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Sam creates performance art works, installations, and performance design. He is the artistic director for the transdisciplinary performance company The PlayGround NZ Ltd, and The Performance Arcade: an annual festival of performance art on Wellington Waterfront.
 

With The PlayGround Sam has directed and designed The Restaurant of Many Orders (UK, Italy, NZ). In 2008 he collaborated with Professor Philippa Gander at Massey University’s Sleep/Wake Research Centre to direct and design award winning Sleep/Wake (Wellington, Auckland, and New York).

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Sam’s work has been published and exhibited in international contexts such as the Prague Quadrennial and World Stage Design. He has lectured in Europe, Australia, Asia, and the Americas; and has written articles on performance for various publications worldwide. He is currently the Oceanic editor for World Scenography, a survey of performance design from 1975-2020.

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Between 2005-2009 Sam coordinated Massey University’s cutting-edge Performance Design Degree with Toi Whakaari, NZ Drama School. He was then employed as a lecturer in Spatial Design for the college of Creative Arts, Massey University. He has also taught at Victoria University Wellington, RMIT Melbourne, and delivered guest lectures at La Salle Singapore, University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, and AUT Auckland.

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Sam conceived, directed and curated The Performance Arcade, a new performance festival on Wellington’s waterfront that has run annually since 2011. The success of this concept continues to support the growth of experimental performance practises in NZ, and has received various awards, citations and commissions from The Edge (Auckland) and Wellington International Airport.