MAHINA MOVEMENT. Mi Familia. Mi gente. My parents, Litia and Tangata Niumeitolu. All 3 sisters, Fuifuilupe, Sauliloa, and 'Amelia and my big bro, David. My grandpops, Siaosi Niumeitolu. Mi hermana goddesses: Gabriella Callender and Erica R. DeLaRosa. Karen Bahari. Selma Rosen. Joan McNeil. Sophie McClean. Ping Chong. Oja, my gemini soul brada. My Youth from the South Bronx, Bed-Stuy y South Africa. Tongan y South African Acapulco Acapella Singing (You've never heard someone "blow" if you've never been in the midst of a Tongan or South African choir.) Rock Canyon. Nature. Harlem. bell hooks. Gwendolyn Brooks. Kehinde Wiley. James Baldwin. Leon Golub. Public Enemy. Langston Hughes. Edward Said. Noam Chomsky. Ntozake Shange. Dorothy Allison. Lucille Ball. Danny Hoch. Dave Chapelle. Carol Burnett. Luis Alfaro. Cy Twombly. Scarcity. Possibility. Poverty. 2 Pac. John Leguizamo. Audre Lorde. Hannah Wilke. Ana Mendieta. 84057. Roots, Rock, Reggae. Hip Hop and you Don't Stop. I was country when Country wasn't Cool. Good Delicious Home cooked Food. Fresh Fruit. My Utah, My Tonga, My South Bronx, My South Africa. Unconditional Love.
VAIMOANA LITIA MAKAKAUFAKI NIUMEITOLU is a CREATOR of truth and beauty. She is a multi-talented Artist (She is a Painter, Poet, Playwright, and Actor and can not be one without the other). Moana can hold it down with either a paintbrush or pen and notepad in her hand; and has the versatility and vulnerability to bring her characters alive in her acting. Her muli-talents and creative skills reflect her multi-identity of being Tongan and American and Indigenous in an urban world--she can not be one without the other. Her rare voice and experience brings the "invisible" to light and expands society's views of who and what exists in our world. She was born the youngest of 5 children in Nuku’alofa, Tonga; raised in Hawa’ii and Utah; and now lives, builds, creates and loves in New York City. She is the founder of the phenomenal all female trio, Mahina Movement (www.mahinamovement.com) who has performed worldwide at over 500 stages including Time Square, Lincoln Center, Central Park, Joe’s Pub, Nuyorican Poets Café, United Nations, and community centers, homeless shelters, high schools, and Colleges and Universities. She loves that she is growing older. Life has just begun.
"Hearing publicly the voice of the urban Pacific woman is rare anywhere in the world, and New York City is no exception. The opportunity to hear such a voice must be seized, and it must be shared. Niumeitolu weaves her skills as an actor, writer, and painter in her latest solo theater work ‘Tongue-in Paint’. She is entertaining and poignant; ‘Tongue-in Paint’ is humorous and highly personal. Niumeitolu and her work is part of a larger and growing international discourse about the Diaspora of Pacific peoples: the loss and gain of culture, identity and place. The Pacific diaspora began more than 50 years ago with the exodus of Pacific peoples from their island homes to the US, Australia and New Zealand. From its inception in the late 1970s Hip Hop culture has travelled with these mobile Pacific communities - from the West Coast of the US as far south as Aotearoa/New Zealand and back again. Hip Hop is an integral part of urban Pacific expression. Vaimoana Niumeitolu is a vibrant voice borne of the Pacific Diaspora in the US. Her work as an artist gives presence to an almost invisible part of the US population. I thank her for her courage, her spirit and her vision."
-Susana Lei’ataua, Artist-in-Residence, Asian/Pacific/American Institute, New York University
“Impressively audacious one-woman performance, Tongue-in-Paint…Right away, I was hooked. Niumeitolu is an engaging performer and her charm and chutzpah draw us to her: clearly .. in command of a theatre audience and her destiny…Niumeitolu plays about 15 different people in this show, and her versatility and especially her gift for mimicry and creating character voices is commendable…The most remarkable segment of the piece gives us our only other real glimpse at this artist: during a musical interlude, Niumeitolu paints two abstract pictures right in front of our eyes in under five minutes…Niumeitolu is a compelling performer.” –Martin Denton, nytheatre.com
Aloha and everything good Sista I was so busy at work so just was looking at the video clips and the music/poetry on your page girl you r still like fire and don't let that flam down for nothing love you and your Artistry Hawunishe Netop Fa'a love you my friend
Greetings my ocean sister.... im just about to have a listen to your tracks, if there is anything on my page you would like to work with... let's collaborate :)
Yo Mo, Just coming by to say hi and let you know you are in my thoughts. The new art is fresh! Especially the happy little brother! I need to see black boy smiles. Your creativity is the sort of love the planet needs. bles-sings, Masauko
Hudson Valley Spoken Word Poets to Debut Original Three-Act Play in Manhattan on Saturday, Nov. 8
Etre de la Arte written, produced, performed and directed by: Daniel Villegas and Regine Jean-Louis Showtime is 7:30pm. Ticketholders are invited to an open gallery of Regine's work and mixes spun by DJ H20 from 7:00pm until showtime. The cast and crew will host a dance party after the show. General Admission: $20 at the door, $15 in advance
Hello artista bella! Loved connecting with you and witnessing your creativity in action. Could you send me your address I think I have some of your things. Much love, Maya
