'Sing to Me' powerful and compassionate piece of great theatre
Sunday, 28 February 2021
Sing to Me, Taki Rua Productions, Te Whaea Theatre, Toi Whakaari, 27 Feb – 6 March (then touring nationally until end of May)Reviewed by Andrew Smith
What’s it like to raise a child when the parents come from two different cultures? Is it possible for your child to walk through life with a foot in both worlds, or will it end up having no home at all? These questions underpin Taki Rua’s latest production, Sing to Me.
In this powerful piece by Alex Lodge and directed by Miriama McDowell, mild-mannered optometrist Ata falls in and out of love with fierce, supernatural sea-maiden Whetū. Introduced in the programme as a modern take on Maori pūrākau, it’s an idea that echoes in Western culture as well – from the impossible loves of mortals for gods in Greek mythology, to the selkies of Scotland, to Titania’s unlikely love for Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. But if you look past the supernatural framework, this story is essentially a commentary on what it takes to live in a multicultural society like Aotearoa.
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What sets Sing to Me apart from any number of similar stories is its willingness to confront the uncomfortable truth that perhaps the worlds of Ata and Whetū simply don’t mix. We’re promised that love conquers all but what if it doesn’t? To what extent is our multicultural society based on ongoing inequalities between Maori and Pākehā? Ata and Whetū try their best to make their unlikely relationship work but there is a price to pay. At what point does this price become too high?
They’re important questions and the play is strongest when they fall naturally out of the interactions between Ata and Whetū. At times, Sing to Me becomes a little didactic, framing the action in such a way as to enforce a particular interpretation, for example the exploitation of the natural world by the human.
This didacticism is unnecessary because the love story between Ata and Whetū is such a compelling one, and it’s told with great humour.
Rutene Spooner gives an outstanding performance as Ata – blending comedy and tragedy with enormous skill. Emma Katene also excels as Whetū, skilfully maintaining a sense of the supernatural in the daily grind of modern parenthood.
As well as providing the sound design, Te Aihe Butler serves as a Chorus figure, commenting on the action throughout while providing musical accompaniment to some beautiful singing by the trio, including a deeply moving version of Annie Lennox’s Walking on Broken Glass.
By turns funny, moving, tragic, satiric and above all compassionate, Sing to Me is great theatre.