Mixit is all about people. Meet our Alumni, our Youth Leaders and the support team that have made Mixit what it is today.
Youth leaders
Mixit has a dynamic Youth Leadership programme. This programme offers motivated individuals an opportunity to step up into roles where they face new challenges and opportunities to grow their skills.
Youth Leaders take on organisational and planning responsibilities, gain experience of creative facilitation skills, manage the digital media aspects of the project, have the opportunity and support to initiate events and projects that inspire them. The youth leaders are an integral and dynamic team within Mixit and work hard together to make a difference.
Ilham Akhlaqi
Youth leader
Ilham Akhlaqi joined our Youth Leadership programme in 2018. She is currently in her second year of a Bachelor of Creative Technologies at AUT, and hopes to pursue a career that allows her to draw upon her interest in technology as well as art and design.
Ilknur Ozbal
Youth leader
Ilknur is our most recent addition to the Youth Leader programme, joining in early 2019. When she's not busy focusing on her Year 12 studies at Waitakere College you'll find her keeping active through playing sports and going to the gym. She is also interested in promoting the value diversity and encouraging people to be happy with their difference...
Mu Nyay
Youth leader
Mu Nyay has been coming to Mixit since 2013. She was appointed as a Youth Leader in 2018, and enjoys contributing to the Youth Leadership programme through spending time on the floor. "I love it when I’m on the floor because I can’t think of anything but having fun and I believe that everyone feels the same way as me." In year 12 at St Dominic's, h...
Team
Shari Lett
Project Manager
Shari Lett is an educator, curator and project manager who is committed to creating meaningful connections between people and the arts. Prior to relocating to Tāmaki Makaurau in 2018, she was the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ Archivist of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Collections and Studio Manager for artist Ben Quilty. Since completing...
Felix Becroft
Driver
Felix has been part of Mixit since he was 14, going on to join the Youth Leaders team and is now an Alumni. He graduated from Toi Whakaari as an actor and continues involvement in theatre, film and music. These days he spends most of his working life in the film industry beside the camera in the Art Dept. When he’s available he continues his connec...
Te Rawhina McDowell
Financial Manager
Te Rawhina McDowell graduated with a degree in Economics and Statistics in 2001 and subsequently never worked as either an economist or a statistician. She has however been a Policy Adviser, Manager of Backpackers Hostel in Chile, English Teacher, Research Centre Business Manager and Accounts Administrator, and is a full-time Mum as well as Mixit’s...
Board members
Tayyaba Akram Khan
Trustee
Tayyaba Khan is the founder of Khadija Leadership Network, the NZ Peace Ambassador for the European Muslim League, and a community development practitioner with over 15 years of experience working with the migrant and refugee communities in The Occupied Territories of Palestine, Australia, United Kingdom and New Zealand. She has an association wit...
Mike Becroft
Trustee
Michael is an Art Director in film and been part of the NZ film industry since the early 1980s. Closely associated with Mixit since it was established in 2006, he was the inaugural Chair of the Board. He retains a seat at the board table providing a steady voice of reason, a wise overview and ensures the project remains true to its core purpose, al...
Mark Easterbrook
Trustee
Mark works as a Writer and Creative Director in the advertising and design industry, as well as volunteering his time for arts and charity organisations. As a creative thinker, he aims to join the dots between ideas and people to help build Mixit’s connections and tell our story. As a Mixit trustee, he brings a calm, optimistic approach to what we ...
Alumni squad
Mixit Youth Leaders graduate into our Alumni team. The team actively engage on many levels – as Ambassadors, on the Board, mentoring youth, performing for external events, creating music (check out our videos) and participating in continued training to creatively lead and manage outreach opportunities.
Batanai Mashingaidze
Alumni squad
Batanai is an emerging professional artist who has worked in a range of roles since graduating from Toi Whakaari as an actor. She has been employed as a performer in theatre, film, on dance projects and as an AD in the film industry. She was a creative coach on a Mixit summer project FRESH EYES and the Assistant Director on the JUMP CUT summer proj...
Meg Sydenham
Alumni squad
Meg worked with Mixit for the first time on the 2019 summer project JUMP CUT as a creative coach. She is from an acting background, and recently graduated from Toi Whakaari. Her range of teaching experience is diverse: putting on plays with primary school drama classes, working with kids right through to adults as an acting coach for short films, t...
Izadine Ahmed Abdallah
Alumni squad
Izadine joined Mixit as a teenager who was shy and un-confident but wanted to find positive ways to step up in his life. Mixit gave him the platform to find his voice and he quickly started to fly. He’s a great ambassador for Mixit, always encouraging other young people to come along and join the crew. Izadine loves Spoken Word Poetry and is always...
Selected guest artists
Justin Haiu:
Choreographer & Performer
Moss Patterson:
Choreographer
Chris Jannides:
Choreographer & Director
Bianca Hyslop:
Choreographer & Performer
Elijah Kennar:
Choreographer & Performer
Gaby Thomas:
Choreographer & Performer
Yair Katz:
Musician
Ben Crowder:
Actor
Emily Carter & Natalie Keane:
Costume Stylists
Sparrow Phillips:
Artist
Ebon Grayman:
Performer & Aerial Acrobat
Megan Bardsley:
Graphic Designer
Sarah-Jane Blake:
Visual Installation & Designer
Ella Becroft:
Photographer & Graphic Designer
Tama Jarman:
Theatre Director & Performer
Katy Burton:
Choreographer & Performer
Eddie Elliott:
Choreographer & Performer
Muhammad Ali Kanwal:
Musician & Performer
Ahi Kahrunahran:
Theatre Director
Bert Van Dijk:
Theatre Director & Performer
Ilai Amar:
Film maker
Mel Bailey aka Kloos:
Performer & Musician
Katy Parker:
Visual Theatre Artist
Helen Todd:
Lighting Designer
Don McGlashan:
Composer & Musician
Chris O’Connor:
Composer & Musician
Paulo Rotondo:
Director & Writer
Andi Crowne:
Photographer
Malia Johnston:
Choreographer & Director
Tawanda Manyimo:
Theatre Director & Performer
Alexander Holloway:
Stage Combat
Chris Graham:
Theatre Director & Performer
Margaret-Mary Hollins:
Theatre Director & Performer
Daniel Ortiz Rodreiguez:
Composer & Musician
Eve Gordon & Dust Palace:
Performers & Aerial Acrobats
Jahra Wasasala:
Multi-Disciplinary Artist
Mike & Bronwyn Baker:
Ariel Acrobats & Circus Tutors
Felix Becroft:
Performer & Musician
Global connections
Mixit has a growing network of similar inspiring creative organisations that work with young people and marginalized communities. We are interested in making new connections, partnerships and opportunities with like-minded groups. If you have a project and want to link up with Mixit reach out, start talking and join our global connections map.
CAN – Community Arts Northwest, Manchester
can.uk.comProject Phakama, London
projectphakama.orgContact Theatre, Manchester
contactmcr.comOvalhouse Theatre, London
ovalhouse.comCounterpoints Arts and Platforma, London
counterpointsarts.org.ukCoHealth Arts Generator, Melbourne
cohealthartsgenerator.comMulticultural Arts Victoria, Melbourne
.multiculturalarts.com.auThe Open University for Refugees, Singapore
initiativeour.orgHelp us continue mixing. Donate now.
We are a charitable trust. The best way to support Mixit is with a regular donation to help fund our work. Donations to Mixit are tax deductible.
Make a regular donation, a one off donation, or get in touch to talk about taking a more personalised approach such as contributing to a specific project, donating your time, or making a large one-off donation.
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