GURR ERA OP

GURR ERA OP deals with the very real threat of climate devastation and loss of land. Interweaving Torres Strait Islander storytelling, movement, and spoken word, GURR ERA OP is not only a wakeup call, but also a celebratory sharing of culture.

Ghenoa Gela is an Award Winning, Genre-Shifting, Multi-Dimensional Storyteller, and the Creator, Director, Writer and Performer of GURR ERA OP. Her creation is a vivid imagining of loss, and a call to action for a better future.

"I am currently fighting the fear of being displaced. The fear of not belonging somewhere, do you know what that feels like? I know for some of us, that fight is very real and constant. I am sooo aware of living on someone else’s unceded lands and truth be told as colonisation and capitalism continue to run the world – just ‘going back home’ is no longer an option I can even consider. Water is lapping on the doors of my people’s homes, my family’s home.

And my ancestral homelands are slowly being devoured by a force that is essentially a product that we humans made. I know as an individual there’s not much I can do, but with the little I can, I’LL AT LEAST TRY SOMETHING. GURR ERA OP which translates to ‘The Face of the Sea’ in the Eastern Torres Strait Islander language, Meriam Mir – IS MY SOMETHING."

When asked what her creative process is like Ghenoa Gela described that it is different for every show. However, there are some consistent elements, “however it happens, there's lots of sharing of food, stories and laughter - while making sure the space is safe and comfortable for everyone to feel strong in.”

GURR ERA OP will be showing at the Brisbane Powerhouse as part of Brisbane Festival. A foyer activation will feature videos from research trips to Erub Island in the Torres Straits and a tea station influenced by Torres Strait Islander culture. GURR ERA OP is a unique opportunity for audiences to be immersed in contemporary Torres Strait Islander storytelling.

"This is easily the most affecting work I’ve seen this festival season…a call to action, and in this period of post-referendum soul-searching, it hits hard." - ABC Arts