Following its acclaimed debut at the Te Ahurei Toi o Tāmaki Auckland Arts Festival, Toiere was presented in Whakatū Nelson on 27 June 2026 with high praise. Read on to see how audiences felt about the show:

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“Extraordinary performance – likely one of the greatest events I’ve seen/heard in the world past decade or so.“

– Audience member

“Very moving, especially in the divisive times we are living in. The message transcending separateness.”

– audience member

“It was amazing!! While my knowledge of Te Reo is very rudimentary, I could understand the lyrics better in Te Reo than in Italian, Spanish or German… I will never forget the beauty of hearing the words ‘te manu aroha’… it gave me a new understanding of the aria – thanks to the te reo Māori version.”

– AUDIENCE MEMBER

“First ever spontaneous full audience standing ovation I have ever seen at NCMA.”

– AUDIENCE MEMBER

“The beauty of the voices. The superb musicality. The warmth. They weren’t just brilliant technically; they brought “wairua” to their performances.”

– audience member 

“I found the bicultural concept particularly powerful. Hearing te reo Māori alongside the original languages created something uniquely New Zealand and gave the performance a strong sense of place and identity. Although I’m not fluent in either Italian or te reo Māori, the blending of cultures added an extra dimension that made the performance feel distinctive and meaningful.”

– audience member 

“Vibrant performance by Māori and Samoan opera singers with powerful and emotional voices. The singers brought wonderful energy, humour and mana to their solo, duet and group performances. A truly memorable performance, and I would love to hear them again.”

– audience member