The Maori Battalion has earned a place of veneration within New Zealand's collective memory but it is not well known that Pacific Islanders also contributed to this legendary fighting force.
When playwright DF Mamea chanced upon a CD of Maori Battalion songs he was surprised to find the disc contained a couple of Samoan songs. His play attempts to bring this forgotten history life and he approaches the task with a lively sense of humour.
A series of impressionistic vignettes neatly captures the rough and tumble of barracks life as three young Pacific Island recruits await deployment and amuse themselves by telling stories, reading letters and most importantly singing songs.
The play gives a real sense of the way certain songs are freighted with cultural history and become repositories for our most deeply held emotions.
The Samoan classic Goodbye My Feleni poignantly evokes the pain of separation and is saturated with an aching sense of nostalgia.
