Case study: Smooth Sailing with Taieri Musical’s Moana
When Taieri Musical approached Gravity to provide lighting, sound, projectors and videography for their junior production, Disney’s Moana, it felt like a natural fit. We’ve been working together since 2019, having provided lighting, sound and LED screen for their award winning production of Blood Brothers.
Moana is quite a different show, and in some ways was a return to their roots for the society, who was known for creating opportunities for young people wanting to perform. This production required all cast to be aged 18 and under, and many of the production roles were also filled by young people, including Gravity’s own Ben Caton, who took on the role of Lighting Designer for the first time for a major production.
Originally scheduled to run four weeks earlier, the show was hampered by Covid restrictions including a 3 week lockdown in the South Island. However the Taieri Musical board made the decision to proceed with the production once the restrictions were lifted, on the basis that they would be able to stream the videoed production if audiences were not able to attend in person. As it transpired the end result was a hybrid of the two options, with the auditorium “sold out” at roughly half capacity, and each group of ticket holders seated according to social distancing standards.
The show is set on the fictional island of Motonui, and the story is adapted from the lore of many Pasifika nations. While the cultural elements are an invention, they are based on very real cultures and the creative team were determined to honour that. Director Anna Langford worked with Cultural Advisor Pesamino Tili to ensure the tikanga of the production was respected, and a drum dance finale was added to the show, reflecting the cultures represented and portrayed in the production.
The mythical storyline follows Moana, the daughter of Motonui’s chief, as she travels across the ocean to find the demi-god Maui and convinces him to restore the Heart of Te Fiti - similar to our Papatūānuku. As you can imagine there are more than a few “larger than life” moments, for which the projections were integral. Gravity worked with Taieri Musical’s team to understand the technical requirements and given that the rest of the show was going to be relatively brightly lit, and that the projection surface was not a white wall but woven brown paper, the Gravity team recommended the use of our 12,000 lumen Panasonic projector.
For much of the show the projections blended seamlessly with the lighting, adding texture and colour but without pulling focus. A few key moments called for some razzle dazzle though, with the most notable being a large ghostly manta ray, imbued with patterns of the Pacific, swimming across the screens after Gramma Tala took her final breaths. Another key moment came at the end of the “Song of the Ancestors”, finishing on Moana as dozens of ghostly ships sailed towards and past her, as if breaking the fourth wall and flooding the stage in bright light.
Integral to the success of the projections was the lighting design. The show covers a range of settings, from the island village Moana calls home, to the rough seas and Te Ka’s fiery lair. Designer Ben Caton worked with director Anna Langford to capture the essence of each scene, taking great care to tell the story in an exciting way, despite a limited rig of lights in a small theatre. Two moving-head Mavericks were employed to add a great deal of flexibility across the show, functioning as precise spots, disco movers, ocean texture and supplementary colour. This complemented the existing range of colours cast by 8 LED pars, bathing scenes in high saturation washes you’d expect at any good Disney production. Taieri Musical’s own range of incandescent lights complemented the rig, with backlight and sidelight employed to great effect, highlighting the dancing set by choreographer Cadyne Geary.
The onstage cast of 35, complimented by an offstage Aufaipese (chorus) not only looked great, but they sang their hearts out too. Gravity’s own Sound Designer and resident musical theatre expert Tom Acklin designed and operated the show. With onstage cast on head mics, plus shotgun microphones for the Aufaipese, Tom achieved a great balance of amplifying the voices while maintaining the audience's connection to the actors in a smaller venue. Excellent quality click tracks made Tom’s job a little easier, and proved to be an effective solution for this production.
Gravity loves working with Taieri Musical to bring a range of shows to Dunedin audiences, and Moana has been no different. The show has created an excellent opportunity for a range of young people to hone their craft and Taieri Musical should be very proud of what they have achieved, at a time where very few events are going ahead. All the best to Taieri Musical for the remainder of their season and we can’t wait to work with them again.
