Chris Molloy's atmospheric new drama, produced by Taki Rua, is ostensibly a period piece via reminiscence, but it contains clever, cutting commentary about present realities in Aotearoa.
When domestic violence and rumours that a "Maori evangelist [is] mixing Maori and Christian spirituality to target vulnerable Maori" are mentioned, the first issues that spring to mind are not those of the inter-war era.
Both script and staging are comfortable with tropes of the Maori family drama genre: a younger person asks an elder about hidden dark pasts, which come tinged with magic realism and veer off into melodrama (but the climax only needs to lose a couple of sobbing lines to become truly affecting).
The characters work not just as individuals but also as representations of groups: the escaped, the forgotten and the younger generation, ignorant but willing to learn (this eagerness is mocked; it's funny but a possible political misstep).
Their fates are sealed by relying on one "chosen" hero to lead a town, rescue a congregation or save a girl - like relying on a magic bullet to change widespread, chronic societal ills. While not all strands are satisfyingly tied up, the originality lies in the admirable, clear-eyed presentation of these biographies.
