OUR TERM 3 MASTERCLASS TUTORS
Xavier McKinnon
Xavier McKinnion is a talented US actor who has performed professionally across the United States in leading roles, including Fiyero in the US National Tour of Wicked and Ram Sweeney in the Broadway revival of Heathers.
US theatre credits include: WICKED US National Tour – Fiyero; HEATHERS Broadway Revival – Ram; ALADDIN 1st National Tour – Prince Abdullah; understudy Kassim; RENT National Tour – Benny Coffin III; KINKY BOOTS US National Tour – Referee Angel; JERSEY BOYS – French Rapper; AIDA – Radames Cover; ONCE ON THIS ISLAND – Daniel; ROCK OF AGES – JaKeith, Mayor, understudy Franz; HAIRSPRAY – Duane
John Callen
John Callen’s illustrious career, spanning five decades, has seen him make substantial contributions to various forms of media including theatre, radio, film, and television. Not only has he been in front of the camera, but he has also worked behind the scenes as a director, writer, tutor, and voiceover artist. Callen is perhaps best known for his role as the deaf dwarf Oin, in Sir Peter Jackson’s acclaimed Hobbit Trilogy.
John Callen’s unwavering dedication to his craft was acknowledged when he was honoured with the 2021 New Zealand Actors Equity Lifetime Achievement Award. This prestigious accolade, bestowed upon him by his fellow actors, is a testament to his remarkable contributions to the field of acting and in particular his dedication to developing talent in young people.
John is a founding board member of The Actors’ Program. He has also taught at Toi Whakaari and Unitec. John has worked with APAA since its inception and Directed our production of The Sound of Music. Bio and Full Credits
Peter Feeney
An NZ Pākehā of Irish heritage, Peter has worked as an actor for more than three decades, beginning in 1993 and performing in theatre, television and film across the UK, US, Australia and New Zealand. He continues to work as an actor, although these days he thinks of himself more as a creative entrepreneur, exploring storytelling in all its weird and wonderful forms.
In 2025, he directed 2:22 – A Ghost Story at Circa Theatre and launched StoryLab, a community storytelling initiative that he is passionate about. He also run the Actors Lab Studio acting school and teaches regularly at the Mulholland Acting School in Amsterdam.
He is the published author of two books: my acting handbook, Acting and How to Survive It, published in 2021, and my novel, Blind Bitter Happiness, which he adapted into a limited television series as a COVID-19 project. The series is available to watch on RNZ.
In 2005 and 2006, he directed and performed the title role in the Auckland seasons and national New Zealand tour of Michael and Margery Forde’s stage play Milo’s Wake. He is now adapting the play as a television series with Jonathan Brough, the Australia-based New Zealand director—watch this space.
He has performed at most of New Zealand’s major theatres, as well as in Australia. His one-person show, A Night with Beau Tyler, toured throughout New Zealand for several years. Over the course of his career, he has worked or trained with artists including Cicely Berry of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Bob Benedetti—an Emmy Award-winning US television producer and Broadway director—Rob Marchand and Dean Carey.
Career highlights include the New Zealand zombie film hit Black Sheep, Ash vs Evil Dead and the telemovie Abandoned, which won at the New Zealand Film Awards. He holds a First-Class Honours degree in Politics and History from the University of Melbourne and a Diploma in Drama from the University of Auckland.
His claim to fame? He was nominated for Best Actor at the 2003 New Zealand Film Awards—and lost to a ten-year-old James Rolleston! Credits
Sophie Read-Ellis
Sophie is passionate about the performing arts and enjoys working with and learning from various people in the industry. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Dance Studies from the University of Auckland and is currently working as a dance teacher at Kristin School in Albany. With an impressive dance journey spanning over 20 years, Sophie is well-versed in various dance styles, including Jazz, Tap, Contemporary, Ballet, Commercial and Hip-Hop. Before embarking on her teaching career, Sophie worked as a versatile freelance dancer in Auckland; she has performed at wedding’s, fundraisers, as a backup dancer, was featured in a few music videos, and judged many dance competitions. Sophie has also taught at many dance institutions, including Bays School of Dance, Northern Performing Arts, Limelight, and Step Beyond Studios. Sophie has choreographed various successful performances in the community, including many of Kristin School’s major productions. She has worked with APAA a number of times, choreographing tap numbers for various shows and the Irish Dance in Legally Blonde.
