“Come home to the sea. She has a big heart: she adopts anyone who loves her.” — Our Sea of Islands, Epeli Hau’ofa

The world of Oceania is not small. From the energetic volcanoes of O’ahu to the southern reaches of Aotearoa, she is borderless and vast – and growing bigger by the day. After decades of dismissal and disconnection, her children are closer than ever. It’s time for a reunion.

Silo Theatre’s first production for 2020 brings the wealth and power of Pacific literature to roaring theatrical life. Curated by award-winning poet Grace Taylor and led by powerhouse director Fasitua Amosa, UPU gives the stage to Oceania’s most electrifying poetry. Ben Brown, Karlo Mila, Albert Wendt and more: UPU is for the trailblazers, the icons and the new writers transforming Aotearoa today.

Following two knock-out Matariki seasons at the Basement Theatre, UPU is a remix, a re-imagining, an all-star line-up of leading Māori and Pasefika performers including Mia Blake, Ana Corbett, Nicola Kawana, Nathaniel Lees, James Maeva, Shadon Meredith, and Gaby Solomona reviving the words of our literary legends and bellowing out the proclamations and provocations of the next game-changing generation.

Recommended for ages 15+
Contains strong language and adult themes

Listen to an interview with UPU director Fasitua Amosa on 95bfm here
Read a feature on this production of UPU in The New Zealand Herald's 'Canvas' magazine here

Read the Theatre Scenes review of UPU hear
Hear what the Auckland opening night audience thought here


This show is pure oratory and storytelling at its finest. Theatrescenes 

Credits

Curated by
Grace Taylor
Directed by Fasitua Amosa

Cast
Mia Blake
Ana Corbett
Nicola Kawana
Nathaniel Lees
Shadon Meredith
Gaby Solomona
Jarod Rawiri

Ana Corbett in Upu Mai Whetū, 2018
Image Julie Zhu

Co-produced by

AAF2

Silo Theatre logo Black

 

★★★★★ A must-see

— Tearaway