First few days of rehearsals.
Kia Ora Khalid is a children’s opera by NZ acclaimed composer Gareth Farr and NZ award-winning writer Dave Armstrong, under the licensing arrangement with Playmarket. The piece tells fascinating stories about how four migrant children came to Aotearoa New Zealand. Tom, a Polish New Zealander; Serena, a Samoan; Trang, a first generation Cambodian; and Khalid, a Tampa refugee from Afghanistan. The four children come together to play during lunch hour and share how they have come to Aotearoa New Zealand. Their stories reveal the touching story of 700 Polish refugees landing in the country in the 1940s, the troubled world of Cambodia, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. A musical journey over continents and world history, Kia Ora Khalid displays educational values, creates socio-political awareness, and increases New Zealanders’ sense of understanding and acceptance of migrants finding refuge in New Zealand.
The first few productions of Kia Ora Khalid premiered at the Opera House, staged at the Taranaki Arts Festival in New Plymouth, New Zealand in August 2011, and later made its Australian debut at the Victoria Arts Centre, Melbourne, Australia in October 2011. This time around, it will be recreated for Victoria University of Wellington’s Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Programme, directed by Filipino postgraduate student Ditas Yap , under the supervision of Programme Director Kerryn Palmer, with Jo Hodgson as Musical Director. The play will be shown at BATS Theatre on January 31st, February 1st, 2nd and 3rd 2024.
Kia Ora Khalid is performed by a young cast of Intermediate and Secondary school children from various schools in Wellington. The storytelling performance is a celebration of authentic artistry of mixed theatre genres and authentic New Zealand music-and-prose that will most certainly steal a heart or two. This show is certainly not to be missed!
