I live in Taranaki and my garden is in total shade and is very dry. Can you recommend any shade loving plants (but not renga renga lilies)?

Because the soil will be dry and hard I would recommend conditioning your soil. Dig a soil conditioner, peat, compost and gypsum (all available from garden centres) through your soil to improve its structure. The plants will grow a lot better if they have a kick start of nutrients. Plants that love the shade and would be suitable for these conditions include astellias, clivias, acanthus, ligularia, day lilies and stachys. They also all have a great range of contrasting leaves.