Māori contemporary dance by Bella Waru.

When: Feb 22, 2025 - 8pm
Where: The Dance Centre (677 Davie St.)

Join us for TOA III by Bella Waru, a Māori multidisciplinary artist of Ngāti Tukorehe, Taranaki Tūturu & Celtic descent based in Wurundjeri lands (AUS).

Join us after for our catered Festiva Closing Reception with live performance by Tsimka Martin and Michael Red.

From three Māori artists and practitioners of Mau Rākau - Māori Martial Arts, comes TOA III. Drawing from embodied knowledges, we fight; to carry legacy, dance with fear, travel beyond pain, and carve out an ancient-future from our physical vessels, with the blueprints of our ancestors.

Devised and performed by Bella Waru, Fallon Te Paa & Kaycee Merito, TOA III is a cross-disciplinary work, merging the embodied ancestral knowledge of Mau Rākau with contemporary dance. As practitioners of 4, 11 & 9 years respectively, each artist has grappled with discipline, responsibility, consequence, integrity & purpose, and are well-versed in taking a hit, adapting to change, remaining calm under pressure, functioning as a unit & persevering under all conditions.

TOA III presents a holistic, authentic & proudly Indigenous image of the modern day ‘warrior’.

Matriarchs Uprising is supported through The Dance Centre’s Special Projects and Partnerships program.