Tempo 2012 saw Celia Walmsley appointed to the role of Artistic Director following on from Mary Jane O’Reilly’s six years at the helm, while Carrie Rae Cunningham was appointed Assistant Director. The festival also downsized slightly, while still based at Q Theatre, with performances that ran over two weeks, Tuesday-Sunday in the first week, Wednesday-Sunday in the second.

Tuakana again kicked off the festival with a mixture of contemporary and traditional Māori dance. The showcase programmes; Fresh Cuts, Prime Cuts, Duets and Y Chromozone offered a mix of new talent and seasoned dance artists. Fresh Cuts featured works from recent Unitec graduates Natalie Clark, Anitra Hayday. The male choreographers of Y Chromozone included Michael Parmenter and the dance crews TMC and Prestige. Companies again appeared under the banner of Tempo with Footnote presenting an evening of shorter works called the Forte Series, Okareka’s Nga Hauewha featuring eight dancers, and choreography by Ross McCormack performed on the Rangatira stage as did Touch Compass, sharing a bill with Tasmania’s Second Echo. Daniel Belton and Good Company Arts presented Time, Dance and Soma Songs, a fusion of film, live dance and music also on the main stage at Q Theatre.

The New Zealand School of Dance’s final year contemporary dance students performed their end of year works while Tertiary Colours again offered works from dance students of the University of Auckland, Unitec, AUT, MIT, East Auckland Performing Arts, Whitireia and Otago University. Younger dance students were given the opportunity to perform alongside professionals in Bipeds Productions’ Lily. This biographical dance theatre work celebrated the life and teaching of the iconic Dunedin-based dance teacher, Lily Stevens. The Kids Show, with choreography by Carlene Newall, Even Gordon, Geordan Wilcox, Jessie McCall, Heather and Melinda Palmer amongst others and Secondary Colours, offered the opportunity to see the next generation of New Zealand dance artists on stage.

An exhibition of the many talents of Douglas Wright- in dance, poetry, film, visual art- was on at the Gus Fisher Gallery, while a Salsa Ball took place in the lounge space at Q. Two burlesque-inspired shows, O’Reilly’s In Flagrante and Lily Loca’s vaudeville cabaret Va-Va-Voom catered for those audiences seeking dance that offered ‘nudity and adult themes.’

Wellingtonians took centre stage in two events this year; dance stalwart Deirdre Tarrant was celebrated in Honouring a Dancer while Sir Jon Trimmer reminisced on his life and decades long career in ballet in An Audience with Sir Jon Trimmer.