Talofa my Brisbane Mau team! Heres our review from LeMalae Global Media Network. . . Great review! Enjoy everybody! ___________________________________________________________ Malo Canada, it was great to finally meet you and to hear your experience and to see “The Mau & The Visitor.” You have accomplished so much and it is wonderful to hear your story and what contributions you have made to your craft and to Samoan/NZ culture as well as traditional Samoan Entertainment. What Degree do you have and which Degree are you studying now? I have completed my Review of the Play. Please see below: Produce/Writer/Director, Pulotu Canada Alofa McCarthy’s , “The Mau & Visitor” debuted in Australia this week at the Butter Factory in Logan, Queensland. Since it began running May 19th, his Play has been well received by Samoan and non-Samoan theatre goers from the main cities here. Lynn Fruean, a teacher from the Gold Coast, commented, “I thought it was a good picture of our history on stage. I thought it was realistic when [the character] Sinalei took the stage. Her performance was strong and emotional and I felt I was there. Tracy Matenga, a native of Queensland, said that it was a moving story and she felt the struggles of Samoans during the 1920s to gain their independence. Canada, whom also wrote and stars in the Play depicts the events leading up to the death of Afioga Tama-Aiga Tupua Tamasese Lealofi III through the story of his grandmother who fell in love with a NZ soldier. He does a great job of weaving his personal family story in to Samoan History and chronicles through dialogue, the Spanish influenza epidemic of 1918, the forming of the Mau through Namalaulu Mamoe Lauaki, the imprisonment of Olaf Nelson in NZ and Black Saturday. This is the day in which Tamasese with open hands pleading for peace and order was gunned down mercilessly on Beach Road in Apia. The Play is spoken in Samoan as well as English. The Samoan oratory is rich in cultural tradition and eloquence. Though it might seem fragmented to non Samoan speakers, Pulotu does well to have characters speak English at certain key times to move the story along and help non-Samoan patrons understand what’s happening and so the story flows in sequence. Self-funded, Pulotu has used a local Brisbane production crew to help make it look the best it could given the limited resources. Lyn says, “given the background of experience with the production, they did a fantastic job.” With the exception of himself and his partner, Aumua Tofa Te’o, he recruited local Brisbane actors, Christine Api, Damon Tua, Josh Scott, Dee Tua and Simon Ah Him. The acting was great, especially given the short amount of time the local cast rehearsed before performing. Christine Api gave an outstanding performance of her character, Sinalei, Pulotu’s Grandmother. Supporting cast members also gave good performances. Pulotu is a professional comedian and his flare for comedy and ad-libbing came through on queue to the delight of the audience. Pulotu said, “when writing the Play i wanted to be something that the next generations of Samoans living in Western cultures would know about their history.” He also stated that in for this Play to really capture the essence of the time and what happened it must evoke every emotion in people. A good play will do this. Carol Fong-Taumoli of Coomera said, “it is a powerful story and you experience every emotion. One minute your laughing and the next your crying. I loved it.” Tomorrow, Sunday will be the last night here in Logan. Next week Pulotu will travel to both Melbourne and Sydney to source for venues and recruit his staff on the ground to start working on preparations of the show. Pulotu says that he will also be taking the Play to Samoa later on in the year. Lemalae is a Global Media Network for Samoans and the main office is based in San Diego. We specialise in Web TV, TV and Print at the moment. lemalae We have a readership of over 500,000 people and climbing. Im responsible for the city of Brisbane, which includes all of QLD. samoansinbrisbane.weebly/home.html
Posted on: Tue, 27 May 2014 04:52:13 +0000
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