Henare is a story inspired by renowned Ngāti Porou composer Henare Waitoa. A new play created by his mokopuna, award winning playwright Hōhepa Waitoa and produced by Hone Kouka.
We are the voices of our people!
Henare is inspired by the experiences of Tio labelled as “Urban Māori” but, unlike many others, he goes home to ‘Tiki’ and uncovers a whole lot more.
Told in the kitchen of a homestead in Tikitiki, Tio, a mokopuna of Henare, is returning to his father’s home fires. He is one of many who were born and raised away from Tikitiki but Tio has te reo and tikanga Māori. Although he never met his koroua, he often wondered what Henare was like and returns home to reignite the fire - but gets more than he bargains for.
Tio and his koroua, Henare, journey through different time periods - the 1930s, to the 1940s, to the present day. Contemporary and traditional pūoro bring you home to the Coast, opening a flood of memories.
Henare blends waiata and kōrero composed by Henare Waitoa and Hōhepa Waitoa. As a generation, we are on a mission to restore the house our tipuna erected by restoring the poutokomanawa of our Māoritanga – our language, our narrative, our people, our culture.
This is ‘Henare’.
"A deeply authentic performance... A play unlike any I’ve ever seen... It is a record of time, a throw-back, but most importantly it is conversation. I feel included in their story, more like whānau than an audience, and this is reinforced when everyone joins in to sing many of the waiata, bringing them to life once again.
"Hohepa draws on an important story from the East Coast that is deeply appreciated and loved by many who have whakapapa connections to waiata, the places, the time and, of course, the whānau."
- Nikau Hindin - Theatreview
