Overview
Officer 27 is the latest work from award-winning playwright Aroha Awarau. During his time as a journalist, Awarau interviewed and formed a friendship with Ivoni Fuimaono, the mother who lost her son in 2009 when he was caught in a shoot out along Auckland's Western Motorway. It was New Zealand's first incident of an innocent bystander being shot and killed by a police officer. So touched by Fuimaono's strength and integrity in dealing with her grief - especially under the heightened media spotlight, he felt inspired to write a play exploring a mother's courage when faced with tragedy.
Police shootings of innocent bystanders is sadly a subject matter that often dominates the headlines both in New Zealand and overseas. In Officer 27, Niuen mother of seven Tulia is absorbed by her grief after her son is accidentally shot by a police officer. Still reeling with emotions, Tulia befriends a teenage boy at the cemetery grieving for the loss of his mother to cancer. Seeking closure, she realises she must confront the officer who was ultimately responsible for her son's death.
Officer 27 is an investigation into grief, the emotional politics of blame in the event of accidental shootings, and the ever important role that Pacific mothers have in holding everything together in the wake of tragedy.