Mika’s festival of love

JOCELYN REIN

A cheeky, naughty festival of fun is set to hit Karangahape Rd this weekend.

The Aroha Festival will bring together the city's most diverse gay, lesbian, takataapui Maori and Pacific communities in a flamboyant celebration not seen since the Hero Parade.

The inaugural event is the brainchild of well-known Maori drag queen Mika and features nine days of cabaret, burlesque, music and the country's best drag talent performing at venues on and around K Rd.

Mika says the festival is alternative but still family friendly, inclusive rather than exclusive.

"To exclude any group seems obsolete," he says.

"So it's gay and lesbian – but bring your mum."

The cherry on top is Mika's newest work, a tribal pop opera called Po: Beautiful Darkness, which will act as the gala opening for the festival this Friday.

He has been working on all the original music with composer Gareth Farr since last May and the show will see a cast of more than 80 perform alongside the full Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.

Mika describes Po as "Cirque du Soleil in feel", featuring exotic Japanese dance sensation Shakti and Indonesian dancer Alfira.

It has been more than a decade since he has performed on the New Zealand stage and Mika says he has tried to make the production as large-scale as possible.

The festival will be a balance of "high end" entertainment such as Po, and more edgy "street-end" events like the Aroha After Dark adult dance party, he says.

Other festivities will include Chinese video artist Zheng Bo at Artspace gallery, performance artist Richard Kereopa, trans-Tasman drag divas Tess Tickle and Polly Filla, and the Kura Korero discussion series.

Mika says he's been "staggered" at the support the festival has received. With tickets selling fast he hopes to make it an annual event.

"It's getting people talking, which is really quite important," publicist Oliver Gould says.

For information and to buy tickets, visit arohafestival.com.

- © Fairfax NZ News