Meet the Cast: Nikita 雅涵 Tu-Bryant

Published: Wednesday 2 September

Photo by Serena Stevenson

1. Introduce yourself and your arts practice.

你好 kia ora! My name is Nikita 雅涵 Tu-Bryant and I'm a multidisciplinary artist. My professional training was in Jazz Music Performance, composition and improvisation. I live and work in the world of acting, writing and directing, theatre and film. As well as writing and performing music for my own shows and bands (such as KITA), I also compose music for fellow artist's theatre shows and films. And perform as a visual artist too - that is so many things! So usually I just say, I like to tell stories and find the best vehicle to best transport the story to the audiences' eyes or ears.

2. What’s your favourite thing about what you do?

I can't pick one, but today it's the thrill of being able to change strong perspectives with a well-told story, enabling common ground between differences.

3. Which character do you play in Pork and Poll Taxes and what drew you to this role?

I play 水清 Shui Ching - her name means clear water, or clear as water. She is the wife of Jiu Choy - the man who moves to Aotearoa to work, she is the daughter-in-law of Ah Ma, and the mother of Kam Loi and Yuk Chun.

There is a quiet (and sometimes not-so-quiet) resilience about her character that I have personally witnessed time and time again in the traditional Taiwanese women, in my whānau back home. To me, 水清 Shui Ching abides by tradition, yet she is also at-heart a disruptor, working to break the tight bounds of tradition. But breaking difficult cultural expectations that lead to the repetition of ancestral mamae (pain), is not a change that can happen in one generation, but a change that we see slowly dilute over time. I see it trickle like water and erode hard surfaces like water. It's slow, but it's powerful.

I also like that her name means Clear Water. I find incredibly poetic the symbolism her name shares with the role she plays in her family. Although she is willing to disrupt tradition to make way for a better future for her children, she is still stuck within the confines of her generation, therefore tightness and rigidity still remains within her, making her a complicated and challenging character to play.

On top of Shui Ching, I also play a series of other minor characters in the show. Such as Mrs Anderson, who I see as a voice in the community that welcomed the Chinese in, during the Poll Tax era. She also mirrors Shui Ching in a way, being the woman in a parallel universe, Jiu Choy's other life. I've thoroughly enjoyed playing the two.

4. In one sentence, how would you describe your character’s journey from the first scene to the last?

My experience of 水清 Shui Ching is her initial want is to seek safety in the container of a healthy family unit but then surprises herself in discovering her own strength.

5. What’s your pre-show ritual to get into character?

If I feel my character in my body, everything else follows. Usually, movement comes first - like tuning an acoustic instrument.

6. Which scene do you think will linger with audiences after they leave the theatre, and why?

I can't pick what will resonate with the audience. I really believe the interpersonal relationships within the whānau will strike a different chord for everyone. But I will say that my favourite is the scene between Kam Loi and Yuk Chun, who are the children played by Dennis Zhang and Talia Pua (the writer).

7. What do you hope audiences take away from the show?

Despite this being a Chinese story, I believe this story is universal. I hope the audience can see themselves somewhere in the show, be it a small interaction between father and son - or our universal desire to dream for a better life.

I hope it creates a sense of understanding and compassion towards people in hardship and is carried into the real world with everyday interactions, no matter how small.

8. Describe Pork and Poll Taxes in three words.

Dare to Hope.