Neil Ieremia

[verification needed] Born and bred in Cannons Creek, Porirua, and of Samoan descent, Neil Ieremia was raised in a tough working-class neighbourhood located to the North East of Wellington.

At the age of six, Ieremia was struck with rheumatic fever which damaged his heart, and meant he couldn't play sports with his friends.

At nineteen, and with no formal training, Ieremia left his job working in a bank and packed up his life in Porirua to move to Auckland.

Motivated to provide a different perspective and a fresh voice in the dance scene, Ieremia founded his own company, Black Grace, in 1995, with ten male dancers of Pacific, Maori and New Zealand heritage.

Ieremia draws from his Samoan and New Zealand roots to create innovative dance works that reach across social, cultural and generational barriers.

The work itself is highly physical, rich in the storytelling traditions of the South Pacific and expressed with raw finesse, unique beauty and power.

Ieremia’s creative concepts are wide-ranging, from something as simple as creating movement to a favourite piece of music, right through to works exploring abuse, colonization and racism.