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22 May 2012

The Bard in Te Reo

22/02/2012 10:02:00 a.m.

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Global first, Rawiri Paratene.

Global first, Rawiri Paratene.

HE’S widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and now his work is to be performed in Te Reo.
A Maori translation of William Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida debuts in Wellington at the New Zealand International Arts Festival next month before travelling to the United Kingdom where it will be performed at London’s Globe Theatre on April 23, Shakespeare’s birthday.  In London it will be one of 37 Shakespeare plays in 37 languages being presented at the Globe to Globe theatre festival.  At the Wellington festival Troilus and Cressida is one of five plays with a Shakespearean theme.
Maori actor and producer Rawiri Paratene leads the cast of Troilus and Cressida and is co-producer of the play. Paratene is no stranger to the Globe. He was the first New Zealander to perform in the theatre and also took part in the Globe’s international actors fellowship. He says the Maori translation of Troilus and Cressida was a “very comfortable fit” with Shakespeare’s original and in places actually adds to the words of the bard.
“There’s a line which describes a group of soldiers marching past from the leaders to those in the rear. In English the last solders are described as the porridge after the meat. In Te Reo it translates as the rotten water that’s left after you’ve cooked the meat.”
Paratene says the Greek-Trojan war, the backdrop to Shakespeare’s play, is also a snug fit with Te Ao Maori, the classical Maori world, in which the Maori version of the play is set.
“It’s a beautiful translation and a good exposure for the language. People without the reo won’t be put out either. There’s enough visually in the play to help them understand the story.”
Alongside Troilus and Cressida the Wellington festival brings another world premiere with a Shakespearean bent in Michael Hurst’s new solo show Frequently Asked Questions, an irreverent take on To Be or Not to Be.
Three plays from visiting theatre companies continue the theme at the festival. Ireland’s Pan Pan Theatre’s production The Rehearsal, Playing the Dane features a cast auditioning for the lead role of Hamlet – including a real Great Dane – while the all male Shakespearean company Propeller, from the United Kingdom, brings its interpretations of Henry V and The Winter’s Tale.
It is 400 years since his death, but Shakespeare is still alive and well in Wellington.
The Rehearsal, Playing the Dane, TSB Arena, February 24-28.
Henry V, The Opera House, February 29, March 2, 4.
The Winter’s Tale, The Opera House, March 1,3,4.
Frequently Asked Questions, Downstage Theatre, March 2-11.
The Maori Troilus and Cressida, Te Papa Amphitheatre, March 9-10.

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Cover Story

Best of Wellington 2011

Briefs

  • A question of nutrition

    Controversial Washington-based nutritionist Sally Fallon-Morell is to speak in Wellington on March 29.
    Fallon-Morell is the co-founder of the American food lobby group the Weston A. Price Foundation and the author of Nourishing Traditions. She advocates for the consumption of nutritionally dense foods such as lacto-fermented vegetables, stocks and broths, and whole raw dairy products.
    Fallon-Morell will speak at St Patrick’s College Hall on March 29.

  • Relay for cancer

    Organisers say Sunday’s Relay for Life is full to capacity with hundreds of Wellingtonians registered for the event.
    A total of 88 teams, made up of 10 to 500 members, plan to take part with a further 25 teams on the waiting list.
    The 24 hour relay, the Cancer Society’s biggest fundraising event of the year, takes place at Frank Kitts Park from 4pm on March 31.

  • Osteoarthritis awareness

    Arthritis New Zealand has launched a nationwide campaign raise awareness about osteoarthritis. 
    Arthritis is New Zealand’s leading cause of disability, affecting 305,000 adults, and osteoarthritis is its most common form.
    The campaign features television commercials and an interactive website.


  • Wild walk

    Take part in the Big Walk at Zealandia on March 31.
    Walkers can choose a two, five or 10 kilometre walk catering to all fitness levels.
    Money raised will go to the Foundation for Youth Development.

  • School pool

    The opening of the new Khandallah School pool this week means hundreds of children will be able to continue their swimming lessons.
    The pool was the first to receive a grant from Wellington City Council’s Schools Pools Partnership Fund, a fund set up in 2010 to help schools improve their pool facilities.
    Grants from the fund have also been made for pools at Wellington East Girls’ College, Barhampore School and Tawa School.

  • Easter bikers

    Motorcyclists are invited to get on their bikes and collect Easter eggs for families support from the Wellington City Mission.
    The charity run on April 1 is organised by motorcycle lobby group BONZ.
    Eggs can be donated at Red Baron Motorcylces in Alicetown. The registration fee for bikers is $10, plus the cost of Easter eggs.

  • Crafty

    Made on Marion opens on the site of the former Golding Handicrafts site in Marion St, from April 1.  They will continue to supply craft materials.

  • Ze upgrade

    Taranaki Street fuel users will notice that the Z Energy’s former Shell Service Station is closed.  Z are doing a “total revamp”.
    The job will take four weeks.

  • Newlands Moves

    Developer Ayal Aharoni has agreed to build only 90 instead of 220 houses on his six and a half hectares above Ngauranga Gorge in Newlands.  Only low density occupation will be allowed on the remaining 8.4 hectares.


  • Baring Head

    There's a new  draft plan out for what should happen at Baring Head.  It outlines how the Greater Wellington Regional council would like to manage the newest addition to its regional parks network. Grazing animals will go, motorised vehicles will be prohibited, predators will be controlled, and the lighthouse will be preserved. Submissions are invited.


  • It’s a wonder

    A new childcare centre in Newtown says it is dedicated to helping kids grow up healthy in mind, body and spirit. Little Wonders Childcare on Rintoul Street is an independent early childhood education and learning centre, the sixth centre to be opened by its Auckland-based owner. It caters to 100 children aged between three months and five years old and has been open for a little more than seven weeks.

  • Festival treats

    CHILDREN have not been forgotten by organisers of the New Zealand International Arts Festival.
    For a perfect first theatrical experience White tells the story of friends Cotton and Winkle who live in a world where there is no colour and everything is startlingly white. That is until a brightly coloured egg tumbles out of the sky and changes their world for ever.
    White plays at Capital E from March 7-11.
    The tale of Peter and the World also promises to be a magical night for all ages. Sergei Prokofiev’s classic children’s tale is told through film and live music from the NZ Symphony Orchestra at the Michael Fowler Centre on March 9.
    March 11 is Young Writers and Readers Day and readings from children’s writers and illustrators Lynley Dodd and Gavin Bishop.

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