WTF: What The Fa'afafine!?!

WTF: What The Fa’afafine!?! is a devised theatre piece that navigates the vā of womanhood as a fa’afafine. Exploring and discovering the different cultural and social vā of identities; what does it mean to be a fa’afafine versus identifying as a trans woman? Bridging the narrative through open talanoa, shared experiences and different art forms. We’re raising funds to help bring this deeply personal show to life. Your support will help us cover production costs, pay our cast and crew fairly, and make space for this story to be seen and heard.

This work is created and performed by an ensemble of fa’afafine and queer Pasifika and Māori artists, led by director Hibiscus Tupua-Wilson. Each of us brings our unique voice and lived experience to the table, creating a work that reflects not only our individual journeys, but our shared cultural and creative practices. We work across theatre, movement, storytelling, and talanoa to create work that is honest and unapologetic.

CAST & CREW

Director, Co-Writer & Actor Hibiscus Tupua-Wilson (she/her)

Producer Zalán Orbán (he/him)

Photographer, Videographer & Social media Junior Cikamatana (he/him)

Actor & Co-Writer Kiwi Rameka (she/her)

Actor & Co-Writer K-Ci Hegigie (she/her)

Actor & Co-Writer Toloa Faraimo (he/him)

We’re asking for your help to make this project happen. Every dollar you give will directly support the team and production. Here’s where the money will go:

• Koha for cast and crew – Ensuring everyone is valued for their time and energy
• Rehearsal and venue costs – Renting spaces for developing our show
• Kai and travel costs - helping to ease the costs of cast and crew transport and kai during rehearsals and show week
• Costume, set, and design – Bringing our world to life visually and physically
• Marketing – Helping us reach our audience and to deliver a sold out show.

WTF: What The Fa’afafine!?! explores the vā between culture and gender. What does it mean to be fa’afafine? How does that sit alongside the experience of identifying as a trans woman? Where do these identities meet, blur, or diverge?

Through open talanoa, shared experiences, and multiple art forms, this show unpacks the nuances of these questions. It’s a space to speak truths that often go unheard. WTF!?! is a celebration of fa’afafine identity and a challenge to the boxes we’ve all been asked to fit into.

"There will always be a place for me in my Samoan culture. Why? Because it’s tradition." - Hibiscus Tupua-Wilson

WTF is a space for fa’afafine and queer Pasifika and Māori people to speak in our own voices, on our own terms.

Supporting this project means helping to carve out space in the arts in Te Whanganui-a-Tara for more complex, intersectional, and culturally grounded storytelling. It’s for anyone who’s ever had to fight to be seen, and who believes in the power of theatre to transform and connect. This is more than a show. It’s a moment of visibility, of affirmation, and of claiming space where it’s long been denied.