Maori Battalion comes to Rest at the PumpHouse

Taki Rua Productions and The PumpHouse presents:

Strange Resting Places

Maori Battalion comes to Rest at the PumpHouse

“Strange Resting Places is intimate theatre at its best that would be warmly received in a piazza, a marae and anywhere in between’ - New Zealand Herald

The PumpHouse is delighted to announce that the highly celebrated production Strange Resting Places will be the first show for the Autumn Collection 09.  This marks The PumpHouse’s new direction in mixed programming.  Following on from Auckland Theatre Company's successful launch of Ship Songs at the PumpHouse in 2008, world class professional theatre will again be staged at one of the country’s most intimate and picturesque venues. 

With a rich history of community theatre long established at the venue, the PumpHouse has sought to compliment this with a programme of premium New Zealand work in an attempt to round out what the venue can offer North Shore theatre lovers.  This year the PumpHouse has partnered with two of New Zealand’s leading producers, Taki Rua from Wellington and Auckland’s Silo Theatre.

First up is Strange Resting Places, set against the backdrop of war the play traces the stories and personal experiences of the Maori Battalion in Italy.  The talents of NZ actors Paolo Rotondo, Rob Mokaraka and Maaka Pohatu will bring the characters to life and take audiences on a touching and often humourous tale of comradeship and survival.  With four surviving Maori Battalion veterans still with us, Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu is proud to sponsor Strange Resting Places.

Italy, 1944: a battle-torn theatre of the Second World War. The Allied onslaught stalls at Monte Cassino and the 28th Maori Battalion find themselves centre stage. A young Maori soldier goes out to steal food; an Italian takes cover in a stable. Both find themselves trapped in a potentially deadly stand-off, but with Germans just outside, their survival depends on co-operation.

Rob Mokaraka and Paolo Rotondo’s Strange Resting Places is theatre crafted from contemporary storytelling, personal experience and extensive research. With music and comedy in Italian, Maori and English and a host of moving and hilarious characters Strange Resting Places shines a light on the complex emotional bonds of New Zealand’s wartime history.  It also showcases the universal traits that Maori shared with the Italians: family, food, song, a love of vino and a passion for the ladies!

“Drawing on their own Maori and Italian family histories, this talented pair has created a spellbinding little gem of a show that will have you laughing a lot and crying just a little.” – NZ Herald

STRANGE RESTING PLACES plays                                         

Wednesday March 4 – Saturday March 7 at 8pm

Saturday March 7 – Matinee 2pm

Sunday March 8 – Matinee 4pm

Tuesday March 10 – 6.30pm

Wednesday March 11 - Matinee 1pm

Wednesday March 11 - 6.30pm

Thursday March 12 at 12pm

Thursday March 12 - Saturday March 14 at 8pm

Sunday March 15 – Matinee 4pm

To Book Tickets please call (09) 489 8360 or visit www.pumphouse.co.nz

Tickets - $25 - $45

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