With a sprawling ensemble cast of young refugees, migrants and locals, in Bitter Sweet Mixit repurpose the Romeo and Juliet proto-narrative and respond with a unique collective voice that can only come with having so many distinct voices in the devising room. 

In this tale you’ll find aspect of the familiar. Two households, both alike in dignity, but lacking in humanity. Two star-crossed lovers. Some biting of thumbs and a wild party. But when Tawanda Manyimo, the seen-it-all-before narrator, intones that “never was there a tale of more woe than a mother, and her Antonio” any preconceptions are dashed. I had to check with my partner that I’d heard it correctly. Who is Antonio and his mother, and what is their story? [More]

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This vibrant feast of colour and movement is a real treat and is perfectly situated at TAPAC: The Auckland Performing Arts Centre. Mixit’s first production in a theatre (as opposed to other outdoor venues and spaces over the past nine years) is passionate and raw. Not always clear as a narrative drama, the vigour and energy driving the piece is its real strength.

More than twenty-three actors perform a work “inspired by Shakespeare” and devised by the company. Dramaturged by Paolo Rotondo, with Tahi Mapp-Borren and Wendy Preston directing, it has a fantastic team who ensured the work could be created in just ten days. 

The show is “informed by refugee and migrant experiences, and situated in the here and now”. It takes Romeo and Juliet as a provocation and weaves snippets of text into the action to create a drama about the consequences of hatred and true love that (eventually) does run smooth. In this sense it lies between a reworked version of Shakespeare and a story about the performers’ own experiences.

The beginning is very strong: “Two houses, both alike in dignity…” is performed as a tribal challenge. This is exciting and bold. Language native to the performers is interspersed with English and this rich palette is a treat not heard enough on Auckland stages. I am still interested in the refugee and migrant stories that remain beneath the surface here; perhaps a longer rehearsal period would allow this.  

Fantastic choreography led by Justin Haiu underpins the piece. This part of the work is strongly held in movement that emphatically connects the tension between the two families, as are clever and inventive stage devices, e.g. a truck made with actors and a tarpaulin. It’s inventive and quirky.

There are mixed levels of experience but all are equally committed to the ensemble, and this is to be applauded. Josh Mushagalusa Mutuga as Young Antonio and Tawanda Manyimo as Old Antonio are particularly strong. Munashe Tapfuya as ‘Juliet’ and Mohammed Al-Jamal as ‘Romeo’ shine equally bright with the joy of newfound love. These two are open, alive and effervescent. Padma Akula is convincing and bold, too.

TAPAC’s centrally-located black box theatre space is the ideal location for those not usually given a voice to be heard, and Wendy Preston’s Mixit work is to be commended for bringing diversity to Auckland. Migrant and refugee cultures are an important part of the fabric that makes up ‘the world’s most livable city’.

For me, it’s indeed bittersweet. The work is raw and not always sharp. No matter; it’s great to see and hear new faces on the local stage, and work like this warrants support. 

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