ANA SCOTNEY: A MĀORI MILLENNIAL ON FIRE
Silo Theatre presents
SCATTERGUN: AFTER THE DEATH OF RŪAUMOKO
Created & Performed by Ana Chaya Scotney
Silo Theatre is stoked to kick off their 2024 programme with the nocturnal ride that is ScatterGun: After the Death of Rūaumoko playing at Q Theatre, Loft from 18 April to 4 May. Created and performed by the award-winning Ana Chaya Scotney (Ngai Tūhoe), this epic solo show is a love letter to Aotearoa that explores the themes of grief, whānau, connection, and identity.
Agnes is existential. She is reflecting on life, following the death of her little brother Rūaumoko, at a memorial on the fifth anniversary of his passing. She takes us with her on one night of here life through the streets of her city and the sinews and synapses of her internal world to meet people, spirits, and other-earthly forces that lead her home.
Mashing up poetry, waiata, storytelling, movement, and sound, ScatterGunsurfs through themes of displacement, grief and the human connection to te whenua ūkaipō (homeland). To create ScatterGun Scotney spoke to whānau from Te Urewera, Pōneke, and Tāmaki Makaurau, combining their voices with personal experiences and her wild imagination to bring ten characters to the stage that will make you laugh, cry and feel uplifted.
“To watch Scotney perform is to witness something that is both mythic and urgent” – Theatre Travels, Sydney
Universal in scope, this show is for anyone who is, or has been a confused twenty-something, sussing out where to stand, and call home in Aotearoa today: Agnes is dancing on a hotplate with all the feels that come with some of the contrasts of being between worlds - Māori and Pākehā, contemporary and traditional, individual and collective, urban and natural. We’re with Agnes as she surfs through moments of grief and joy, the realms of atua (gods) and the material world. Sometimes emo, sometimes witchy, she hasn’t lost her sense of humour in the mission to embrace change and hold her ground.
“a vulnerable, moving, and impactful representation of embodied understanding of connection, family, and legacy” – Night Writes, Sydney
In the grand tradition of Aotearoa solo shows, where actors like Madeleine Sami, Jacob Rajan, and Morgana O'Reilly have wowed audiences with their ability to play multiple characters, Scotney follows in their footsteps with humour, fire and a truckload of talent. She appreciates that working on a solo show in this way can pave the way to create an awesome film script – something that she wants to make happen in the future.
Multi-award-winning Ana Chaya Scotney (Ngai Tūhoe) is one of Aotearoa’s most exciting multidisciplinary artists and storytellers. She’s best known for her work as an actor on screens in Millie Lies Low, Cousins, Educators, The Breaker Upperers, Shortland Street, Netflix’s God’s Favourite Idiot, and most recently Bad Behaviour, which premiered at Sundance in 2023. She was a Te Tumu Toi New Zealand Arts Foundation Springboard Award recipient, and was selected as one of ten emerging directors to participate in Jane Campion’s film intensive, A Wave in the Ocean. As well as an actor and theatre maker, Ana hosts podcast True Justice, and makes music under the name KŌTIRO, having released her debut EP High-Def Multinational in 2021.
ScatterGun has already received accolades at the NZ and Sydney Fringe Festivals, earning the Outstanding Solo Performance and The Sydney Fringe Tour Ready Award shere in Aotearoa, and Best in Theatre, Best Spoken Word, and Melbourne Fringe Tour Ready Award in Australia. When she first made the show it was created with stuff she had on hand. Now with the support of Silo and a team of industry-leading designers, Ana’s taking ScatterGun to the next level.
Supporting this work as director is Silo Theatre’s Artistic Director Sophie Roberts (The Writer, Live Live Cinema: Night of the Living Dead) with dramaturgy from Jason Te Kare (Every Brilliant Thing, Cellfish) sound design from Ratu Gordon (Live Live Cinema: Night of the Living Dead) and production design from Rachel Marlow / Bradley Gledhill - Filament Eleven 11 (The Writer, Basmati Bitch). Supporting Silo’s production as a creative producer is Marnie Karmelita (Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts Creative Director).
"There's so much I love about this work, and Ana as a performer and artist. I love the way this piece dances between two worlds, the mythic world of atua and the contemporary world of a night in Tāmaki Makaurau. I love Ana's ability to speak to big themes and reflect very real tensions we're currently watching play out in Aotearoa with a lightness of touch and a sense of humour. Scattergun: After the Death of Rūaumoko is a really generous gift to whoever is lucky enough to see it, it's also a rare opportunity to witness a masterful performer coming into the height of her powers." – Sophie Roberts
SILO THEATRE PRESENTS
SCATTERGUN: AFTER THE DEATH OF RŪAUMOKO
Q Theatre, Loft
18 April – 4 May
Tue–Wed: 7pm, Thu–Sat: 8pm, Sun: 5pm
Book Now
Creative Team:
Created and Performed by: Ana Chaya Scotney
Directed by: Sophie Roberts
Dramaturgy by: Jason Te Kare
Sound Design: Ratu Gordon
Production Design: Rachel Marlow and Bradley Gledhill - Filament Eleven 11
Creative Producer: Marnie Karmelita
Presented with support from Q Theatre
Initially researched with Eleanor Bishop as part of Basement Theatre’s Ideas in Residence 2020.
In kōrero with the whānau: Iwa, Atamira, Toia, Uncle Fi, Audrey, Gee, Nika, Tame, Freddy and Erin.