As a recipient of the Macmillan Brown Pacific Arts Residency for 2003, Siaosi started developing his ideas about community involvement in dance and theatre with his piece “Paper Flowers” using students from the University of Canterbury and female Pacific actors. After dancing with NZ-based Black Grace Company 95/98, Siaosi is enjoying the challenge of narrating theatre through stories of the past and present Samoan migration.

Directors Notes
“Paper Flowers” is a dance composition orchestrated during my residency at Macmillan Brown Center for Pacific Studies at the University of Canterbury. It tells of the triumphs and sacrifices our Pacific mothers endured when migrating to Aotearoa from the 1950s to the present. Performed by daughters of the migration, it is a combination of song, storytelling, multi-media, and dance that creates the scene of three Samoan mothers who share their experiences of childhood memories and the excitement of migrating to a new country.