Nataliya Oryshchuk
Originally from the Ukraine, Nataliya is a Christchurch-based playwright and theatre maker. A number of her short plays became finalists in national and international playwriting competitions. Her short comedies were produced by various theatres in New Zealand and Australia. Nataliya is an active script contributor to NO Productions Theatre (My Beautiful Disaster, Unforgotten, Cactus Instructor and Other Stories, a series of ghost plays for Ferrymead, Monster Wars, etc.). In 2018 she completed her Master's degree in Creative Writing with Distinction (Massey University). Her one-act play Dear Jane won the first prize in the Playwrights Association of New Zealand 2018 competition.
David Allen
With his Honours degree in English and a tertiary qualification in performing arts, David Allen is a playwright and actor with many years experience on professional stages throughout New Zealand. He is inspired by Elizabethan and Shakespearean theatre traditions, while also being influenced by the likes of the Goons and Monty Python. His comedy A Sorcerer's Appendix was staged by NO Productions Theatre in 2017 and enjoyed great success. His new play River Ghost is currently in rehearsals and will be premiered in mid-March 2019.