David Geary

David Geary
Born1963 (age 62–63)
Feilding, New Zealand
EducationVictoria University of Wellington, Toi Whakaari NZ Drama School
Occupationswriter & educator
Writing career
Notable awardsBruce Mason Award, Adam New Zealand Playwrights Award

David Geary (born 1963) is a Māori playwright, dramaturg, screenwriter, director, fiction writer, poet and educator from New Zealand. He is an award-winning playwright known for his plays The Learner's Stand, Lovelock's Dream Run and Pack of Girls.

Early years

Palmerston North Boys' High School

Geary was born in Feilding, New Zealand. He is Māori and affiliates to the iwi Nga Mahanga and Taranaki. He grew up in Rangiwahia in the Manawatū region. His mother was a teacher. Geary attended Palmerston North Boys' High School, following which he attended Victoria University of Wellington and began a law degree although he later changed to arts. He subsequently studied acting, graduating in 1987 with a Diploma in Acting from Toi Whakaari New Zealand Drama School in Wellington. While still a student, Geary submitted Kandy Cigarettes to the 1988 New Zealand Playwrights’ Workshop under the pseudonym of Kurt Davidson. This was turned into revue sketches titled Gothic But Staunch and Dry, White and Friendly.

Career

Theatre

In 1991, Geary's full-length play Pack of Girls (Downstage,1991) achieved critical acclaim and was performed in various venues and in the amateur theatrical network in New Zealand. It is a comedy in which a rugby widow forms a women’s rugby team. In 1993, Lovelock’s Dream Run was performed at The Watershed(Auckland Theatre Company) and also published by Victoria University Press. Geary had brought the play to the Australia and New Zealand Playwrights’ Conference in Canberra in 1990 and after the premiere, it was also presented in New Zealand and also Australia.

Other plays of Geary's include:

Working with others, Geary co-authored;

Television

Geary's television writing includes:

Filmography

Geary's film work includes:

Writing

His short story collection, A Man of the People was published in 2003. Interviews and poetry by Geary can be found in Victoria University of Wellington online magazine Turbine. He contributed to Pūrākau : Māori Myths Retold by Māori Writers (2019).

Teaching

Geary moved to Canada in 2002 where he teaches storytelling and script writing with First Nation writers at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. . In 2008, he was Writer in Residence at Victoria University of Wellington.

Awards

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "David Geary". Read NZ. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "David Geary". Playmarket. Retrieved 2021-06-15.
  3. ↑ "Graduate". www.toiwhakaari.ac.nz. Retrieved 2021-08-09.
  4. ↑ Geary, David (2009). Two plays. Playmarket. Wellington [N.Z.]: Playmarket. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-908607-37-2. OCLC 465304466.
  5. ↑ "#diasporatanga". Academy of New Zealand Literature. Retrieved 2026-10-17.
  6. ↑ New Zealand Book Council. Retrieved 9 November 2009
  7. ↑ "David Geary". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 2021-06-15.
  8. ↑ Archived 2010-05-14 at the Wayback Machine Profile, Playmarket New Zealand Playwrights' Agency. Retrieved 9 November 2009
  9. ↑ "David Geary — 21 Today (for Dog)". NZETC. Retrieved 2021-10-11.
  10. ↑ "Turbine 2008 - Sleeptalking with David Geary: An Interview". NZETC. Retrieved 2021-10-11.
  11. ↑ "David Geary | Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity". www.banffcentre.ca (in French). Retrieved 2026-10-17.
  12. ↑ "Writer in Residence | International Institute of Modern Letters". Victoria University of Wellington. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
  13. ↑ "Bruce Mason Playwriting Award". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 2020-08-15.
  14. ↑ "The learner's stand, 1995 | Plays and playwrights | Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 2026-10-17.