Bernice Wannenberg
Masterclass and Musical Theatre Class Tutor
Bernice is an Auckland-based performer who recently made her professional debut in the New Zealand Premier and National tour of & Juliet the musical. Her involvement in the performing arts originally began through dance, where she trained and competed in jazz, ballet, and contemporary. It was in 2022 that she decided to expand her focus into the world of musical theatre. This shift led her to the Auckland Performing Arts Academy, where she spent significant time developing her skills by training and performing in various productions. Her previous stage credits include a range of roles such as Marty in Grease, Patty in School of Rock, Serena in Legally Blonde, Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, and Nancy in Oliver!. Bernice is so excited to come back as a tutor for APAA’s 2026 end-of-year programmes!
OUR PRODUCTION CREATIVE TEAM
Zoe Fifield – Director
Zoe’s passion is musical theatre and she has performed in a number of productions over the years including most recently fulfilling a dream of being a ‘big kid’ in Matilda the Musical, in the G&T production at The Bruce Mason Centre, the principal role of Annie in the professional UK touring production and as Ballet Girl, Sharon Percy, in the NZ premier of Billy Elliot. Her favourite recent roles have been playing Wendla Bergman in Spring Awakening, Elle Woods in Legally Blonde, Rosalie Mullins in School of Rock, Sandy in Grease, Demeter and Bombalurina in Cats, Morticia in The Addams Family, Maria in The Sound of Music and Sharpay Evans in High School Musical. She enjoys working closely with the talented students and the wonderful creative team at APAA and is looking forward to continuing her APAA journey throughout 2025 and beyond.
Tom Talbot – Musical Director
Tom is in his second year studying for a Bachelor’s degree in Music (Creative Practice: Composition) at the University of Auckland. Specialising in theatrical composition, Tom is currently writing his second original musical. He is a passionate vocalist and is the Choir Director of Murray’s Bay Intermediate School and a member of the Auckland Youth Choir. Studying under Jonathan Cohen, Tom has played clarinet for various ensembles across Auckland. After being APAA’s Music Intern in 2024, where he also performed the roles of Mr Banks in Mary Poppins and the Guard in The Wizard of Oz, Tom has thoroughly enjoyed stepping up as Musical Director for Oliver! He looks forward to continuing to work with the Creative Team and all of APAA’s passionate performers in future productions.
Leah Morley – Choreographer
Leah enjoys her current roles of being an Occupational Therapist in child and youth mental health as well as choreographer for APAA. Prior to this, she took on the role of Dance Intern at APAA for 1.5 years. She has been dancing since the age of 3 and has completed dance exams and competed with solo, duet, and troupe numbers in the styles of jazz, ballet, hip hop, contemporary, musical theatre, and more. She has been part of APAA since 2021 taking on the roles of Head Cheerleader in High School Musical, Mister Mistofelees in Cats, Cha Cha in Grease, Lead Back-up Dancer in School of Rock, and Brooke Wyndham in Legally Blonde.
COMPANY DIRECTOR / OWNER
Lesley Fifield – Co-Founder / Owner / Producer
Lesley has a wealth of experience in production and operations management in performing arts, particularly with children and young adults. She is currently Performing Arts Administrator at Kristin School in Albany, where she is also Production Manager of their three major annual productions and manager of the itinerant music programme.
For many years, Lesley has worked as a volunteer for a number of performing arts organisations in NZ, where she has assisted and gained extensive experience working behind the scenes in a variety of areas, including being a Trustee Board Member. She was the Managing Director of the Broadway Dreams Foundation NZ, where she was instrumental in ensuring the success of their inaugural Auckland Summer Intensive programme in 2018 and the expansion of the programme for 2019 and beyond.
Auckland Performing Arts Academy 