Mere Boynton

Bio

Mere Boynton is a multitalented performance artist, singer, actor, and MC. With formal training in voice, she has crafted a distinctive style that beautifully blends her classical background with her Māori heritage.

As an actor, Mere is well known for her portrayal of Mavis in Once Were Warriors. She has also appeared in several films and television series, including The Piano, Deadlands, Hinekura (a short film in te reo Māori), Colonial Combat (a television series in te reo Māori), and The Untold Tales of Tūteremoana, also in te reo Māori. More recently, she starred in the acclaimed theatrical work Witi’s Wāhine, written and directed by Nancy Brunning for the Te Tairāwhiti Arts Festival.

Mere's singing engagements have been equally memorable. She has performed for New Zealand’s Te Papa and sung in the film Te Tangata Whairawa o Weneti (The Māori Merchant of Venice). Notably, she played the lead role of Taranga in Maui: One Man Against the Gods (2006) and performed with the avant-garde theatre company MAU at the Vienna Mozart Festival in Requiem (2006), commissioned by Artistic Director Peter Sellars for the New Crowned Hope Festival, celebrating the 250th anniversary of Mozart. Requiem was also presented in Brussels, Auckland, London, and New York.

Other career highlights, both locally and internationally, include collaborations with NZIAF Opera, the Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra, the Auckland Arts Festival, and the NZ Symphony Orchestra.

Mere released her first CD, Waikohu, in 2005, followed by Aroha/Ahava in 2015.