About

Born from the theatre marae traditions of Te Rākau Hua o Te Wao Tapu, Hurō Productions is a kaupapa Māori driven production company founded in 2025 by siblings Hariata Moriarty and Tamati Moriarty. Hurō creates Indigenous youth led theatre, music and film based in Te Whanganui a Tara Wellington New Zealand Aotearoa.

CONTACT HURŌ huroproductions@gmail.com

Two young women smile at each other. They are in a rural environment under some big trees with a paddock in the background. There is a barbed wire farm fence behind them.

Hurō Productions is a hapori, a collective, a movement to create from a place of joy as an act of resistance.

It is a rangatahi led initiative with a mokopuna first approach, and cemented with the understanding that we are our ancestors' wildest dreams.

Their first creative production was the play Waenga in 2025.

In early 2026, Hurō produced a short film Kikokiko with the support of the New Zealand Film Commission. Written by Jorja Heta and Matariki Bennett, and directed Matariki Bennett Kikokiko follows the journey of a whānau of wāhine Māori navigating the passing of one of their daughters. It is in post-production.

Caught in two bubbles, a young woman with long brown hair and brown eyes and a young man in a suit with curly black hair and brown eyes stare at the camera. The word 'Waenga' between them is boxed in.

BOOK TICKETS

2026 TOUR 19 Jun - 4 Aug

A group of mainly young people stare at a fish eye lens camera. They all have attitude. Two are in police uniforms and one has a beanie and a blanket. The young women in the front is showing her ID. They are boxed in by yellow brackets.

Waenga

Waenga was developed in partnership with Te Rākau following research with young people. The play unfolds through Connie, played by Hariata, a young wahine caught in the crossfire of chasing her dreams and an unexplainable visit to a place she doesn't belong, and Grayson, played by Tamati, a junior defence lawyer navigating the complexities of the legal system while trying to uphold his identity and mana motuhake.

Waenga premiered in the Kia Mau Festival 2025 with Hariarata and Tamati joined on-stage by musician Rameka Tamaki. Since then it has taken various shapes including a Te Rākau version with school students from Porirua, a radio play (to be produced by Radio New Zealand) and a national schools tour produced by Taki Rua Productions.

In 2026 Te Rākau are touring an ensemble version with 10 performers layering music, dance and civics into this powerful critically acclaimed and relevant story.

Two young people stare feircy at the camera, the New Zealand parliamnent beehive building is in the backsground. Text says "Waenga Hurō Productions"

Ngā Manu Pīrere Award 2025

Hariata and Tamati Moriarty received this award from Creative New Zealand in recognition of their continued development of their artistry, commitment to upholding tikanga and kaupapa Māori within their creative processes, and their belief in creativity as an integral part of self expression.