Navigating Big Emotions

Co Theatre Physical recently brought their enthralling production ‘Wild Feelings’ to captivate and educate our Middle School girls. The performance beautifully complemented the Mitey programme, centred around emotional awareness and developing healthy management tools. Through engaging storytelling, the talented actors entertained and imparted valuable lessons to our girls, leaving them laughing and enthralled throughout the play.

As the story began, children were introduced to a jealous tūī bird and a resilient bar-tailed godwit named Kūaka. As Kūaka completes her impressive twelve-thousand-kilometre, eightday flight to Thames, she becomes the centre of attention for media and scientists seeking to capture her triumph. Meanwhile, consumed by jealousy, Tūī’s behaviour towards her old friend turns sour.

Feeling trapped in Aotearoa and yearning for recognition and admiration, Tūī dreams of embarking on global adventures. Overwhelmed by negative emotions, she seeks guidance from the mysterious Wild Feelings Bird. Together, they embark on a transformative journey through Wild Feelings Land, where Tūī learns valuable strategies to identify and manage the tumultuous emotions brought on by comparison. Through her journey, Tūī realises she has made judgements based on half-truths. Her observations of Kūaka were only highlighting snapshots of her life, and behind the curtains, she also had her struggles.

Through this hilarious and riveting performance, the girls explored jealousy, friendship, and emotional resilience themes. They learned how to recognise and cope with their own complex emotions, understanding the importance of supporting one another in need.

‘Wild Feelings’ was a seamless blend of storytelling that captivated our student audience while imparting valuable life lessons. We encourage you to take the story of Tūī and Kūaka as a reminder to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, rather than letting comparison eat away at your emotional wellbeing.