Elijah Kennar presents
MEA TAU
Produced by Chloe Klein
ORCHESTRATED BREATH, KINESTHETIC EXPLOSION
Mea Tau. Weapon.
Explore those fine lines between subject and object.
Orchestrated breath, kinesthetic explosion. Personifying weapons with movement, Mea Tau gives them voice in a cheeky, electric, and risky pursuit of pushing physical endurance to its limits at Basement Theatre this Fringe season.
Running 28th Feb – 4th March, the return full-length season of Mea Tau- previously in double-bill How we Tessellate in May 2016, promises tense physical endurance. Primal, sharp, coursing rhythms engineered through the breath of the performers sets the pace for a journey through the exploration of subjectivity and objectivity. The deconstruction and personification of weaponry by the performers asks questions and shares perspectives on truth and the arbitrary. Working from Trisha Brown’s Locus Score, the choreography acts and reacts in all directions- with power, humour, and playfulness.
Mea Tau is Elijah Kennar’s (Black Grace, New Zealand Dance Company) first full length contemporary dance work. Elijah’s work Obsess snapped up Judges’ Choice Award, the Wallace Arts Trust Highly Commended Award, and Tempo Short + Sassy Award by Tempo Dance Festival NZ at Short+Sweet 2016. Elijah has also choreographed with Vivian Aue (VOU) taking out Best Male Performer, Risk Taking Choreographer, People’s Choice, and Judges Choice with Melted Brown at Short+Sweet 2015.
Performers Leighton Rangi (Winner of Grounded Arts Competition 2016, IDCO, How we Tessellate), Villa Lemanu (MASSIVE Theatre Company, Obsess, How we Tessellate), Sione Fatua (How we Tessellate), Taitanyk Toniu (Wallace Foundation Emerging Artist Award 2016, How we Tessellate), Taniora Motutere (IDCO – Silver Medalist, Shel We?), and Eric Ripley (Shel We?) bring together extensive and accoladed hip hop backgrounds with urban contemporary dance vocabulary.
“Mea Tau raises the bar for precision engineering. Opening with overtones of Coen brother, and hints of urban Auckland a troupe of all men, dance an engagement with struggle.”
– The Daily Blog
MEA TAU plays
Dates: 28 Feb – 4 Mar // Rotating show times from 5.30-9.30
Venue: Basement Theatre
Tickets: $16 – $18
Bookings: www.basementtheatre.co.nz or phone iTicket 09 361 1000
