Pūngao (Energy) by Whakamana Creatives
13th December – TAPAC THEATRE

“What does it mean to be boldly resilient in these troubling times? How to meet with the possibility of stepping beyond the edge of personal comfort? How do we effectively use our voices, to decolonise, to regather spiritually, to confront ourselves?” - Tiaki Kerei

Pūngao by Whakamana Creatives, is a visionary process of raw movement material set to an improvisational score developed by Tiaki Kerei and dancers and produced in collaboration with Mitra Khaleghian. 

Contemporary dancers Kerei, Celeste Dillon, Jasmin Canuel and Rosey Feltham energise the potential of their whakapapa; opening, grounding, releasing, restoring, building, declaring, discovering and informing their embodiment through multiple relationships and perspectives. Voyaging across ancestral landscapes, dance lineages, reclaiming language and mana, Pūngao is imbued by ihi, wehi and wana of the dancers that unravel, reveal and unpack time and space through this radical freestyle embodiment viewable on three sides of an experimental grey atea, Te Punga o Te Waka o Maui (the anchor stone). 

This presentation is possible by the tautoko of our two main partners, TAPAC and Ellen Melville Centre, the primary venues for our 2025 creative residencies, Boosted E Tu Toi and Creative NZ, our private donors who backed us in our efforts, and our friends and whanau across the motu and the world.

Whakamana Creatives tells stories of Indigeneity, justice, solidarity, healing, and resilience through movement, research, and visual arts. We support other artists to reclaim narrative power, foster inclusion, and create space for truth-telling, connection, and transformative social change.

Tiaki Kerei - Artistic Director, Performer
Celeste Dillon - Collaborative Performer
Jasmin Canuel - Collaborative Performer
Rosey Feltham - Collaborative Performer
Mitra Khaleghian - Creative Producer