Te Molimau

Ayeesha Ash and Emele Ugavule are the team behind last year’s funny and illuminating Brown Skin Girl, and the equally affecting Exhale, which premiered at Griffin earlier this year. Now they’ve teamed up with playwright Taofina Pelesasa for another examination of the importance of belonging, this time set on the tiny coral atoll of Tokelau, a Pacific Island territory threatened by rising sea levels. Set sometime in the future, the story follows Vitolina, the last person left on Tokelau after all the other inhabitants have fled the island for resettlement in Australia. Remaining on the island to dance a final farewell to her home, she is left to reflect upon what makes us who we are, and what remains when returning home is no longer a possibility. Set between Tokelau and Western Sydney, it’s directed by Ugavele and stars Lesina Ateli-Ugavule, Malia Letoafa, Tommy Misa and Iya Ware.