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Audition Call!

We are looking for fabulous actors to tour Rere Atu Taku Poi, and Te Kuia me te Pūngāwerewere in 2025.
These contracts can be backed to backed meaning a solid chunk of mahi for the year.
Actors would need to have some confidence in speaking Te reo Māori and any experience with a poi would be an advantage!
Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to get involved with our kaupapa and experience the awesomeness that is a Taki Rua tour!
Audition Pack is here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AA71gV_OL3KxBIjRWaVhN-84xFnFCpdVeU088gY0Ad0/edit?usp=sharing
Form to register for an audition is here: https://forms.gle/6eMtQrMR6HRBKTxs5

We are excited to have launched our 2025 programme! Bookings are now open for our first two shows.

Te tai rā, te tai rā.
E pari ana te tai ki hea?
E pari ana te tai ki te Moana nui a Kiwa.
Tīhei mauri mate!
E te whānau whānui o Taki Rua, ka rere atu te manu tīoriori, te manu ātaahua, te manu atawhai, a Whaea Toni Huata, ki te Whare Tapere o te Atua kaha rawa kei reira noho ai i ōna ringaringa.
Tēnei te mihi poroporoaki ki a koe, e te rangatira, me ngā mahi katoa i mahia e koe pērā i tō kaha ki te waiata, tō whakapono ki te reo Māori me tō kaha ki te tiaki whānau me ōu hoa hoki.
E maringi iho ana ngā roimata me te hūpē kia whakamauru noatia te mamae e kai kino nei. Mā tōna wā ka whakangaro tēnei mamae.
Kua hinga rā te Tōtara nui i te Wao nui ā Tāne.
Nō reira e te Manukura, moe mai, moe mai, moe mai rā.
It is with great sadness that the Taki Rua whānau acknowledges the loss of our brave Manu Tioriori, our wahine toa, our Diva, Toni Huata, after coping with cancer for some time.

The Taki Rua Board are excited to announce the appointment of Craig Fransen (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō, Te Aupouri, Ngāti Whātua, Ngāti Horana) as our new Tumu Whakarae
Craig is Taki Rua whānau from way back!
A celebrated playwright, actor, and educator, Craig comes to Taki Rua after spending 12 years as HOD Māori and Senior Dean at Newlands College. Craig has subsequently spent the last 10 years as a School Relationship Manager and National Assessment Facilitator at NZQA. This has enabled him to develop strong working relationships with key school and kura leaders across the motu whānui which will be of high value in building the Taki Rua audience.
Some of Craig's early adventures while studying at Otago and teaching in Dunedin comprise playing 176 games for the Alhambra-Union Senior rugby team between 1981 and 1992, studying Te Reo Māori, dabbling with drama at Otago and starring in the inaugural Physed Revue at the Teacher's College Auditorium.
He also acted professionally in several Fortune Theatre productions between 1986 where his first play was 'Foreskin's Lament' and 1992 where his final play was 'Ladies Night'.
From 1988 Craig headed the Māori department, taught junior Physical Education and Drama and coached junior rugby for 5 years at Logan Park High School. While teaching at Logan Park, Craig was first contracted by NZQA to work as a School Certificate Te Reo Māori Tuhituhi and Korero assessor.
In 1993, Craig was promoted to head the Māori Department at Burnside High School in Ōtautahi, while there he co-coached the 1st XV team, which ended up being the first Burnside High School team to defeat Christ’s College 1st XV in 1994.
Craig won a study grant to do a post-graduate diploma in bilingual teaching in 1996 which led him to Wellington in 1997 where he pursued his interest in theatre for five years, while supplementing his income through relief teaching.

His post-graduate diploma in bilingual teaching and passion for Māori theatre led him to Taki Rua Theatre, where he has been an actor, director and writer. Craig has written two Te Reo Māori Season plays, has been a script-advisor, writes children's plays and is currently a play-market playwright. Taki Rua produced Craig’s play Taku Waimarie as the 2023 Te Reo Māori Season Tour.
A keen family man, Craig has settled in Newlands, Wellington with his wife Tania and his "amazing talented" daughters Tui-Aroha, Anahera, and Maia.
We are absolutely thrilled to have Craig as our new Tumu Whakarae and to work with him as he steers Taki Rua into the next exciting phase!

Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: A Forbidden Love - Review Louisa Tipene Opetaia

Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: A Forbidden Love
Aueeeee e te tau… the forlorn lover’s cry rings through the theatre at the start of the
performance - a familiar heartfelt lament that anyone who has lost a loved one can
relate to. What has happened? Kia rite… prepare yourself for the unique retelling of
this well known pūrākau.
Hatupatu - aue he haututū ia! The youngest of three brothers who are also his
tormentors. You were bullied. We get it! Eds Eramiha captures the child-like qualities
of this pōtiki who will never be equal to his tuakana. He also demonstrates the fierce
qualities and haka expertise needed for his character while being endearing enough
to earn the love of Kurungaituku.
Kasina Campbell is the bird-woman, the kaitiaki of the birds, lizards and ngāngara.
With her claws, beak and screeching cry, she embodies the āhua of ngā manu. But
she is also a woman - feminine, ethereal and prone to the charms of the handsome
young warrior. She captures our hearts as she seduces Hatupatu - playing with him
in her lair. Sizing him up, flirting, feeding, and entrancing him. Her upside down entry
into his cage and their first contact rivals that of Spider-Man and Mary Jane locking
lips for the first time. Phew! This couple’s chemistry is electric!
Hatupatu and Kurungaituku consummate their relationship quickly and powerfully.
Forbidden love forges a strong trauma bond but these two are so different - it can
only ever end in heartbreak. Resentment, anger, love and hate lead us to the
inevitable tragic and violent conclusion but along the way we are thoroughly
entertained.
The immersive experience involves gravity defying feats and audience interaction
that places us right in the thick of the drama. The lighting, sound, costumes, and
makeup help to transport us to ancient times, back and forth from the spirit and
supernatural world. Aerial theatre is new for me. After I got over my initial safety
concerns for the actors and crew, I was able to let myself truly experience the
wonder of the tale they tell.
The graceful bird woman, the buzzing flies, the enchanting miromiro - the actors who
play these characters embody them so completely that they are no longer human.
When Hatupatu incurs the wrath of Kurungaituku - only magic can save him. His
means of escape from her rage is to hide in a rock, secure from her fury and deadly
sharp claws. The rock can still be seen today on the side of State Highway 1 near
Ātiamuri. Standing as a symbol of love gone wrong.
Hey Reddit! AITA? Am I The Asshole? I (21M) killed the pets of my love
because she pissed me off. She chased me so I hid in a rock and then I killed
her.
Verdict: YTA Sorry e Hā. You’re The Asshole!
Hatupatu’s name lives on in our minds but it is Kurungaituku that left a lasting
impression on my heart.
I shouldn’t have to worry about spoilers for this review because every kid that grew
up in Aotearoa should know about Hatupatu and the Bird Woman - but I guarantee
that you’ve never seen the story told like this before! Move like the Bird Woman is
pursuing you and get your tickets to one of the remaining shows right away!

Hatupatu | Kurungaituku: A Forbidden Love - Review Mike Ross

Hurō e hoa mā! Attending this production was a joy. It’s a story with Te Arawa roots but a classical Māori frame. It’s central characters are Hatupatu and a supernatural creature named Kurungaituku. Hatupatu, played by Eds Eramiha, is a lighthearted, youthful, rascal who engages with the audience. His physical presence, self belief and melodic voice owned the stage (and fluttered hearts of some in the audience). However to his older brothers he is a careless, over confident, nuisance and they speak to and treat him that way.

Kurungaituku (Kasina Campbell) is a stunning bird like character. She is strong, assertive, confident and heroic. She controls her world and her nobility is portrayed in her movement. Almost in contrast to Hatupatu she is intentional, thoughtful, elegant and powerful. She sits in elevated places and as an observer chooses when to fly into this world.

Through a series of events Kurungaituku is attracted to Hatupatu and a relationship develops.

The show is economical in words and rich in movement. It is a sensory experience, which moves through a sequence of events conveyed in the tone of voices, in the Māori language, the cries and movement of our birds, our waiata, haka body messages on the stage and in the air, accompanied by light and sound. It is present in the chase that came into the audience, flew through the air, and traversed worlds, yesterday and today, at times frantic in pace and then in slow-motion.

These elements have the hand prints of both Tānemahuta Gray, the artistic director and Wētini Mītai-Ngātai, the kapa haka choreographer. Their ideas are embodied by performers and a stage crew who adeptly move across, along, below, above and hang suspended in space as a stage. It is professional, with each word, movement, audio, visual transition designed to hold the audiences attention.

Ko ngā pūrākau tuku iho, whitia e te rā, whakaoreorengia e te tinana, pararē te waha ki te kōrero kia mōhio mai kei te ora tonu tātou. Kāti, rere atu rā e te manu hōkioi, rere atu rā ki te taumata.