Pacific Arts
Writing About The ‘Real Things’
A Pacific Poet For The Page And Stage
Tusiata Avia is recognized as one of the most exciting new Pacific writers
to have come along in recent years. Her first collection of poetry, Wild
Dogs Under My Skirt, was published by Victoria University Press in 2004
and has received critical acclaim. She has had poetry published in literary
anthologies and journals in New Zealand, the Netherlands, Belgium, Russia,
and United States. Tusiata has published two children's books, The Song
and Mele and the Fofo.
Tusiata is also a talented and dynamic performance poet--not only a poet for the page but also a poet for the stage. She has performed her one-woman show, also called Wild Dogs Under My Skirt, since 2002 around New Zealand, in American Samoa, Germany, Austria, Russia and Hawaii. She has also written and performed in radio dramas for Radio New Zealand. - ADVERTISEMENT -
Born in New Zealand of Samoan ancestry, Tusiata's writing reflects her multicultural upbringing. She addresses themes as universal and varied as love and loneliness, family rules and violence but gives them a Pacific face and voice. She gives us a clear and honest view of contemporary life and yet she draws on the cultural history, legend, words and tone of voice of Polynesia.
The energy and rhythm of Tusiata's performance poetry seems to have ties with the ancient oral traditions of the islands. In her poems, cultures meet, mix, clash and collide, and the picture is not always a pretty one. Nor does she intend it to be. Her writing tackles confrontational and raw topics head-on, but at the same time, she cuts the shock with a dose of sensitivity and humor. With a mischievous eye and a melodious voice, Tusiata manages to relate some of life's most uncomfortable moments in an entertaining fashion. But more than entertaining, her work expands the listener's view, and gives him or her sudden awareness, or an eye-opening insight. Wild Dogs Under My Skirt helped explode many stereotypes and myths about the Pacific. "Others may want to think of us as the beautiful brown people dancing in the sun, but there are many other things we need to pay attention to," Tusiata explains. "I want to write about the real things that affect us and to be able to question my own culture. Nice topics don't really grab me." Tusiata has spent much of her life wandering the globe living in Samoa, Australia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East but currently she is spending time at the University of Hawaii as the Fulbright-Creative New Zealand Pacific Writer in Residence.
In reflecting on her life as a poet, she notes that some people think poetry does not relate to their lives or they do not understand it. Tusiata feels strongly about making poetry connect to what people care about. One way to make poetry accessible, she finds, is to perform it. Many people would rather see a performance than to read a book. Through her lively performances and her humor she has been able to captivate audiences and bring poetry into the lives of many people. "I know what I do is sometimes controversial," Tusiata says, "but I don't do it for the shock value. I have something to say and I say it in the way that I think is best."
|
