The Meow Gurrrls are a group of seven Wellington & Kāpiti Coast poets, named in part after Meow café/bar in Wellington where the group meet, who for some time now have been sharing poetry, wine, food and fine company.
To celebrate National Poetry Day on 26 August, two members of the Meow Gurrrls collective came in to talk to us about the inspirations and ideas behind their poetry, their practices, what it means to be a poet and to give us a few readings.
Rewa Morgan (Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Raukawa) lives on the Kāpiti Coast. Rewa writes poetry, fiction and non-fiction essays. Her poetry feature’s themes of whakapapa, mythology, history and more recently astrology.
Sudha Rao is a Wellington based poet and dancer, originally from South India. She recently released her debut poetry collection, On elephant’s shoulders, published through The Cuba Press. With themes of longing, transition, and memory, On elephant’s shoulders explores the poet’s South Indian heritage relocated to New Zealand and addresses the complexity of the migrant experience.
We wish to extend our heartfelt thanks to the fabulous Sudha and Rewa for taking time out of their busy schedules and for such a fantastic interview and, best of all, their fabulous readings.
This interview was done in conjunction with Caffeine and Aspirin, the arts and entertainment review show on Radioactive FM. It was conducted by host Tanya Ashcroft. You can hear the full interview, as well as find a wide selection of Meow Gurrrls poetry collections available to borrow, below: And in their joint collection of poems called Meowing. Part 1, The Meow Gurrrls’ little book of poetry .
And we also have a wonderful filmed interview of Sudha Rao talking exclusively about her recent solo collection On Elephant’s Shoulders below.
On elephant’s shoulders / Rao, Sudha
“With themes of longing, transition and memory, ‘On elephant’s shoulders’ explores the poet’s South Indian heritage relocated to New Zealand and tries to unlayer the complexity of the migrant experience. For Sudha this has meant experiencing the riches of a new culture and a new landscape while managing the realities of marginalisation. And ultimately a transformation into a person of the Pacific, still grounded in her family and her Hindu beliefs.” (Adapted from Catalogue)
Social media / Macpherson, Mary
“Is our identity more of a composite than we realise? We often think of ourselves as formed from our core values or our DNA, but in Social Media, Mary Macpherson explores identity as a creation of the interactions we have with others: friends, family and the wider world, and the evolving role technology now plays in this. A playful and provocative collection that drills into our social and media selves using elements from short stories and film scripts.” (Adapted from Catalogue)
Millionaire’s shortbread : poems / Duffy, Mary Jane
“”Millionaire’s Shortbread is both book and cake. Meeting at a cafe table in downtown Wellington, sustained by their favourite treat and gathering in an illustrator along the way, the poets put together this selection of their work over three years. It seemed inevitable that the book should be named after the cake, and the distinctive voices of the poets become its flavoursome ingredients.” (Adapted from Catalogue)
Reading the signs / Freegard, Janis
“The poems in Janis Freegard’s new collection take their starting point from the poet’s daily ritual of reading the tea leaves while writing in the Ema Saiko room in the Wairarapa. This leads to unexpected discoveries about the world around her, from spider visitors to the writing room and a papyrus-fine gecko skin in the nearby wildlife sanctuary, to news of the ancient bdelloid rotifers that defy natural disasters and the recently extinct amphibians that did not. Then a gender- and species-fluid interpreter turns up to help the poet work her way through the daily revelations in her tea cup … Reading the Signs is a series of linked poems that are thoughtful and humorous, provocative and tender, and come together as a quiet epic about a planet that is fast running out of puff.” (Adapted from Catalogue)
