Walking out of the opening night of Tusiata Avia’s Wild Dogs Under My Skirt Australia tour, the faces of the passing crowd are slightly open-mouthed with shock and wonder. It seems an appropriate response to Avia’s bold and daring play. Based on a provocative poetry collection by Avia, Wild Dogs Under My Skirt first came to theatre in 2002 in Ōtepoti/Dunedin, Aotearoa/New Zealand. Since then the play has burned through barriers in representation for Pasifika women in theatre, touring several countries and becoming the first play directed by a Samoan woman on Broadway.
Coursing through the heart of this play is the anger of Samoan women at the violence experienced across generations; anger at the colonial gaze which oppresses them and the male gaze that sexualises them. Anger in Avia’s context, is not aggressive or masculine but powerful and reclamatory: “I want my legs as sharp as dogs’ teeth – wild dogs, wild Samoan dogs, the mangy kind that bite strangers,” she writes in her original poem.
A fierce feminine resistance is translated from the page to the stage through movement and voice. The rhythm of the performance is found in the beat of a drum, visible in the corner of the stage. The percussion connects the play with its Samoan heritage in a visceral, sensory way. The six actors in the play faultlessly embody their characters, living out their dreams, desires and despair. Sensual dance numbers challenge patriarchal constructs which traditionally shame female desire, ultimately finding empowerment in the expression of female sexuality. Through these sets, the performance explores what it means to be both sexual and sexualised within a white and patriarchal system. Avia challenges a femininity that has traditionally been owned by white women. In doing so, she illustrates different forms of femininity that exist in her world: her Samoan community in Aotearoa/New Zealand.
It is impossible to review the play without remarking on the sheer power of the actors’ voices. Their vocal range is impressive. At various points, one of the actor’s voices would fill the room, resonating powerfully in the space. Sometimes, they would speak in a volume that was unnervingly soft or loud, unsettling the audience and changing the mood of the play. The actors were hilarious: I often found myself in a fit of laughter, only for the laughter to die in my throat as the joke was turned on its head. Suddenly, the actor would connect the humour to the pain of an experience. While this ensures that the audience is kept on their toes, comedy uplifts the tone of the play. The sheer fun the characters have in their daily lives shines a light on their strength, self worth and in many cases, their defiance — “I want to tattoo my legs, not blue or green, but black… I want to frighted my lovers, let them sit across from me and whistle through their teeth ”
The relationships between the women in the story are also funny and uplifting — without losing their complexity. The age range of the women shows the challenges raised by intergenerational disempowerment and cultural clashes between older and younger generations. However, what remains of their bond is love and humour.
It is rare that we see social issues stripped back to their impact on individuals, yet Avia’s play conveys experiences that are both intensely personal to her and reflective of a broader community. From high heels, to sex, to family violence; no topic seems to be big or small to explore. The play asks us to truly observe the world around us in its entirety; how it is structured and who it was structured by. We are directed to stare the struggles and successes of Samoan women in the face, no matter how daunting that may be.
If you want to challenge your preconceptions and sit in the discomfort, don’t miss this thoroughly engaging performance, because you will walk out the theatre with a changed and fresh perspective.
Wild Dogs Under My Skirt is performing at the Illawarra Performing Arts Centre, Wollongong from 10-13 April and Riverside Theatres, Parramatta from 18-20 April.
CAST AND CREATIVES:
| Writer | Tusiata Avia |
| Director/Designer | Anapela Polata’ivao |
| Choreographer/Stage Manager | Mario Faumui |
| Drummer | Leki Jackson-Bourke |
| Lighting Designer | Rachel Marlow |
| Executive Producer | Victor Rodger FCC Productions |
| Cast | Joanna Mika-Toloa, Petmal Lam, Ilaisaane Green, Stacey Leilua, Vaimaila Baker, Anapela Polata’ivao |
