Pacific Dance New Zealand is excited to announce its festival line-up for 2022 featuring a combination of digital, virtual, and in-person shows and workshops. The program is packed with options, giving audiences the freedom to pick-n-choose what they would like to see and do in 2022. The safety of audiences remains of utmost importance, as is ensuring that artists are maximizing opportunities to perform and share their creative works while utilizing immersive technologies during the pandemic.

Pacific Dance New Zealand will launch their action-packed 2022 festival season with a revamped website and their very own dedicated festival channel on Wednesday 15^th June. The festival channel will operate as a pay-per-view platform for audiences to subscribe to for a nominal fee of $5 to view all 2022 festival works. Channel content will be made available for subscribers from Monday 11^th July and fresh new works will be added weekly through to the 31^st of July. Festival favourites, such as live in-person workshops and Dance OnScreen will still go ahead during the festival, giving audiences the chance to come out, engage and have some fun on the weekends.

A new addition to the line-up will be Festival Talanoa dance talks, which will feature some artists as well as heritage masters: Molia Alama-Tulafono of Tuvalu, Alipate Traill of Fiji and the Tupumaiaga A Niue Trust. Included in this is a new collaboration with Dutch podcaster T-Zer of Dance Specific Talks who will host our intern Leki Jackson-Bourke and producer Kasi Valu.

The popular MĀUI showcase by Freshmans Dance Crew will show in collaboration with Auckland Live during Matariki celebrations and will include school matinées and a one-night only public-performance on Thursday 23^rd June at the Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre.

Pacific Dance New Zealand Director Iosefa Enari MNZM says “Tena koutou. The arts community in Aotearoa have been through a tough two years, with many shows being cancelled and reshuffled as levels and settings changed. COVID created an uncertain future and as we begin to return a sense of ‘normality’ I am thrilled that we are able to offer our artists space to re-present. This years line up is eclectic and diverse. It represents Pacific Dance post-COVID. It is confident, current and courageous. The shift to the digital platform has been a new era for the festival. This shift opens our reach to a global market and we welcome all our new followers to our shores. Enjoy this year’s line up.“

The festival channel will feature the following works:

• Shifting Centresproduced by Le Moana and Kasi Valu featuring works from Oto Lupo and Sefa Tunupopo
• Shel We?the film by award winning choreographer Tupua Tigafua
• MOANAfeaturing, Desiree Soo-Choon, Anton Pulefale, Keesha King, Losaline Tupou, Laifa Ta’ala and Toa Paranihi and Brydie Colquhoun from The New Zealand School of Dance,
• Dance Battleby Hadleigh Pouesi and Fresh Movement Trust
• Concrete Bloomby Aloali’i Tapu & Manurewa High School
• New Dawnby Sisuno Helu

Pacific Dance OnScreen featuring:

• Walk With Meby Joshua Faletua and Tyler Carney-Faletua of Threading Frames on Sunday 24^th July 3-5pm at the Academy Cinema, Tickets $15pp will be available at Pacific Dance Festival’s website from the 15^th of June.

Our FREE festival community workshops:

• On Saturday 9^thJuly 11am, IAMMD (I Am My Mothers Daughter) with Viva-Leah Palalagi-Elesoni
• On Saturday 16^thJuly 3-5pm, Tahitian Dance with Tahiti Ia Ora
• On Saturday 23^rdJuly 3-5pm, Kuki Airani and Ei Katu with Aunty Kura Taruia

Tickets for the MĀUI evening show will go on sale to the public on 19^th May 2022 and will be available at Ticketmaster.

Follow our social media feeds on Facebook (@Pacificdancenz) and Instagram (@pacificdance_nz) for updates and front row seats into the creative experience of our artists before their full works are made available.

The Pacific Dance Festival for 2022 has been a moving feast and the team invite audiences to enjoy it in a way that will suit you. Whether it be at home or as a combo with our in-person events, it is up to you. Engage in one or more, or up-size and enjoy all the entertainment on offer from our very own Aotearoa-based Pasifika artists before they fly the coop!