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Wendt, Albert. The Songmaker’s Chair. Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press (2840 Kolowalu St., Honolulu, HI), 2004. x, 127p. ISBN 0-8248-2925-5 (pa) $20.00. Notes.
Albert Wendt’s The Songmaker’s Chair is a poignant play that portays a blended family’s efforts to stay connected despite the complexities of modern life. This family endeavors to stay connected to indigenous culture, with the chair as the centerpiece of that culture, and its members struggle to stay connected with one another in a modern world and in an alien culture.
Many of the conflicts played out between father and children in this play ring true. The sense of being a stranger in a strange land resonates with those uprooted, whether placed in New Zealand, Hawaii, or otherwhere. Tensions between the different cultures, generations, and sexes are universal themes that face humanity. But at the core, essential humanity levels and makes the family one, leaving the reader with a feeling of hope. As a professor of New Zealand literature at the University of Aukland, and a person of Samoan heritage, Albert Wendt has devoted time and attention to developing these themes: themes that are present in Wendt’s poetry anthologies and other fiction works (Whetu Moana: Contemporary Polynesian Poems in English and Flying Fox in a Freedom Tree, for example).
A couple of works from Hawaiian and Native American perspective that mirror Wendt’s themes are Susan Nunes’ A Small Obligation, and Leslie Silko’s Ceremony. While Nunes gently points out the contempt, tolerance, and affection that flourish between first and second generation immigrants in a strange land, Silko wrestles with the utter alienation of a people under the onslaught of the hollow so-called culture of the white people, a culture cobbled together from the traditions of other cultures, but with nothing but un-satiated need at its core.
Following these themes, Wendt effectively portrays the family’s tension as the patriarch, Peseola, attempts to pass the headship of the household, symbolized by ownership of the songmaker’s chair, to a family member. He senses his impending death. The oldest son, Fa-amau, is seen as the natural heir, but the given daughter objects because Fa-amau’s wife is not of their Samoan culture. This incendiary situation is exasperated by the family’s need to use substances to tolerate their surroundings and their lifestyle. This effectively paints a portrait of a people struggling to hold onto a sense of self in the face of submersion in another culture. The grandchildren’s assimilation into the dominant culture is viewed with both pride and dismay by the older generation players, further splintering the family’s sense of who they are.
A stumbling block to understanding this play is the lengthy un-translated passages and even comments that are in the native Samoan tongue. If these passages were footnoted, rather than explained in the appendix, this would enhance the understanding of the book. Translation and interpretation of the play in the hands of the director and the players will also dictate the success of this drama. If the symbol of the dark owl, hovering ominously over the head of the house, is clumsily presented, it could be to the detriment of the production. If played outside of the context of the culture, adaptation might be necessary.
This play is truly worth reading. Multi-cultural Hawaii is certainly an appropriate venue for this drama, as well as areas home to many Pacific Islanders. High schools and universities, as well as public libraries would benefit from having this handsome, sturdy paperback in their collections. This work is recommended, as an affordable multicultural drama paperback, to the abovementioned institutions.
Works Cited
Albert Wendt’s The Songmaker’s Chair is a poignant play that portays a blended family’s efforts to stay connected despite the complexities of modern life. This family endeavors to stay connected to indigenous culture, with the chair as the centerpiece of that culture, and its members struggle to stay connected with one another in a modern world and in an alien culture.
Many of the conflicts played out between father and children in this play ring true. The sense of being a stranger in a strange land resonates with those uprooted, whether placed in New Zealand, Hawaii, or otherwhere. Tensions between the different cultures, generations, and sexes are universal themes that face humanity. But at the core, essential humanity levels and makes the family one, leaving the reader with a feeling of hope. As a professor of New Zealand literature at the University of Aukland, and a person of Samoan heritage, Albert Wendt has devoted time and attention to developing these themes: themes that are present in Wendt’s poetry anthologies and other fiction works (Whetu Moana: Contemporary Polynesian Poems in English and Flying Fox in a Freedom Tree, for example).
A couple of works from Hawaiian and Native American perspective that mirror Wendt’s themes are Susan Nunes’ A Small Obligation, and Leslie Silko’s Ceremony. While Nunes gently points out the contempt, tolerance, and affection that flourish between first and second generation immigrants in a strange land, Silko wrestles with the utter alienation of a people under the onslaught of the hollow so-called culture of the white people, a culture cobbled together from the traditions of other cultures, but with nothing but un-satiated need at its core.
Following these themes, Wendt effectively portrays the family’s tension as the patriarch, Peseola, attempts to pass the headship of the household, symbolized by ownership of the songmaker’s chair, to a family member. He senses his impending death. The oldest son, Fa-amau, is seen as the natural heir, but the given daughter objects because Fa-amau’s wife is not of their Samoan culture. This incendiary situation is exasperated by the family’s need to use substances to tolerate their surroundings and their lifestyle. This effectively paints a portrait of a people struggling to hold onto a sense of self in the face of submersion in another culture. The grandchildren’s assimilation into the dominant culture is viewed with both pride and dismay by the older generation players, further splintering the family’s sense of who they are.
A stumbling block to understanding this play is the lengthy un-translated passages and even comments that are in the native Samoan tongue. If these passages were footnoted, rather than explained in the appendix, this would enhance the understanding of the book. Translation and interpretation of the play in the hands of the director and the players will also dictate the success of this drama. If the symbol of the dark owl, hovering ominously over the head of the house, is clumsily presented, it could be to the detriment of the production. If played outside of the context of the culture, adaptation might be necessary.
This play is truly worth reading. Multi-cultural Hawaii is certainly an appropriate venue for this drama, as well as areas home to many Pacific Islanders. High schools and universities, as well as public libraries would benefit from having this handsome, sturdy paperback in their collections. This work is recommended, as an affordable multicultural drama paperback, to the abovementioned institutions.
Works Cited
- Nunes, Susan. A Small Obligation and Other Stories of Hilo. Honolulu: Bamaboo Ridge Press, 1982.
- Silko, Leslie Marmon. Ceremony. New York: Penguin Books, 1977.
Reviewed by Leslie Fukushima, reading teacher at Keaau Middle School, Keaau, Hi.
