Jeff Addison (Kai Tahu, Te Ati awa) is a multi-faceted artist educated at Waikato University and Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington. He founded the puppet troupe Toro Pikopiko Puppets in 1995, creating 16 original Te Ao Maori Puppet Shows, as well as a Te Reo Maori TV and Radio series called Toro Pikopiko. The troupe is still active in the puppetry arena, and is currently making an audiobook series for Radio NZ called Toro Pikopiko Tales. As well as having a puppetry collection numbering in the hundreds, Jeff has also carved many creations out of pumice, pounamu and punga which have been circulating around the country and the world for the last 30 years.
In 1984 Jeff was the winner of the Macmillan Brown Prize for Writers. His plays have received six professional productions since the 1980's. In 1989 his play Legitimate Strip was workshopped at the National Playwrights Workshop, and in 1991 it was performed under the title Idol Adultery at Bats Theatre in Wellington. He is also a musician and composer with more than 100 APRA registered waiata, and this interest in music has led to the incorporation of original songs into most of his plays.