Ambitious and luxurious in scale, this sweeping saga, spanning thousands of years between the tea estates of Sri Lanka and a distant future, heralds a new direction for South Asian theatre in Aotearoa.
Tea
Download the programme for Tea here.
The rich aesthetic of this majestic new play from British-born, NZ-raised, Sri Lankan playwright Ahi Karunaharan, encompasses multiple characters, timelines and continents to weave a tale of legacies, prophecies and love around the world's most popular beverage.
From a story of two brothers trying to make sense of Sri Lanka under colonial rule, to workers' rights on a tea plantation, to war and protest during the country's violent uprising, to a speculative future concerned with the environment, the narrative scope of this play is truly expansive with the opulent tableau of opera, puppetry and drama drawing from the work of Arundathi Roy and the magic realism of Salman Rushdie.
Matching its sophisticated rendering of grand themes and visual motifs is an opulent tableau of movement, a lavish set designed by visual artist Tiffany Singh, and an original score inspired by traditional Indian and Sri Lankan music.
Tea represents Karunaharans epic creative vision finally realised with a special matinee for schools.
Years 9-13: Drama, English, Social Sciences, Asian Studies
Schools Matinee: Tuesday 13 March at 10.30am
Venue: Q Theatre, Loft
Tickets: $15
BOOK HERE
Credits
Playwright & Director: Ahi Karunahran
Co-produced by
and The Oryza Foundation for Asian Performing Arts in association with Agaram Productions
With support from
Platinum Patrons Andrew and Jenny Smith
Look at the chaos youve created. All I taste is the flavour
of neglect in a rimmed broken teacup.
