Next-level experience of Māori legend to tour Aotearoa in 2024
Credit: Stephen A’Court
NEXT-LEVEL IMMERSIVE THEATRE PERFORMANCE BASED ON MĀORI LEGEND TO TOUR AOTEAROA IN 2024
Boundary-pushing kaupapa Māori theatre company Taki Rua Productions will tour its captivating new, large-scale aerial dance theatre work, Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: a forbidden love, across the motu in February and March 2024. Based on the Te Arawa iwi kōrero (legend) of Hatupatu and Kurungaituku, or Hatupatu and the Bird Woman, this is a thrilling immersive experience which evokes the towering bird realm, forests, and geo-thermal forces of Rotorua.
The FNZ season of Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: a forbidden love premieres as part of the 2024 Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts in February before touring to Tamaki Makaurau and Ōtautahi, and then ultimately closing in the home of the eminent iwi kōrero, Rotorua.
It is a story of survival and love between the young Te Arawa warrior Hatupatu and the other-worldly bird woman, Kurungaituku. Combining breathtaking aerial work by award-winning artistic director and aerialist Tānemahuta Gray (Ngāi Tahu, Rangitāne, Waikato (whāngai)) and kapa haka developed in collaboration with Wētini Mītai-Ngātai (Te Arawa, Ngāti Pikiao), leader of two-time Te Mataini-winning kapa haka rōpū Te Mararae i o Rehu, this is next-level contemporary Māori performance.
Inspired by his experience with world-leading aerial theatre company De La Guarda, Gray has recreated an immersive world for the omnipresent Kurungaituku. The story follows the journey of young warrior Hatupatu as the mythological part-woman, part-bird – the guardian of the forest – ensnares him in her cave. An extraordinary story of love, betrayal, and sacrifice follows as Hatupatu struggles to fulfil his destiny.
Tānemahuta Gray (Māui – One Man Against The Gods, Tiki Taane Mahuta), also Taki Rua Productions’ Chief Executive, says, “This unique experience elevates, quite literally, a beautiful Māori story which so many in Aotearoa have read from a young age and inserts the audience right inside it. The forests, geysers, and the bird realm are visceral for the audience – the story unfolds above and around them. It is an experience we hope sheds new light on this legendary love story and secures its place in the hearts and minds of New Zealanders long into the future.”
The FNZ season of Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: a forbidden love opens the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts, in the festival’s new Tāwhiri Warehouse space, on Tuesday 20 February, and closes in Rotorua on Sunday 17 March. While some seating is available for those who require it, this is a standing experience.
Tickets are on sale now, with details below.
Ends
For media information, interviews, and images, please contact tour publicist Siobhan Waterhouse on 022 126 4149 or siobhan@siobhanwaterhouse.nz
The FNZ season of Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: a forbidden love is a Taki Rua production presented in association with Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts, with support from naming rights sponsor FNZ, and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, Creative New Zealand, and Wellington City Council.
About Taki Rua
Currently celebrating its 40th year, Taki Rua Productions is one of the longest running kaupapa Māori theatre companies in Aotearoa, producing and developing theatre works through a distinctively Māori lens and contributing to the narrative of theatre and te whare tapere. Previous productions include Tiki Taane Mahuta, Michael James Manaia and Strange Resting Places.
Taki Rua presents the FNZ national tour of Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: a forbidden love
Cast
Hatupatu - Eds Eramiha
Kurungaituku - Kasina Campbell
Hānui - Manuel Solomon
Hāroa - Sharn Te Pou
Karika - Wahia Te Pōuri
Tamumu Ki Te Rangi - Kia Jewell
Creative team
Artistic Director - Tānemahuta Gray
Kapa Haka lyrics and choreography - Wētini Mītai-Ngātai
Set Design - John Verryt
Costume Designer - Elizabeth Whiting
Composer - Paddy Free
Lighting Design - Jo Kilgour
AV Design - Delainy Kennedy and Rachel Neser (Artificial Imagination)
Season dates
Te Whanganui-a-Tara | Wellington
Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts
Tuesday 20 to Saturday 24 February
Tāwhiri Warehouse: 11 Hutchinson Street, Newtown, Wellington
Tickets: www.iticket.co.nz
Tāmaki Makaurau | Auckland:
Wednesday 28 Feb to Saturday 2 March
Q Theatre: Rangatira Venue: 305 Queens Street, Auckland
Tickets: www.qtheatre.co.nz/shows
Ōtautahi | Christchurch:
Thursday 7 to Sunday 10 March
Wigram Aiforce Museum: Therese-Angelo Venue: 45 Harvard Avenue, Wigram, Christchurch
Tickets: https://premier.ticketek.co.nz/
Rotorua:
Thursday 14 to Sunday 17 March
Energy Events Centre Rotorua: Queens Drive, Rotorua
Tickets: https://www.ticketmaster.co.nz/