A different view on masculinity
For Neil Ieremia, a return to his roots in Porirua is a reminder of the need for performing arts.
The dance choreographer and NZOM recipient grew up in Cannons Creek in the 1970s and 1980s, when dance ‘‘wasn’t the kind of thing you did’’.
But he knew he wanted to give it a try: he remembered watching a dance crew come into his school once and was impressed by what he saw.
‘‘Everyone thought it was hilarious and no-one took it seriously, being modern dance. I thought it was actually kind of cool.’’
He started learning how to dance at his local church when he was 13. At 19, he joined a dance school and is now based in Auckland.
This month, he’s returning to Porirua with modern dance company Black Grace to collaborate with local dancers, musicians and students.
‘‘Porirua is always close to my heart. I always want to try and return and bring as much as I can,’’ Ieremia said.
On September 20 and 21, Black Grace dancers, Whitireia dance students, Porirua high school students and the Virtuoso Strings orchestra will take part in a full display of performing arts in Black Grace and Friends.
Excerpts from Ieremia’s latest work, Crying Men, will make up a significant part of the show. Playing now in Auckland, Crying Men follows three generations of Pacific men as they deal with the loss of the family matriarch. Ieremia said it was quite a narrative work, written by playwright Victor Rodger, and looked at masculinity through a Pacific lens.
‘‘So many of us, not only Pacific Island men but New Zealand men in general, we have unusual ideas of what a masculine man is.’’
There was an emphasis on the strong, silent type and showing emotion was considered ‘‘weak’’.
‘‘We found out that they were actually wrong and it’s doing all the wrong stuff. It’s hurting the people we love the most.
‘‘It’s important for me to bring it back to Porirua because it was the home of the strong, silent type.’’
Ieremia wanted to show young people in the city there were many options for them in life. He taught dance at Whitireia in the early 1990s and a couple of founding members of Black Grace come from the city.