Mark Twain & me in Māoriland

“Ko au te awa, Ko te awa ko au”
“I am the river, The river is me”
-Whakatauki/ Proverb from iwi of the Whanganui region

Inspired by true events! Mark Twain & Me in Māoriland weaves historical fact with magical realism in an epic, bullet-ridden, tale set amidst the waterways of the Whanganui region 1895; a combustible time of mercenaries, vaudeville and self serving mayoralty.

Mark Twain’s Australasian lecture tour comes to a halt when the outspoken writer incurs the wrath of the local English establishment due to his shocking pronouncement that a local monument - honouring Kupapa Māori loyal to the English cause - be blown up as it encourages Natives to become traitors to their own race; and that the Rebel Māori, slandered as barbarians and fanatics, were in fact the true patriots. But with Māori on both sides of the battle, historical truth is far from black and white.

Filled with live music, comedy and tragedy, this is another theatrical stick of dynamite from the award winning producers of Strange Resting Places and Te Karakia.

Reviews

''...a powerful and often very beautiful production..."
- Capital Times

"…about trying to reconcile the two Māori perspectives in the wake of the Moutoa Island massacre.."
- Theatreview.com

"…a lament for the loss of land, of lives and of faith…. this story represents the destruction that happened throughout New Zealand in the name of colonization..."
– Lynne Freeman

"It is with extraordinary skill and profound insight that Mark Twain & Me in Māoriland explores this crucial part of our history, staking its claim as an important new play and a taonga to be treasured"
- Theatreview.com

"Another commendable NZ production giving a fascinating insight into a little known piece of NZ history that resonant as much with today as it does with the past"
- Dominion Post