This event brings together the creators of three innovative productions, one based in Europe and two in Aotearoa and the Pacific, to highlight ways of creatively engaging citizens beyond the classroom. The Tate Liverpool exhibition Refugee Journeys through the Balkan Route: Crisis No More?, award winning performance Captain Cook Thinks Again and internationally acclaimed film Vai all seek to interrogate the political and moral repercussions of porous borders and the difficult political and social encounters that can result. These productions activate people’s imaginations and emotions to foster reflection and debate about colonialism and (forced) migration; this event asks what we can learn from these interactive artistic endeavours.

Tate Liverpool’s exhibition Refugee Journeys through the Balkan Route: Crisis No More?(featured on the mezzanine floor of Rutherford House) draws attention to the European refugee humanitarian crisis. It challenges the role of the passive spectator by asking guests to reflect on their experiences of the gallery through creative means, such as drawing, colouring and quilting. Using these creative tools for expression, guests are invited to imaginatively engage in a dialogue with the difficult experiences of forced migration.

Barbarian Productions’ Captain Cook Thinks Again invites participants to critically explore histories and legacies of colonisation. The performance uses humour to interrogate narratives of Aotearoa New Zealand’s ‘discovery’ by Captain Cook, asking audience members to consider the ongoing impacts of colonialism as they tour the waterfront with a newly reflective Captain Cook as their guide (co-creator and actor Tom Clarke).

Internationally acclaimed film Vai grapples with questions of indigenous sovereignty, from its conception and production through to the pressing themes it confronts. In this discussion, creator of theatre and film Mīria George reflects on the systemic lack of representation and visibility for wāhine Māori and va’ine Pasifika across Aotearoa’s creative industry, particularly in theatre, illustrating the negative effects of the absence of these voices for addressing the effects of climate change and colonisation.

Location: MZ03, Rutherford House (mezzanine level)

Format: Panel discussion with Amanda Beattie, Patrycja Rozbicka, Jo Randerson, Mīria George. Facilitated by Emily Beausoleil. Q&A to follow.

The organisers acknowledge the financial support of FHSS, Victoria University of Wellington and the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.