Suiga takes Australia!

SUIGA is a Pacific-contemporary dance piece choreographed by Ankaramy Fepulea’i.

For many Pasifika communities, religion and tradition are intertwined and are fundamental elements of identity as Pasifika peoples today. SUIGA is a decolonial choreographic exploration of Christianity within the Pacific. The piece comments on the first encounter of Christianity in Samoa during the 1830s and the disruptive shifts and changes that took place as our people adjusted to a new way of life.

“When the missionaries came, they had the bible, and we had the land. They then taught us how to pray. When we opened our eyes. We had the bible, And they had the land.”

-Jahra Rager Wasasala.

This work was previously performed at Pacific Choreographic Lab (2020) and Tempo Dance Festival (2022). The choreographic process critically explored pre-colonial concepts of spirituality and religion's rapid influence on Pacific communities following colonisation.

We are fortunate to represent Aotearoa and the Pacific by sharing our stories at the To Hell With Drowning' Australian Association for Pacific Studies Biennial Conference in Ngunnawal country (Canberra). However, we need support to get there!

We aim to raise funds to cover flights, accommodation, and travel costs while in Australia and are reaching out to our beloved communities for your support. We travel to these places carrying our people and our communities at the forefront of our mahi.

We aim to share stories that haven't been told before and believe that dance is the vessel that allows us to bring awareness to topics and issues that are usually tapu to discuss in everyday conversations. We would love to share our stories and represent our communities at an established event like this.

Fa'afetai tele lava - Ankaramy Fepuleai - Jireh Lalotoa-Peniata - Keyana Fuiava - Funaki Taulanga - Chas Mamea