Reviewed by Jennifer Shennan
16 June 2017, Hannah Playhouse, Wellington, New Zealand
In Polynesian tradition, many stories are told of Maui, demi-god, culture-hero, voyager, adventurer and trickster. Numerous accounts of his personality and exploits can be found in different parts of the Pacific, but in his Maori manifestation he is renowned for the mighty work of fishing up Te Ika a Maui, The Fish of Maui, aka the North Island of Aotearoa New Zealand … and for the quest by which he tries to gain immortality for mankind.
To achieve this, Maui must enter the sleeping goddess of the night, Hine-nui-te-po, and ascend through her body to emerge through her mouth. If she stays asleep all the while Maui will have conquered Death. He commences the journey but as it happens, two noisy twittering fantails are so amused by the sight of Maui entering her vagina dentata that they fall about laughing and twittering, and wake her up. Thus we all may live, but all must die.
How could a choreographer resist?
Kelly Nash has assembled a cast of three performers to make Mā, an extraordinary work of 30 minutes duration.
Sean MacDonald, a stalwart of the contemporary dance scene here, freelancer but earlier a protégé of Douglas Wright and a sometime member of Black Grace, plays Maui. He is both seasoned and innocent, a man with strength yet seemingly unaware of how to harness that. He is Everyman, and not only referencing Maori tradition. His movement has no clichés, but carries a sense of discovery as to what might happen next from moment to moment, position to position. He creates a mime-like honesty, a subtlety that draws us as voyeurs to watch whatever might develop. His performance stays etched in the memory.
Hannah Tasker-Poland, a freelance dancer/actor of considerable theatre and film experience, including with New Zealand Dance Company, brings a quality of mystery to the role of Hine-nui-te-po. Her flaming red hair and startling green eyes are just discernible in the low light and we can tell that she will explain nothing to us as we follow her into the shadows. What is there to explain? Her oblique presence suits this character to perfection, and her sinuous art as ecdysiast is beyond compare. Her performance stays etched in the memory.
Milly Kimberly Grant-Koria has extended bloodlines to Chinese, European, Samoan and Maori heritage. On stage throughout, she accompanies the entire performance in vocals and percussion with a mana (presence) and stamina rarely seen and heard on any stage. Sometimes with text, sometimes abstract vocals, she never flinches for a second, and delivers a staggering performance of strength and passion. Her experience as an actor, dancer and spirit-healer gives her much insider knowledge as to how to do this. Her performance stays etched in the memory.
If we cannot speak up about this work, support a project to make a film of it, and encourage performance in galleries and museums, then we don’t deserve the cameras, the email address list, the technology, or the right to review performance.
The choreographer’s statement is at this link.
Jennifer Shennan, 23 June 2017
Featured image: Kelly Nash, choreographer. Photo: © Jinki Cambronero
Great review. Ma was extraordinary. It is an absolute must see and congratulations to Atamira, Kelly and the 3 performers. Theatre and dance at it’s very best.
Thank you Turid. I am so pleased you saw this important work. I am hoping that Auckland Museum will consider hosting live performances … and that a film be made of Ma as well.
For me it ranks parallel to Keri Hulme’s The Bone People … which nobody much read until it won the Booker Prize.