Abstract:
Kia ora, Ni sa bula vinaka, Kia orana, Talofa lava, Malo e lelei, Fakalofa lahi atu, Taloha ni, and warm Pacific greetings. Representation, Access, Authenticity, Identity, Appropriation, Inequality. These are terms that stimulate, motivate and frustrate the creative artists of the Pacific, and they are the terms that dictate my current course of study and the work of the Black Friars theatre company. Who has the right to tell whose stories? This paper takes its title from a student response to the question “Why did Romeo kill Tybalt?” It was one of those whiteboard activities where I wrote a whole bunch of questions on the board and then gave whiteboard markers to selected students to fill in the answers. This year 12 Tongan student was exactly the right mix of cheeky, curious and ready to push boundaries – all qualities I admire. He swaggered up to the board, shoulders back, eyes kept flitting back to his group – he raised his eyebrows at them a couple of times to general approval and encouragement – and then he wrote those five words. Perfect. Shakespeare meets prison lingo meets Tongan slang. The perfect boundary conditions at which to foster understanding.
