A smiling young man (Lanakila Opetaia-Tiatia), playing ‘island sounds’ on his guitar, is our greeting and introduction to the simply, set stage resembling a Pacific island family living room with its couch on a ‘fala’, a side table and the photo collage on the back wall, of family members who seem to be mum, dad, daughter, grandparents and of course, Jesus. I feel there is a focus on a grandmother and granddaughter and this is confirmed in the beginning.

Masina, played by Falesafune Faafia, at first sight is a beautiful, mamalu (dignified), proud Samoan girl!

The reflective recorded conversation opening is Masina as a young girl begging her grandma to tell her, a favourite it seems, the myth of Nafanua, the female chief warrior in Samoa!  

The play, written and directed by Sarai Perenise-Ropeti, cleverly interweaves the story of Nafanua and Masina, bringing them together to a common ground: doing and being more than is expected of them, standing up and making tough decisions, navigating paths fraught with limited but demanding parent expectation alongside duties of family, church and community.  

The story of Nafanua is delivered wholly in Samoan and I can feel the tension, worry, fear, angst and cockiness come through the Samoan dialogue as Nafanua proves to her father, Chief Savasi’uleo, that she is able to rescue her uncle who has been captured by Chief Lilomaiava, on the other side of Samoa.  

During these scenes I feel like I want to translate to my neighbour what is going on in Samoan because I don’t want him to miss out on this great exchange, but I remain quiet in case I get kicked out of the theatre.

Brett Taefu plays the opposing, feuding chiefs as well as Masina’s father. He is great in his ability to change characters convincingly, from the pleading, worried and disbelieving father of Nafanua, to the cruel, cocky tyrant chief who has caught and kept captive, Nafanua’s uncle, on his side of the island. Brett’s faasamoa is on point!

Nafanua, played by Ahry Purcell, is engaging, delivering her Samoan speech with commitment and passion. The choreography emulating the fight scene between Nafanua and Chief Lilomaiava is brought to life not only by the acrobatic dancing but the drumming and the lighting. Nafanua shows that she is skilful and adept as a warrior.

Kasi Valu comes alive playing Castor who is Masina’s best friend: flamboyant, carefree, unafraid of who he is and very confident in his own skin. Castor is the friend we call in Samoan ‘fa’aoso’ or instigator. He’s got the ideas but not necessarily the means but is very resourceful.

Castor and Masina go to a concert, though Masina wasn’t allowed. In her rebellion she feels free and experiences living a little by doing what she wants to do for herself. She also realises, in being free and ‘living a little’, that she is bi-sexual. Where Masina hides in her knowledge, Castor is loud and proud in his sexuality, calling out to potential beaus in the audience and settling on ‘Tupou’, a made up name for a male audience member in the front row. Castor interactsd easily with the audience and makes us a part of the show, coercing giggles and laughs with his flailing antics.

Falesafune Faafia’s Masina is very relatable; a young Samoan woman who is still held back or held down by the expectations of her parents to be a good girl, meaning going to school, work and church. When she wants to take some time for herself or not perform a siva (dance) at an event, then she is regarded as lazy or disobedient. Her dad is the strict and tough parent while mum is more the lenient and supportive parent – but not as supportive as Masina’s grandma who has passed on but remains a source of direction and strength for Masina, despite not being available physically which makes Masina sad.

Falesafune is brilliant: mesmerising and graceful, funny and endearing in her portrayal. When she yearns for her grandma, seeking comfort after telling her parents that she is bi-sexual, the feeling of loss comes through strong and is heart-wrenching.

To bind the whole play together, through the music and beats, Lanakila Opetaia-Tiatia, sets the scenes with his drumming on the pātē, singing and playing the guitar beautifully alongside the whole cast singing. Well done!

A well written, thought provoking, relatable and truthful play matched with brilliant acting and talent, makes for a great evening.

Malo lava mo se faaaliga sili (well done for a great play)!

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Full disclosure: having run a review by Teuila Tualaulelei of the development season earlier this year, and having been told the producers had no preference regarding the ethnicity of this season’s reviewer, I volunteered myself. And I am so glad I did – although after the show I do have to ask a very helpful member of the audience to elaborate on the story strand that is performed entirely in Samoan. She has also agreed to write a response, what’s more, so watch this space.

