Join Jim Moriarty in conversation about Te Rākau Hua o Te Wao Tapu: from establishment in 1989 to our current projects, and the love, creativity and perseverance entwined with Māori theatre heritage.  

TICKETS
Pay what you can to attend this event: A. $25 B. $12 C. $5
Please select the relevant ticket option from the "Ticket type" drop-down menu under Booking details.

VENUE
Join us in the studio space where many recent Te Rākau productions have been rehearsed and presented. Grab some kai and a cuppa, and join a circle of people to listen as Jim Moriarty guides us through an inside look at Te Rākau's artistry, process and origins. Parking is limited in the area so please allow time if you arrive by car.  

ABOUT
Te Rākau is dedicated to creating live performance and artistic expression that is socially challenging, emotionally charged and therapeutic. It was established in 1989 with a name gifted by Māori Theatre Trust member and Ngāti Toa kaumatua, Harata Horomona. ​

Te Rākau Hua o Te Wao Tapu - one tree within a greater forest, connected to a vast network of those who have gone before and those that will come after.

Participants and audiences, Māori and Tangata Tiriti alike are often moved by our work, developing new understandings of themselves and their communities. 

This event is a facilitated discussion that will weave peoples stories together through a collective sharing of experiences. Hear from the creatives behind projects such as:

• Prison residencies in Wellington and Christchurch
• Theatre in Education programmes touring Aotearoa
• Undertow – a four-part theatrical epic set on Wellington’s south coast performed at Te Papa 2017: One whānau, one whenua, 200 years of history
• The Battalion – a moving story about friendship, loyalty, madness and redemption told through the eyes of war veteran Paora Matene
• Ode to Te Rauparaha – Bringing together spoken word, moteatea and music in a lament to Te Rauparaha and the region of Te Ūpoko o te Ika
• The Swing – unravelling the shame and hurt that clouds and distorts the subjects of ngau whiore (sexual abuse) and whakamomori (suicide)
• UnReel – a larger-than-life Theatre Marae production that reveals the legacy of gambling harm and how it impacts the wider community.

RELATED PORIRUA EVENT 

Hosted by Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira, Kōrero & Kai with Te Rākau and Ngāti Toa ki Porirua is a special Heritage Festival event held 10.30am, Sunday 10 November at Ūpane. Join members of the iwi as they tell stories of performing arts in the region including the Māori Theatre Trust and Te Rākau Hua o Te Wao Tapu.

See the Wellington Heritage Festival for more details about this related event.

The origins of Te Rākau are rooted in Jim’s iwi, Ngāti Toa Rangatira. He grew up at Takapūwahia Marae in Porirua and started performing as a young person with the Māori Theatre Trust. This legacy is continued through Te Rākau Hua o Te Wao Tapu, which inherited the taonga of the Māori Theatre Trust deed.