The Haythorne Circle
The Royal New Zealand Ballet has embarked on a five-year project to invest in major new repertoire, with a focus on full-length ‘story ballets’ which have the potential to attract large audiences, and to be toured or performed internationally.
The aim is to build the classics of the future, ballets which are entertaining, inspiring, thought-provoking and engaging for audiences of all ages, and so investing in the development of choreographers, dancers, designers and composers from New Zealand and around the world as they create memorable new work for stages from Auckland to Invercargill – and the world stage.
To turn this vision into reality, we have established a new group of supporters, who together are making a substantial financial contribution towards the creation of one new major production each year. The first production to be supported by this group is our new production of The Nutcracker, to premiere in October 2025, with a significant new commission to follow in the first half of 2026.
The Circle is named in honour of the late Harry Haythorne (1926 – 2014). Harry was the RNZB’s longest-serving Artistic Director (1981 – 92) and invested in distinctive repertoire during his tenure, including major productions of Swan Lake and Romeo & Juliet as well as robust commissions and acquisitions from local and international choreographers.
If you are interested in contributing to the Haythorne Circle, please contact Susannah Lees-Jeffries.
"‘Our aim was always to bring The World of Dance to New Zealand and take New Zealand Dance to the World.’"
Harry Haythorne MBE, 2013
Harry Haythorne was born in Adelaide in 1926. He began his performing career in vaudeville and served in the RAAF during World War Two. Returning to civilian life, he began to study ballet, moving to Britain where he worked in ballet and musicals. He became ballet master and danced in companies led by Leonard Massine and Walter Gore, Het Amsterdams Ballet and Sadler’s Wells Opera Ballet, and was a guest artist with The Royal Ballet at Covent Garden. From 1969 – 74 Harry Haythorne was Assistant Artistic Director of Scottish Ballet before returning to Australia in 1975 to become Artistic Director of Queensland Ballet.
In 1981 he was appointed Artistic Director of the then New Zealand Ballet. Under his artistic leadership the company’s repertoire expanded to include many new commissions and existing works from New Zealand and international choreographers, including Orpheus, Jean, The Firebird, The Rake’s Progress, Wolfgang Amadeus, Hamlet and A Servant of Two Masters.
From 2015 – 25, the Harry Haythorne Choreographic Award, administered by the Royal New Zealand Ballet Foundation, supported opportunities for choreographers associated with the RNZB, including Loughlan Prior and Shaun James Kelly.