YMCĀ – Atamira Dance Company, Choreographed by Oli Mathiesen [Tempo Dance Festival 2026]

Hot off the heels of the Venice Biennale Danza and The Butterfly Who Flew Into The Rave, acclaimed choreographer Oli Mathiesen (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Manu) brings his distinctive voice in this first full-length commission by Atamira Dance Company — the tuakana platform for Māori contemporary dance.
A bold takatāpui rebirth of the Village People, YMCĀ parallels the pop culture icons through a cast caught between character and confession; a discography of performed identities that interrogate the archetypes, the macho men, and the staging of queerness and indigeneity. 1970s luxe meets 18th-century bloodshed — a disco interior with a cultural inferior.
Alluring, camp-soaked, and unapologetically original, YMCĀ invites audiences into a world where appropriation has never looked so good.

Q Theatre | Tue 13 + Wed 14 Oct | 8pm | 60min
Atamira Dance Company
Choreographed by Oli Mathiesen
Presented as part of Tempo Dance Festival 13–18 October 2026.
For the full programme visit: www.tempodancefestival.co.nz

Content Warnings: see website.