Rangimoana Taylor

Rangimoana Taylor is an actor, theatre director, storyteller from New Zealand with more than 35 years in the industry. He has performed nationally and internationally and was the lead in the feature film Hook Line and Sinker (2011). He was an intrinsic part of three Māori theatre companies, Te Ohu Whakaari and Taki Rua in Wellington and Kilimogo Productions in Dunedin.

Rangimoana Taylor
Nationality	Ngāti Porou
Citizenship	New Zealand
Alma mater	Toi Whakaari
Occupation(s)	Theatre director and actor
Notable work	Founder of theatre companies Te Ohu Whakaari and Kilimogo Productions
Relatives	Apirana Taylor (brother), Riwia Brown (sister)

Biography

Rangimoana Taylor was born in Wellington. His mother was Reremoana Taylor (Shelford). His father Melvin Taylor was a journalist and worked in the diplomatic service. Taylor is affiliated with the iwi Ngāti Porou, Te Whānau a Apanui and Taranaki. The secondary school he attended was Onslow College in Wellington.^[1]

Taylor's first screen acting role was on the first funded New Zealand television series Pukemanu in 1972.^[2] Taylor graduated from Toi Whakaari New Zealand Drama School in 1975 with a Diploma in Acting and was one of the first Māori graduates. Taylor upgraded his qualification to a Bachelor of Performing Arts (Acting) in 2004.^[3] Taylor was one of the key people who developed the style of Marae-Theatre, incorporating cultural concepts and values into the performance space.^[4] As an educator Taylor also taught at Toi Whakaari New Zealand Drama School.^[1]

Taylor founded contemporary Māori Theatre company Te Ohu Whakaari in the 1980s which was a collective that created shows based on their experiences and issues they felt important.^[5] Some of the plays of Te Ohu Whakaari were written by Taylors siblings Apirana Taylor and Riwia Brown and included Kohanga (1986) about Māori language revival and kohanga reo.^[6][7] Te Ohu Whakaari toured New Zealand for fifteen years and presented in theatres, marae and schools.^[6]

He was also one of the important contributors to Taki Rua Theatre in Wellington which became a venue for bi-cultural contemporary theatre in the country during the 1980s and 1990s and is a national platform for contemporary Māori theatre.^[8][9]

In the 1990s, Taylor collaborated with Cindy Diver, Awatea Edwin and Hilary Halba to form a bi-cultural theatre company Kilimogo Productions in Dunedin, with Māori and Pākehā traditions present in the process and the performance form.^[10] As part of Kilimogo Productions in Dunedin and Timaru Taylor co-produced and co-directed with Hilary Halba Nga Tangata Toa by Hone Kouka in 1997.^[10]

As a storyteller, Taylor has presented at the National American Storytelling Conference (1997) at Jonesborough, Tennessee and in Brazil in 1998.^[1]

Taylor acted along Kirk Torrance and Temuera Morrison a recurring role in the BBC America Mystery drama mini-series Tatau (2015).^[11] His lead role in the film Hook Line and Sinker (2011) was part of an ensemble performance alongside others including Geraldine Brophy and Kate Harcourt. Taylor plays a truck diver who can no longer work due to eye disease.^[12]

In 2022, Taylor received the Mayoral Award for Outstanding Contribution to Theatre at the Wellington Theatre Awards.^[13]

In 2023, Rangimoana Taylor was honoured with Te Tohu Aroha mō Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu, the Supreme Award in the annual Te Waka Toi Awards which are the premier awards in 'recognition of leadership, excellence and outstanding contribution to Ngā Toi Māori (Māori arts)'.

Performance

Selected acting roles in film, television and theatre.

Year	Title	Role	Production Company / Director	Notes	Ref
2016	Great Maidens Blush	Kaumatua	Torchlight Films, dir. Andrea Bosshard	Feature film	[2]
2015	Tatau	Ati	Tatau Productions Ltd / BBC2	TV drama	[2]
2011	Hook, Line and Sinker	PJ (lead)	Torchlight Productions, dir. Andrea Bosshard and Shane Loader	Feature film	[2]
2009	Kaitangata Twitch	Grandpa	KT Productions, dir. Yvonne McKay	TV drama	[2]
2008	Paradise Cafe		Gibson Group	TV drama	[2]
2008	Waimarie	Matiu	4 Winds Films, dir. Katie Wolfe	Short film	[2]
2008	Taking the Waewae Express	Dad	Torchlight Productions, dir. Andrea Bosshard and Shane Loader	Feature film	[2]
2005	Hamlet	Polonius	Fortune Theatre, dir. David O'Donnell	Theatre	[2]
2004	Cherish by Ken Duncum	William	Wow Productions, dir. Lisa Warrington	Theatre	[2]
2003	Home Fires by Hone Kouka	Jacob	Taki Rua, dir. Nancy Brunning	Theatre	[2]
1997	Legend of William Tell		Cloud 9 Productions	TV drama	[2]
1976	Mortimers Patch		TVNZ	TV drama	[2]
1993 - 1994	Kids TV		TVNZ	TV drama	[2]
1972	Pukemanu		TVNZ	TV drama	[2]

Personal life

Taylor is the brother of leading Māori poet and performance artist Apirana Taylor and writer Riwia Brown, the award-winning screenwriter of the New Zealand movie Once Were Warriors. He lives in Wellington with his partner, activist, counsellor, and celebrant Bill Logan, who helped lead the campaign for Homosexual Law Reform in the early 1980s.^[14][15]

References

1. "Rangimoana Taylor". Komako. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
2. "Rangimoana Taylor". GCM. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
3. "Graduate". toiwhakaari.ac.nz. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
4. Christopher B., Balme (1999). Decolonizing the stage: theatrical syncretism and post-colonial drama. Oxford University Press. p. 64. ISBN 0-19-818444-1.
5. Performing Aotearoa : New Zealand theatre and drama in an age of transition. Maufort, Marc., O'Donnell, David, 1956-. Bruxelles: P.I.E. Peter Lang. 2007. ISBN 978-90-5201-359-6. OCLC 165412282.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
6. "First Māori theatre companies, 1970–1990". teara.govt.nz. Mark Derby and Briar Grace-Smith. 22 October 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
7. "Play readings of Kohanga and Whaea Kairau". Auckland Live. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
8. Keown, Michelle (2007). Pacific Islands writing: the postcolonial literatures of Aotearoa/New Zealand and Oceania. Oxford studies in postcolonial literatures in English. Oxford University Press US. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-19-927645-5.
9. "Home". Taki Rua. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
10. Halba, Hilary. "Theatre - Negotiating the bi-cultural tightrope: thoughts on Bi-cultural theatre practice in Te Waipounamu". DeepSouth - Theatre, Otago University. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
11. Moore, Debi (21 March 2015). "BBC America's Tatau". DC.
12. McKinlay, Tom (14 May 2011). "Real lives realised". Otago Daily Times Online News. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
13. "The Wellington Theatre Awards 2022 – Ngā Whakarākei O Whātaitai". New Zealand Theatre: theatre reviews, performance reviews - Theatreview. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
14. Rothwell, Kimberley (8 July 2011). "25 years of gay rights in New Zealand". Stuff. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
15. "Gay-rights battlers reflect on bitter campaign for reform". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 7 June 2021.

External links

• Pavis, Patrice (1996). The intercultural performance reader. Routledge. pp. 182–183. ISBN 978-0-415-08154-2. Contains a description of the concept of Marae-Theatre in Māori culture.
• Rangimoana Taylor at IMDb