Te Mōmonatanga te Ūkaipō
A script about a mōmona (fat) Māori wahine in 1823 who is reincarnated into 2023 by two wāhine atua, allowing her to explore the importance of her fatness in a wider context.
FIRST SCENE:
Te Atarangi and Hemi are lying on a flax mat on Ohope Beach in the early morning hours as the sun rises. They are kissing passionately, covered only by a cloak. Hemi breaks the kiss and looks at Te Atarangi. As Hemi recites a whakatauki, he gestures to the sand, the ocean, and Te Atarangi’s body.
HEMI: Te whenua ūkaipō, te moana ūkaipō, te tinana ūkaipō, te mōmonatanga te ūkaipō. The land, the ocean, the body, the fatness—the source of sustenance.
TE ATARANGI: Āe, e ipo.
HEMI: If that is so, e ipo, why must you discourage the village from putting our mōmona pūrakau into haka and waiata? Why do you refuse to let our uncles carve our bodies?
Te Atarangi rolls her eyes, sitting up and crossing her arms.
TE ATARANGI: That whakatauki is going to live on for generations. Why must we be the subject of it all?
Te Atarangi wraps herself in her kakahu, slowly standing up and gliding towards the ocean. She kneels down, closing her eyes and brushing her hands in the water, taking a deep breath before beginning her monologue.
TE ATARANGI: The flowing waves of Hinemoana are living curves, as are the majestic mountains of Papatūānuku. They are breathing forms of mōmona. The essence of mōmona lives within them, healing and balancing us as a people. Our tinana does not need to live in waiata, haka or carvings, when our atua already exist.
Hemi, now wrapped in the cloak, makes his way to Te Atarangi, kneeling behind her and holding her shoulders.
HEMI: I would never suggest that our tinana shall be compared to our atua. But when our mokopuna look to the past for guidance, do you not want them to see breathing forms of mōmona through their tīpuna too? (Sighing, he brings his forehead to Te Atarangi’s back). I have heard the horrific tales of what the Pākeha are doing to our people throughout Aotearoa. I fear that we are next, that we may lose our reo and our whenua and our way of life.
Te Atarangi shakes Hemi off, coming to her feet and whipping around to face him.
TE ATARANGI: Kāo! Where is your faith in the people of Ngāti Awa? Your faith in Māori? We are on good terms with the Pākeha around here, the very few of them.
Hemi places his hands firmly back on Te Atarangi’s shoulders.
HEMI: But they are gaining numbers, e ipo. Pākeha have brought their violence onto this whenua, and you know, as Ngāti Awa, we will not offer that same violence back. I fear that their desire for land and our sovereignty is only just beginning. That is why I want our love story to be composed, carved, permanently engraved into the history of our people. Our mokopuna might need it more than you think.
Te Atarangi strides to the other side of the stage, faces towards the audience and freezes. Hemi stays where he is, sitting back down on the mat. A spotlight shines on Hemi.
HEMI: I was born on the edges of these waters. My tīpuna have spilled their blood and birth waters on this whenua for hundreds of years. This whenua, this moana, my people, mean everything to me, and so does my love, Te Atarangi. Her mōmona tinana is one I only ever thought I would see in a dream, but more than that, I love everything about her; her smile, her voice, her kindness, and her stubbornness, even if it does go against my wishes. I want our pūrakau to last throughout history, to sustain our whenua, our moana and our people for hundreds of years more. If only she would see that.
Hemi freezes in place, and the spotlight moves to Te Atarangi.
TE ATARANGI (talking to the audience): I just don’t understand. What is so special about our tinana that it needs to be displayed? We are the two most mōmona people in the village. Our whakapapa lines were destined to intertwine, it’s just obvious. Being that figure throughout history is too much pressure; fatness will persist forever, it doesn’t matter if I’m the one to carry it on.
Te Atarangi storms off the stage. Fade to black
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