REVIEW: AIGA (Te Pou) – Theatre Scenes: Aotearoa New Zealand Theatre

AIGA is an emotive and visually spectacular devised efficiency piece, which offers with themes of interplay and want as a Pasifika girl with disabilities.

The efficiency piece consists of biographical vignettes made up of singing, dancing, poetry, and acted scenes. The principle performer and topic of the piece, Lusi Faiva, was identified with cerebral palsy on the age of two. The story is extremely shifting, stuffed with heartbreaking depictions of abandonment, rejection, and bullying; and with heartwarming accounts of singing with pals, foster dad and mom offering language, and high-energy music movies. The interconnected scenes present a full and wealthy tapestry and, like all the very best tapestries, the order of the items creates artwork which is larger than the sum of its components.

The creatives have gone to nice lengths to placed on a present that’s extraordinarily accessible. half-hour earlier than the present opens, the viewers are invited to take part in a contact tour, the place the set, props, and costume are proffered for tactile examination. The viewers are then invited into the efficiency house. The traverse staging and use of tiered seating permits for good sightlines, whereas leaving room for viewers members who could not be capable to navigate the steps. There have been additionally bean baggage accessible for the viewers to take a seat on. Earlier than the present commences, the director, Moana Ete, begins a stay audio description that retains up your complete present. There may be additionally a New Zealand Signal Language interpreter, who interprets the present stay. There will even be a relaxed present, the place the loud noises and the brilliant lights are levelled out. Removed from detracting, or distracting, from the piece at massive, these added options assist to raise the piece and make sure that all viewers members are capable of extract that means and interact with the piece. It’s unbelievable to see such a efficiency of that means, and the normalisation of accessibility within the arts. The inventive workforce does a exceptional job of incorporating these components, and making this accessibility really feel inherent to the present. 

The set is used to nice impact, as a medium for accessibility and storytelling. One ‘finish’ of the traverse stage has an obtuse (from the viewers’s viewpoint) ‘V’ manufactured from semi-transparent vinyl. The opposite ‘finish’ has three semi-transparent panels which can be shifted round all through the efficiency, as wanted. The first function of those two ‘finish items’ is for the projection of subtitles. The panels at every finish are angled in such a means that the viewers can at all times see the subtitles. This supplies an additional side of accessibility, because the subtitles completely depict Lusi Faiva’s speech, and poetry; and the New Zealand Signal Language interpreter interprets the opposite performers’/audio describer’s speech. 

The set, props and costume are visually cohesive and spectacular. The principle house of the stage is delineated by a brown oval, resembling a fale. The principle props are different-sized wood containers. The costumes are constructed from individually-styled black materials, over which craft paper accents are added to evoke completely different roles and characters. The uniform colouring and end to the props, costume and set, creates a unified visible element that helps hyperlink the sections of the play. The craft paper costume items, which encompass masks, skirts, and flowers, are intricate and finely-detailed. They’re bigger than life, and do an ideal job of intimating the temperament of the character. One other visually hanging component of the play is the usage of projection. This consists of the subtitles, however can also be used to indicate surroundings. A very spectacular piece of projection exhibits a person operating, whereas the screens are moved. This creates urgency, and the impression that the person is bodily approaching. It is a lovely coupling of design and choreography. Rowan Pierce, the spatial and audio/visible designer, must be counseled on such a dynamic design. Michael Goodwin, the operator, additionally deserves reward for his seamless execution of a tech-heavy present.

The performances are extraordinary, and use a broad array of media to convey that means. The performers interchangeably sing, dance, use spoken-word poetry, shadow-mime and act out scenes, to nice impact. The blending of those media is finest utilised when the performers are both in opposition to 1 one other, or in refrain with each other. A very poignant level of opposition is Lusi Faiva going through the shadow of Iana Grace, as a barista, and getting skipped within the line. There have been some improbable moments of choral dancing, together with the waltz to Engelbert Humperdinck, the high fashion ball, and the hip-hop dance video. These dances not solely included Lusi Faiva’s wheelchair, however made the wheelchair intrinsic to the choreography. Forest V Kapo has various solo dances, which mesmerise and entertain. Iana Grace has a tremendous sequence wherein they play a movie director and their stay feed is projected out to the viewers. This have to be technically complicated, however was dealt with with poise. Fiona Collins shines within the masks work, and the physicalising of the other-worldly. Lusi Faiva has two moments which have caught, when she was main the performers in singing a music, and, with wheelchair and fists raised to the heavens, Lusi Faiva cries out in efficiency of the warrior she is. Each of those moments are extraordinarily highly effective and typify the exploration of want and identification that permeate the piece.

The play delivers an vital message, that somebody can have a incapacity, however this doesn’t describe everything of their life. That’s not to say that incapacity must be ignored, however somewhat the individual must be seen and acknowledged. That individuals with disabilities have want, hope, power, and braveness. Briefly, folks with disabilities are folks, first. It’s vital that artwork which centres folks with disabilities, and artwork that has accessibility in order that baked-in, is normalised and ample. It’s significantly vital that these tales be advised now as, on the time of writing, the present authorities has introduced instant adjustments which would chop the scope of incapacity help providers and what funding can be utilized for. Because it stands, the speech-to-text operate that Lusi Faiva makes use of, struggles to include nuances in dialect and ‘mom tongue’, it hardly appears the time to be rolling issues again…

AIGA is a thought-provoking, and intensely vital piece. The story is emotive and thoughtfully-constructed. The set/lighting/sound configuration is a real marvel, consisting of many complicated components. The rigorous adhesion to accessible practices is a shining instance for each manufacturing to return, and means nobody is left behind. 

AIGA performs at Te Pou Theatre from Wednesday twentieth to Sunday twenty fourth of March 2024.