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The Waka of Love docks at Scots College this Saturday - Scotts College

On Saturday 31^st March the mighty Waka of Love will disembark at Scots College in Strathmore.  The musical theatre production is the brainchild of young playwright and performer Charlizza Harris, and includes a cast of 20 young people aged 12-17 years, from throughout Wellington and the Hutt Valley. Entry is by koha, and everyone is welcome.

The Waka of Love is the story of four Māori brothers who sleep in on the day their families leave from Hawaiiki to Aotearoa.  After realising they’ve been left behind, the brothers begin working together to build a waka and set off on a humorous journey in search of their family.  Along the way they become lost and end up on the shores of Spain, Hawaii, Japan and India.

“We are delighted to host the Waka of Love here at Scots,” said Headmaster Graeme Yule.  “Many of the young people involved in the production belong to E TU Ora, the local Strathmore youth group, so we are very proud to partner with them, plus Charlizza’s students from 2Face Drama Productions, Ahikaa and Mana Whenua (Port Nicholson Block Settlement Trust) to support and host this performance and showcase of local talent. In addition, Scots students will be performing a variety of musical items as a warm-up before the show,” he said.

Charlizza Harris says of the production, “The Waka of Love was originally 1 of 5 skits I wrote for Taiohi Morehu which is our young Māori social enterprise group, when we travelled to Hawaii in January 2011. The skit was really successful in Hawaii and so I decided to expand on the story, and make it into the full production we will perform on Saturday night,” she said.

Charlizza’s drama and dance workshops which culminate in this production, are designed to encourage young people to come out of their shells, develop their talents, grow in confidence and develop the communication skills necessary to be successful in the workplace and beyond. She was recently named the Ahikaa NZ Young Entrepreneur of the Year and will be travelling to New York next month to receive her Award at the 2012 NFTE Global Entrepreneurship Awards.

“The Waka of Love is the first community production to be performed in our brand new Creative and Performing Arts Centre here at Scots, which was officially opened at the beginning of March by Sir Richard and Lady Tania Taylor,” commented Yule.

“This facility was designed to be an important asset both for the College and for the wider community. Our hope is that it will be well-used by a whole variety of different groups. The Waka of Love is in fact the very first production to be performed on our new stage – so I’m really looking forward to seeing the space in action,” said Yule.

Date: Saturday 31^st March

Time:
6.00pm: Pre-show entertainment by Scots College students and local performers
7.00pm: A short briefing on navigation using the stars, and from Hawaiiki to New Zealand
7.05pm: Waka of Love starts

Venue: Scots College – School Hall, Monorgan Road, Strathmore

Entry: Koha

Tags: Youth