Out the Gate: Touring theatre show shares stories of incarceration, change, and healing

Incarceration is often discussed through statistics, but Out the Gate turns those numbers into real names, faces, and stories.

The new Theatre Marae from Aotearoa New Zealand’s longest-surviving independent Māori theatre company, Te Rākau Hua o Te Wao Tapu, offers an intimate experience that combines music, movement, and dialogue to explore the realities and ripple effects of imprisonment.

Written by Helen Pearse-Otene, directed by Jim Moriarty, and choreographed by Tānemahuta Gray, the production invites audiences into a raw and honest kōrero that blurs the lines between research, performance, and community discussion.

Dylan Fa’atui and Saulo Kolio are among the over 16 performers who bring their lived experiences to Out the Gate.

Speaking on Island Time, the actors explain how the one-hour and 25-minute piece is an important part of society’s understanding of those who are trying to rebuild their lives.

Fa’atui says the show is grounded in truth. “Out The Gate is born out of a three-year kaupapa Māori research project called Tiaki, which looks at the lived experiences of those that have been incarcerated and those that have come out.

“It’s looking at the prison pipeline - what things happened before they got to prison that led them there and what choices did they make.”

Tiaki Research

The work draws from the TIAKI programme,which focuses on community well-being for whānau with lived experiences of incarceration.

Launched in 2023 and funded by the Health Research Council, it is co-led by Cheryl Davies, a Māori health researcher, Paula Toko King and Ruth Cunningham, both associate professors at the University of Otago.

Dylan Fa'atui (standing) and the cast of Out the Gate in rehearsal. Photo/Facebook

Playwright Pearse-Otene says in a statement that Out the Gate was influenced through a four-week collaborative process characterised by honesty.

“Our kāhui of actors, technicians, creatives, and community members engaged in a process of sharing their personal stories and reactions. Their creative responses were woven into the show as script, waiata, and choreography.”

Moriarty also says that the work is “ultimately a postulation of hope”.

“Hope springs eternal. It’s inside people no matter how damaged they might have been by their experiences, no matter how wounded they are. We’re all basically looking for the way out."

Healing through performance

Kolio first met Moriarty and Pearse-Otene through a self-reflection programme at Kōkiri Marae in 2018.

“I thought I was going into anger management,” he recalls. “But it was actually a programme to change my relationship with myself.

“Jim’s taken me through these doors and this is another door…to share some strength, hope, and experience, not just for myself, but for other families too.”

Jim Moriarty and Helen Pearse-Otene. Photo/Facebook

For both performers, Out the Gate is about turning pain into purpose.

“Because of the content, everyone’s opening themselves up to real conversations,” Fa’atui says. “Our leadership team has created a space that’s safe enough for people to be open about how they’re feeling.”

Kolio adds that he has found the creative performance process particularly freeing. “I’m bringing out stuff that’s been in my body, out to the light. It’s awkward at times, but when you’re doing it, it makes sense.”

Watch Dylan Fa'atui and Saulo Kolio's full interview below.

On tour

Out the Gate is touring the lower North Island, stopping at Porirua, Levin, Upper Hutt, Ōtaki, Palmerston North, Whanganui, Carterton, and Wainuiomata for one-night performances before ending with a five-night finale in Te Whanganui ā Tara Wellington.

Each performance is followed by a whakanoa (a process for removing tapu or cleansing) and community kōrero, ensuring audiences feel spiritually and emotionally uplifted while providing a space for shared healing and reflection.

Fa’atui shares a message about resilience. “If you make healthy choices today, you won’t have to deal with unhealthy consequences.”

Kolio adds, “If we can change one, that’s a win for all of us.”

Out the Gate runs from 29 October to 16 November. Tickets are available here.