. Her training and performance experience covers ballet, contemporary, jazz, lyrical, musical theatre, national character, demi character, barefoot, improvisation and choreography. Some highlights include 2012 PACANZ nomination (Classical), NZAMD Contemporary Nomination 5th Place, and BAL incentive Scholarships 2010 and 2011 and performing for ArtBox Christchurch in 2014. In 2015 she commenced her full time training at the Queensland University of Technology undertaking a Bachelor Of Fine Arts (Dance Performance), which she graduated from with Distinction in December, 2017. During her time in Brisbane Bex performed in the DIY Festival, Revive Pop-Up Fashion Festival, QUT Essentially Dance, and QUT Graduate Performances. She has also performed with The Friday Company for stage, television, and film. Bex has worked with a number of renowned Australian choreographers, including  Keith Hawley, Louise Deleur, Timothy Farrar, Amy Hollingsworth, Stephanie Hutchison, Katina Olsen, Jack Lister, Paul Selwyn Norton, Lloyd Newson, and Expressions Dance Company. In 2017 she had the opportunity to take part in the Beijing Contemporary Dance Festival Dance Camp, and perform in the festival itself. 

Bex tutors at a number of dance schools across Auckland, with a focus on BAL ballet, and NZAMD/ open contemporary examination classes. She coaches private students on examination technique, and choreographs competition work for solos and small groups.  She has worked as a guest choreographer and tutor at Albany Senior High School, Murray's Bay Intermediate, Glenfield College, and Auckland Academy of Adult Ballet.

Bex is in her third year of adjudicating, and brings a fresh eye and a wealth of experience as a QUT Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance (Distinction) graduate. Since returning to New Zealand, Bex has enjoyed adjudicating in both Auckland and Wellington. She is proficient in adjudicating ballet, jazz, contemporary, lyrical, barefoot, musical theatre, demi character and impromptu dance. Having spent more than ten years competing throughout the North Island, Bex enjoys the opportunity to share the wealth of knowledge she acquired with the next generation of aspiring Kiwi dancers. 

Bex is currently studying towards a Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Sec. Dance and Drama) at the University of Auckland, and TCIV in Dance Teaching and Management at Ballet Australasia Limited. She is a ballet and contemporary tutor at Bev Birch School of Dance, ballet tutor at Bays School of Dance, private coach, freelance adjudicator and a dance educator at The Friday Company. 

Tamzin Naicker
​Dance Tutor 
Hip Hop, Bollywood, Contemporary

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Tamzin Naicker trained at Unitec under the Bachelor of Performing and Screen Arts programme as a Contemporary Dance Major. She is trained in contemporary, Bollywood, hip hop and street jazz, and also spent several years training in stunting and flying at All Star Cheerleaders. Tamzin has more than seven years performance and competition experience, and has worked for both stage and television. 

Tamzin has an infectious passion for dance and, in particular,  the development of individual styles within the dancers she teaches. Her favourite choreographic style is a hip hop / contemporary fusion. She is an experienced and energetic teacher and has worked as a guest choreographer and tutor for Diocesan School for Girls, Kristin School, Ormiston Senior College, Hobsonville Point Secondary School, Marist College, Kingsway School, Albany Senior High School, Glenfield College, Somerville Intermediate, Murray's Bay Intermediate, and New Zealand Performing Arts.

Tamzin is currently the Head Teacher of contemporary and hip hop at Eternity Performing Arts, dance tutor at The Friday Company, teacher and choreographer of hip hop at Auckland West Dance Academy and tutors annually at Camp Modin in New York state.


Jade Egan
​Dance Tutor 
Bollywood, Contemporary, Hip Hop, Aerial Arts,
​Special Needs Music & Movement

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Jade Egan has a strong athletic background, which included success in track and field, cheerleading, stunting, aerial arts, trapeze and as a sponsored surfer for Roxy surf brand. 


Jade discovered her passion for dance at secondary school, and found her athletic background enabled her to progress rapidly in her performing arts career. Jade is trained in hip hop, contemporary, Bollywood and street jazz. She has extensive performance experience, including Coca Cola Christmas in the Park, TV3 and Māori Television. 


Jade’s new focus is teaching and sharing her love of dance and aerial arts with students. She is skilled and experienced in working with children with special needs, and enjoys making music movement accessible and enjoyable for all abilities. Additionally, she has experience working with mainstream NCEA dancers, and was a guest tutor at Waitakere College throughout 2015 and 2016. 


Jade is currently a seasonal Head Counsellor and tutor of aerial arts at Camp Modin in New York state, dance and movement tutor at The Friday Company, and junior hip hop tutor at Carter Chan Dance Performance Centre.

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