{{Short description|New Zealand journalist and playwright (1976–2026)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2026}} {{Use New Zealand English|date=January 2026}} {{Infobox person | name = Aroha Awarau | image = Aroha Awarau on The Cafe.jpg | caption = Awarau in 2017 | birth_name = Aroha Edward Awarau | birth_date = {{Birth date|1976|1|21|df=y}} | birth_place = Hāwera, New Zealand | death_date = {{Death date and age|2026|1|14|1976|1|21|df=y}} | death_place = Ponsonby, New Zealand | alma_mater = University of Waikato<br>Auckland University of Technology | occupation = {{Hlist|Journalist|playwright}} | years_active = 1990s–2026 | employer = ''Woman's Day (New Zealand)''<br>''New Zealand Woman's Weekly'' | television = ''Native Affairs'' (Whakaata Māori) | awards = New Zealand Magazine Journalist of the Year (2008)<br>New Zealand Celebrity and Entertainment Magazine Journalist of the Year (2013)<br>Scroll of Honour of the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand (2019)<br>Ronald Hugh Morrieson Literary Award (thrice) }}
'''Aroha Edward Awarau''' (21 January 1976 – 14 January 2026) was a New Zealand journalist and playwright.<ref>{{cite news |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170902002658/http://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=1125**2874 |archive-date=2 September 2017 |url-status=dead |url= http://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=1125**2874 |title=Theatre preview: Ladies who lunch |work=The New Zealand Herald|accessdate=1 September 2017}}</ref><ref name="Taranaki Daily News">{{cite news |url= https://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/10697338/Success-scripted-for-busy-writer|title=Success scripted for busy writer |work=Taranaki Daily News |access-date=1 September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Emma |last=Whittaker |url= https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/auckland-city-harbour-news/9996971/Invitation-to-Luncheon-with-five-actresses |title=Invitation to Luncheon with five actresses|work=Auckland City Harbour News |accessdate=1 September 2017}}</ref> He won the 2008 New Zealand Magazine Journalist of the Year (Mass Market) at the annual Magazine Publisher's Association Awards.{{Cn|date=January 2026}} He was a finalist again for the same award in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2016. In 2013, he was awarded the New Zealand Celebrity and Entertainment Magazine Journalist of the Year at the Magazine Publisher's Awards.{{Cn|date=January 2026}} Awarau was a news editor for the ''Woman's Day'' magazine, and a senior writer at ''New Zealand Woman's Weekly''.{{Cn|date=January 2026}} He was a story producer for the Māori Television current affairs show ''Native Affairs''.{{Cn|date=January 2026}}
He was also a successful playwright, with his first play ''Luncheon'', starring accomplished New Zealand actress Jennifer Ward-Lealand and directed by Katie Wolfe, winning Best Play at the 2014 New Zealand Script Writing Awards. His second play ''Officer 27'' was a finalist at the New Zealand Adams Playwriting Awards and the New Zealand Script Writing Awards in 2016.{{Cn|date=January 2026}} His short film ''Home'' premiered at the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival in Toronto.{{Cn|date=January 2026}}
==Life and career== Awarau was born on 21 January 1976<ref name="Fuata obit">{{Cite web |last=Fuata |first=Ngaire |author-link=Ngaire Fuata |date=15 January 2026 |title=Remembering Aroha Awarau |url= https://tpplus.co.nz/community/remembering-aroha-awarau/ |access-date=16 January 2026 |website=Tagata Pasifika}}</ref> in Hāwera, where he also grew up.<ref name="Taranaki Daily News" /> His ancestry included Ngāti Maru, Ngāti Porou, Niuean, and Samoan, with specific pride of his Pacific heritage.<ref name="Fuata obit" /> He had a degree in film and television from the University of Waikato (1998), and a journalism degree from the Auckland University of Technology (2004).<ref name="Fuata obit" /> After leaving Waikato University, Awarau worked in the New Zealand film industry for two years, working on films such as ''What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?'' and ''The Price of Milk''.<ref name="Fuata obit" />
He also had a short stint as a stand-up comedian, becoming a finalist in the Raw Quest, a national competition to find the best new comedian and appeared as a contestant in the reality show ''So You Think You're Funny?'', a competition to find New Zealand's funniest new comedian.<ref name="Theatreview Trust">{{cite web |author1=Playmarket New Zealand |title=Untitled |url= https://www.theatreview.org.nz/2026/01/15/aroha-awarau/ |publisher=The Theatreview Trust |access-date=18 January 2026 |date=15 January 2026}}</ref>
While still at high school, Awarau was the first writer to become a three-time winner of the Ronald Hugh Morrieson Literary Award. The annual award was created by the South Taranaki District Council to commemorate Hāwera's most famous author, Ronald Hugh Morrieson.<ref name="Theatreview Trust" />
In October 2019, he was presented with a Scroll of Honour from the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand for his contribution to New Zealand entertainment.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tyson |first1=Jessica |title='A force to be reckoned with' Māori entertainers sweep up at awards |url= https://www.teaonews.co.nz/2019/10/14/a-force-to-be-reckoned-with-maori-entertainers-sweep-up-at-awards/ |access-date=18 January 2026 |work=Te Ao Maori News |date=14 October 2019}}</ref>
Awarau died at a hospice in Ponsonby, on 14 January 2026, at the age of 49.<ref>{{cite news |author=Your Ex |work= Gay Express |url= https://gayexpress.co.nz/2026/01/queer-maori-playwright-aroha-awarau-passes-away-peacefully-in-ponsonby/ |title=Queer Māori Playwright Aroha Awarau Passes Away Peacefully in Ponsonby |date=14 January 2026 |access-date=15 January 2026}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Whatitiri |last=Te Wake |url= https://www.teaonews.co.nz/2026/01/14/maori-journalist-and-playwright-aroha-awarau-dies-aged-49/ |title=Māori journalist and playwright Aroha Awarau dies aged 49 |work=Te Ao Māori News |date=14 January 2026 |access-date=15 January 2026}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{IMDb name|1286595}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Awarau, Aroha}} Category:1976 births Category:2026 deaths Category:Auckland University of Technology alumni Category:New Zealand male journalists Category:University of Waikato alumni Category:People from Hāwera Category:21st-century New Zealand dramatists and playwrights Category:New Zealand male dramatists and playwrights Category:People educated at Hawera High School Category:People educated at Hato Paora College Category:New Zealand LGBTQ journalists Category:New Zealand Māori journalists Category:New Zealand gay writers Category:21st-century male journalists Category:21st-century New Zealand male writers Category:21st-century New Zealand LGBTQ people