This March, UNFPA supported Port Moresby’s first-ever Arts Awareness Month - a celebration of performing arts in Papua New Guinea, with over 600 theatre-goers joining the experience.
This series of three plays, written by local playwright Andrew Kuliniasi and produced in partnership with Focus Marketing Solutions, confronted audiences with questions of acceptance, sexuality, violence, and grief. The challenging pieces bring audiences behind closed doors and into the unspoken realities of modern Papua New Guinea.
Sharing their reactions with the Focus Marketing team after the plays, audiences were moved by the performances and delivered strong praise for the talented cast.
Revisiting Modern Classics
The first play in the Arts Awareness Month series, He is Victor, has been performed several times of the past three years, and the seasoned cast and crew delivered the chilling piece to 170 guests over five performances. This play follows a journalist as she tries to learn more about her young cousin's death, and why her family is discouraging her from seeking answers. Exploring themes of tolerance, mental health, and sexuality, He is Victor exposes the prejudice facing persons with HIV in Papua New Guinea and how a lack of education on this virus affects individuals, families, and communities.
For my Father welcomed audiences once again to the haus krai, after its premiere run in 2022. This year, 122 local and international guests witnessed the intimate performance which sees five siblings reunited following their father’s death, struggling with how to pay for their late father’s haus krai and the unresolved feelings towards a man of whom each has a very different memory. This play examines the obligations for families following a loved one's passing, and how the financial burden can tear families apart.
Letters Leaves Audiences Speechless
Premiering at the Moresby Arts Theatre this month was Letters From Bradley. This new performance challenges audiences to take action to break the cycle of violence, modelling how to have conversations with friends about unhealthy relationships, how to seek support from justice services, and how perpetrators of violence can be rehabilitated. However, within this narrative is a far more common parallel, where violence is tolerated and deadly. Over 300 audience members joined the narrative.
“I was triggered,” shared one audience member after Thursday’s premiere. “I walked out once. I almost walked out a second time. But I recommend it. It’s a must see.”
“I was speechless,” shared another. “I thought it was thought provoking, loud, and gets us thinking about whats happening right at our doorstep.”
UNFPA has supported Arts Awareness Month to encourage audiences to start the conversation on sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence. The partnership also recognises the importance of arts as advocacy on these confronting issues.
“The script, the writing, the directing, it was incredible,” shared one man. “Easily one of the most incredible performances I’ve seen at the MAT.”
“It was very, very intense, and the acting was phenomenal,” shared a woman following Saturday’s matinee. “The message echoed throughout was that everyone deserves to be safe and that we need to stand together to finally stop violence.” That’s a message that will stay with me for a long time. It was very moving.”
Despite the intense subject matter, one audience member reflected on how this piece also shows paths to end violence. “This brings to life what families experience in their homes,” he said. “It also presents ways we can overcome and solve these issues. It can only get better”
“It was raw, confronting, triggering,” shared one women. “Yet it was highly appreciated and very well done”
Continuing the Conversation
UNFPA will continue to work with the producers to keep the conversations going and bring these plays to more audiences through 2023. This includes suppoting platforms for advocacy on sexual and reproductive through our Condomize! campaign, which saw over 5,000 condoms distributed across the four weeks of performances at Moresby Arts Theatre.
