‘Mai Fali Eh’ means ‘come home’ in Tetum, the most commonly spoken language in Timor-Leste. In 2012, The Boîte embarked on a groundbreaking community engagement program with members of the Timorese communities in both Timor-Leste and Victoria, as well as the Australian Timor-Leste friendship network of Australia, to develop the Mai Fali Eh! project.
The project was developed with guidance and support from Timor-Leste musician and community leader, Ego Lemos, whose first experience of touring in Australia had been with the Millennium Chorus in 2001. The project involved Timorese choir Koru Loriku, coming to tour Victoria and perform with the annual Melbourne Millennium Chorus and Boîte Schools Chorus program. The Koru Loriku choir (named after the lorikeet, a bird that Australia and Timor-Leste share) involved singers drawn together from all the language groups in Timor-Leste, with support from Ego Lemos and Choir Director Paulo Pereia Dos Santos. The initiative involved Boite staff Roger King and Katrina Wilson travelling to Timor-Leste to support the establishment of the project and significant work from The Boîte in supporting the choir members to later tour Victoria.
Mai Fali Eh! enabled thousands of participants to share in the languages, stories and culture of Timor-Leste and engaged Timorese friendship groups from both Australia and Timor-Leste. Millennium Choir members performed draped in hand woven tais, commissioned from weaving co-operatives in Timor-Leste, designed for the event.