What would you do to represent?

Media Release for Immediate Use: 13 September 2011

Proudly Part of the 2011 Real NZ Festival

What would you do to represent?

Willy¹s a homestay Asian student. Mook¹s Samoan and he¹s been here for ages. They¹re best mates at Timaru Boys High. But when Willy decides his dream is to try out for the All Blacks, mateship ‹ and everything else ‹ is up for grabs.

A warm feel-good comedy with serious undertones, The First Asian A* B* examines the question Œwhat makes someone Kiwi?¹ Is it rugby, racing and beer ¬ or being true to oneself and one¹s friends?

At breakneck pace, Ben Teh (The Bone Feeder, Odd Socks) and Paul Fagamalo (Rent, Where We Once Belonged) capture multiple characters ¬ a Samoan aiga, a bored class of thirteen year olds, two entire rugby teams playing each other, and one sassy girl called George.

The First Asian A* B* is a new play from acclaimed New Zealand playwright Renee Liang (The Bone Feeder, Lantern).

³Coming from an inherited immigrant background, with a 'difference' which is sometimes more visible to others than to myself, I often wonder ³What defines me as Kiwi?² says Liang.

³Often the best way to answer such a question is to play it out - and that's exactly what I've done in this play. Rather than being a play Œabout¹ rugby, it¹s a play that Œcontains¹ rugby.² A non player and someone who confesses to ³never really getting the game², Liang has been something of a surprise conversion. As she was writing the play, she put herself on a ³training regime² which involved hanging out with rugby-mad friends, going to games and even learning some basic tackling skills. The result was a newfound respect for rugby.

³I¹ve become fascinated by its place in our culture,² Liang says. ³Even for people who have no connection to the game, it has a kind of magic ¬ something that we define ourselves by. Why is that? What happens when that thought is taken too far? To me, rugby is about knowing ourselves and our teammates, how we support each other under pressure, and how that is achieved by spending enough time together. It parallels the way friendships work.²

Embodying the two friends, NZ-born Samoan Mook and Malaysian immigrant Willy, are real-life friends Paul Fagamalo and Ben Teh. Both of them cite their immigrant backgrounds as creative inspirations (Fagamalo was born in NZ after his parents came from Samoa in the early 1980s, Teh was 16 when he first moved to Auckland to study from Singapore).

Teh, now studying film scriptwriting at the University of Auckland, and Fagamalo, a full time actor, got to know each other while working on projects with Stage Two, the University drama club. ³There¹s so many amazing stories, what happened to people after they came over,² Teh says. Fagamalo agrees. ³There¹s good and bad. The best way to deal with it often is by laughing.²

Liang admits to hiding personal anecdotes in the play - hers and her friends¹. ³I feel it¹s time to tell the story of the Œ1.5¹ generation - those who immigrated, but grew up here.² She¹s excited to be mentored in her script writing by veteran playwright, actor and director Oscar Kightley, who wrote such groundbreaking plays as Niu Sila and Fresh Off The Boat in the 1990s (about the immigrant Samoan community). She cites these productions as influential in her decision to become a playwright. ³Plays are really powerful. They allow us to say things and examine issues while still letting people enjoy their night out.²

Directed by Edward Peni (Samoa Mo Samoa, The West Auckland Cardigan Appreciation Society) with live music by Andrew Correa (People In Harmony, The Bone Feeder) First Asian A* B* debuts as part of the Real NZ Festival to celebrate the Rugby World Cup 2011.

www.firstasianAB.com http://www.nz2011.govt.nz/experiencerealnz/events/969-the-first-asian-ab

The First Asian A* B* Written by Renee Liang / Directed by Edward Peni

BATS Theatre, Wellington, 6pm, 22 September 1st October 2011 Tickets www.bats.co.nz/ (04) 802 4175 BATS, 1 Kent Terrace, Wellington

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