Bold New Comedy Takes on Cultural Cluelessness

The latest work from award-winning Wellington actress and comedIan Hayley Sproull (Milky Bits, Miss Fletcher Sings the Blues) presents an unflinchingly hilarious personal investigation into her bicultural New Zealand heritage. Vanilla Miraka hits Wellington's BATS Theatre from the 27th September - 1stOctober after its Auckland premier at the Basement Theatre from the 20th - 24th September.

Vanilla Miraka explores Sproull's identity as a disconnected, quarter-caste M?ori, with white skin and no clue what is happening on the marae. Jumping between stand up comedy, song and sketch, the autobiographical solo blurs the lines between self-exploration and self-depreciation to try to answer the question 'where do I fit within my own culture?' Directed by one of New Zealand's most talented comic devisers, Jo Randerson (Banging Cymbal, Clanging Gong, White Elephant), Vanilla Miraka will have you dropping reo bombs before you can say 'where's the wharepaku?'

Sproull created Vanilla Miraka after arriving home from a holiday in India to find that her grandmother had passed away. Hurled from the loud and colourful culture of New Delhi to her whanau's marae in Tinopai, she was surprised and intrigued that a family tangi could evoke such a profoundly similar feeling of cultural dissonance.

"Despite proudly boasting my quarter-M?ori make up my whole life, I struggled when I was forced to engage with my culture head-on. When my Nana died, so did my connection with being M?ori."

Sproull isn't one to shy away from discomfort, but she's also not the type to indulge in typical navel gazing. Instead, she knew that comedy would be the best tool to use to navigate her personal connection with M?oridom. Creating Vanilla Miraka was a way for Sproull to revisit and replay some of the most hilarious, awkward and moving experiences she had while exploring her whakapapa and her place within it.

As director and mentor, Jo Randerson's keen eye and comedic intelligence makes her a perfect fit forVanilla Miraka, where she's helped shape Sproull's personal story into a show that is both disarmingly funny and profoundly unsettling. Both Randerson and Sproull are known for their bold, visceral comedy; the kind where you laugh out loud even as you feel the knife twist in your guts.

Vanilla Miraka plays on the Propeller stage at Wellington's BATS Theatre from the 27th September - 1stOctober 2016.