Alice Canton is back! For Stage Direction this week, she speaks to Eden Webster about the programme for Kōanga Festival - an upcoming festival at Te Pou Theatre that celebrates Māori storytelling and new voices. 

Cam Ballantyne joins Jonny on the phone to chat about the music on We Were Dangerous.

Thanks to Mezze Bar!

Kirsten Zemke on break dancing!

A whole heap of NZIFF content, breakdancing and more!

Litia reviews The Beast as part of the NZ International Film Festival.

Thanks to Mezze Bar!

Last week the government released the findings of the inquiry into abuse in care that was established in 2018. This inquiry was established to investigate abuse in faith and state-based care from 1950 to 1999. Māori, Pacific, and Disabled rangatahi were all overrepresented in this report.

Now people are asking what to expect next when there is evidence abuse in state care remains ongoing, and while the government has promised an official apology and redress scheme.

Wire Host Caeden spoke to the University of Auckland’s Stephen Winter about the report, how it compares to international standards, and what we can expect to come next as a result of the report.

Kith and Kin is a new group exhibition at Season Gallery with brunelle dias, Tony Guo, Levi Kereama, Claudia Kogachi, and the esteemed Jacqueline Fahey.

Testifying to the importance of strengthening community, Kith and Kin comprises stylistically diverse figure-based paintings exploring notions of family and friendship, ancestry and diaspora, identity and belonging. 

Emblems of faith, evocative interiors, fields seen from the sky, and items of food both everyday and symbolic can be seen as common elements in the works.

Sofia spoke to Season Gallery co-curator, Francis McWhannell, about Kith and Kin, starting the interview asking him about the process for selecting artists.

Sofia had a kōrero with Francis McWhannell about a new group show at Season Gallery, Kith and Kin. 

She also spoke to artist Layla Rudneva-Mackay about her new show at Melanie Roger Gallery, Wrinkled Speech. 

And she spoke to curator Benny Chan about a new group exhibition at Bergman Gallery, Belonging: Stories of Contemporary New Zealand Asian Artists. 

On Stage Direction this week: Alice Canton chats with Eden Webster about the programme for Koanga Festival, an upcoming festival at Te Pou Theatre that celebrates Maori storytelling and new voices.

Belonging: Stories of Contemporary New Zealand Asian Artists is a new group exhibition at Bergman Gallery. 

Uniting 10 artists - Andrea Bolima, Louie Bretaña, Gavin Chai, Luise Fong, Wei Lun Ha, Rozana Lee, Rhea Maheshwari, Tanja McMillan, Bev Moon and Llenyd Price - curator Benny Chan describes the exhibition as a celebration of colour, diversity, and love.  

As an ongoing series at Bergman, Sofia spoke to Benny about this show and his plans for future exhibitions. 

She started the interview asking him what the key themes of the exhibition were.