Brown Crown has attracted a huge brown crowd for this opening night, which fulfils a major objective of the Kia Mau Festival. It feels good to experience Sarai Perenise Ropeti’s impressive first play and production within their embrace.

A wall of projected photos is the backdrop to the BATS Dome performance space, ranging from formal family compositions through fun frolics with friend to two classic pictures of Jesus Christ. This tells a story before the play even starts. Whenever this array is displayed, we are ‘home’ in present time.

A beautifully harmonised song by the five-strong cast opens the show then recorded voices take us back to a child begging her Nana to tell the story one more time, of the war between powerful chiefs from Eastern and Western Savai’i. It is the re-enactment of this legend that threads throughout the contemporary story of grown-up Masina’s own rite of passage from compliant daughter to claiming her right to be herself within a social construct that turns out, in essence, to be not so very different from the old world she never tired of hearing about.

The powerfully performed episodic tale of the warring chiefs involves the trespass of Ta’i’i (Kasi Valu) from the East into the domain of Chief Lilomaiava (Brett Taefu). He’s taken hostage and his kinsmen (also played by Taefu) are too fearful of the captor to attempt a rescue – until his niece, Nafanua (Ahry Purcell), steps up to save her kinsman and becomes the legendary warrior queen of Samoa.

Meanwhile Masina (Falesafune Faafia) lies to her parents about where she’s going for the weekend and takes off ‘up north’ with her gay-boy bestie Caster (Valu), to the One Love Festival where she meets Moana (Purcell) from Auckland – and discovers she too feels same-sex attraction. And it is admitting this to her parents that brings her quest to be herself to a head.

Faafia navigates Masina’s journey through a full range of emotions, from anger-infused grief for her now departed Nana through a light-headed first encounter with alcohol to unexpected feelings of attraction – with total conviction. And she sings and dances exquisitely – as do the whole cast, accompanied live by Lanakila Opetaia-Tiatia’s guitar and pātē.

These seamlessly integrated sequences enliven the 75 minute production wonderfully – as does the comical interplay of Valu’s Caster with the audience. The contrast with his increasingly defeated Ta’i’i is impressive. Purcell and Taefu also bring authenticity to Alofa and Fale, Masina’s parents.  

For my taste the central message of the play is spelt out in so many words a few times too often. Nevertheless, as director, Perenise-Ropeti has guided her cast through fluid transitions between settings and characters with such alacrity that we end the evening astonished at how much interweaving story material has been traversed.

Brown Crown offers a rich blend of classical and modern stories and performance conventions.

Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer

A young Samoan woman faces burdensome familial and cultural responsibilities, and the mourning of her late-grandmother’s steadfast support and presence, as she struggles to find the courage to reveal to her parents her sexuality.  

Brown Crown successfully interweaves two strands – a Samoan legend and a grandmother’s love – to tell Masina’s story of how she finds real courage and fearlessness to reveal to her parents who she really is.

At war with herself, “broken, worn … exhausted,” she is trapped in a world of obligation, constant (cultural) acquiescence and female submissiveness.

Writer and Director, Sarai Perenise-Ropeti, a Masters of Fine Arts student at Victoria University, aims to write the untold stories that normalise conversations about controversial perspectives in the Pasifika community.

This first offering from Ms Perenise-Ropeti, a Porirua native of Samoan/Māori descent, holds up many mirrors of Pasefika culture – its kitsch appropriation of lurid crucifixions, etc – and enters into a dialogue that has a Christian basis: are Pasefika parents wholly accepting of their children even when mainstream society struggles, too, to adjust their mindsets and be more tolerant, including of their own flesh and blood?

Her young, brown and fiercely talented cast of four tackle eleven complex characters with aplomb and confidence. Falesafune Faafia-Maualaivao’s empathetic portrayal of Masina’s plight is en pointe and entertaining.

With additional editing, and (professional) lighting input, Brown Crown has the right combination of humour, self-deprecation and creativity to speak to wider audiences.

All of society could do with Masina’s grandmother sage and humorous advice on how to be yourself – if they don’t like it … too bad! 

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