Trick of the Light Theatre is an award-winning company from Aotearoa / New Zealand, founded by Hannah Smith and Ralph
McCubbin Howell. We like to make theatre that is playful, inventive, thought-provoking, and that speaks to the here and now.
Our shows are unified by their attention to narrative, inventive visual design, and belief that theatre should resonate with the
wider world. Previous works include The Road That Wasn’t There (Outstanding New NZ Play, Most Promising Director, and
Production of the Year – Wellington Theatre Awards 2013; Children’s Event Award – Fringe World, Perth 2016; Best Children’s
Event – Adelaide Fringe 2016), Tröll (Outstanding Theatre Award – Fringe Review, Edinburgh, 2019), and The Bookbinder (Best of
the Fringe – NZ Fringe 2014, International Excellence Award – Sydney Fringe Festival 2014, BDO Children’s Theatre Award – Fringe
World, Perth 2015) – a solo show which has toured across NZ, Australia, Canada, the UK, USA, and South Africa, from sell out
runs at the Edinburgh Fringe, to the attic of Aotearoa / New Zealand’s oldest bookbindery. Their latest show, The Griegol,
premiered at Auckland Arts Festival in March 2021. The company is represented in North America by Jim Weiner of Boat Rocker
Entertainment. www.trickofthelight.co.nz
Hannah Smith
Hannah Smith is a Wellington based director, designer and producer with an honours degree in English and
Theatre from Victoria University of Wellington. She is co-founder and co-director of Trick of the Light Theatre
and has directed and designed most productions for the company. She received a nomination for Most
Promising Director at the 2011 Wellington Theatre Awards for her work on The Engine Room, and won the
same award in 2013 for The Road That Wasn’t There. She has a background in puppetry and paper-art, and her
work as a designer has been recognised in The Bookbinder (nominated best Production Design NZ Fringe 2014),
and The Road That Wasn’t There (Production of the Year 2013) and Tröll (Outstanding Theatre Award Winner,
Fringe Review, Edinburgh, 2019).
Ralph McCubbin Howell
Ralph McCubbin Howell is a theatre maker from Wellington, and co-director of Trick of the Light Theatre. He
was a member of the NZ Young Shakespeare Company and completed a BA (Hons) in Theatre and English at
Victoria University of Wellington, before training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in the UK. Alongside his
work with Trick of the Light, he has performed as an actor and improviser with companies across Aotearoa /
New Zealand including The Court Theatre, Silo, and Snort. He received the award for Outstanding New
Playwright at the 2011 Wellington Theatre Awards for The Engine Room, and Outstanding New NZ Play for The
Road That Wasn’t There in 2013. He has twice been shortlisted for the Adam Play Award, won the Bruce Mason
Playwriting Award in 2014 and received a Masters of the Arts with Distinction in Creative Writing (Scriptwriting) at Victoria
University of Wellington in 2018
