Talofa lava!

Welcome to the tenth issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the ninth issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the seventh issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

A Samoan Cinderella, Jonjon Tolovae, graced the stage in a gown that seemed to touch the floor, the ceiling and all four walls. She was as delicate as she was commanding; a manu and a mauga. 

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the seventh issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the sixth issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the fifth issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

On the 11th of February, I had the honour of attending the Tāmaki Makaurau premiere of Tinā. Fa’afetai tele lava Samson Rambo for inviting me to be part of this spectacular celebration of Samoan people, culture and stories.

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the fourth issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the third issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

Talofa lava!

Welcome to the second issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,
Dani Kionasina
xx

Talofa lava! Manuia le Tausaga Fou!

Welcome to the first issue of Nu’u Newsletter.

I created this weekly publication with the intention of facilitating meaningful connections between Moana communities and creative opportunities for learning, collaboration and cultural nourishment. My hope is that Nu’u Newsletter draws you closer to the people, places and experiences that feed you. We eat better when we’re together.

Please email your Moana arts news to nuunewsletter@gmail.com.

Follow Nu’u Newsletter on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop.

Alofa tele,

Dani Kionasina

xx

Aunty got lost

Walking by the moana 

Tar on her lungs 

Smoke in her hair 

Voice like oyster shells underfoot 

It was 7:50pm and the sky was like ink when I arrived at Basement Theatre to see Keagan Carr Fransch’s new work, presented by Black Creatives Aotearoa and Hand Pulled Collective and directed by Dione Joseph and Sam Phillips. I gazed up at four bold, black letters floating in a glowing, green box. The title of the show felt urgent, spelled in all caps—except for a rebellious lowercase ‘i’ at the end of a word that inspired scepticism. ANTi, a one-woman play “about a family forced to meet at the intersection of queer love, religious expectations, tragic heroines and Black womanhood”, promised to irradiate the contradictions, duality and joy in our midst.

Pōkai Tuhi was an opportunity for Moana authors and learners to engage in creative experiences that centred our ways of knowing and being. Together, we used literature as a tool for liberation. We continued our ancient tradition of storytelling on our own terms, and we shared our strengths with the next generation of knowledge leaders.

On Tuesday, June 4, I attended my first ever KAVAX: Tā Valivali session at Four Shells Kava Lounge. In the space that was lovingly carved out for me, I was invited to rest, tell stories and create art. Being taken care of in this way allowed me to fully surrender to stillness. While my body relaxed and my worries eased, my cup was filled with community. From the cosy corner of Central Aukilani where I met the kava root, I rejoined the outside world feeling held by my sisters, my ancestors and myself.

Red, White and Brass: The Play was a triumph. Based on true events and an effervescent community, this show centred sacred relationships, diverse identities and cultural strengths. Unrelentingly high energy and a consistently swift pace culminated in an evening of dynamic, seriously entertaining theatre.

Joelle Holland is the owner of Hawaiiki Pēpi. She started her business 18 months ago with the mission of wrapping the next generation of Māori tamariki in their culture. Using her first home savings, Joelle managed to get her dream off the ground by creating the Niho Blanket. Now, her baby products are stocked all over the country!

Rowena Rooney is the inspired multidisciplinary artist behind Blue Turtle Design. Her family is from Savusavu, Vanua Levu, Fiji, and she grew up in West Auckland with her Fijian grandmother Adi Teimumu. Rowena’s passion for visual arts and working with Pasifika communities led her to teaching art in schools, and cultivating a thriving creative practice from her home in Te Atatū.

“The whole audience erupted in laughter that took me back to standing in my aunty’s kitchen, lovingly slapping my cousin’s shoulder for saying something cheeky that I wasn’t allowed to repeat.”