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KOWHITI FESTIVAL OF MAORI CONTEMPORARY DANCE9th May 2010
He mihi mahana o te tau hōu kia koe.
Stars of a different sort will be shining during the Matariki celebrations this year, when Aotearoa's leading Māori contemporary dance artists come together in Wellington to participate in Kōwhiti - a four day festival as part of the festivities at Te Papa for the Māori New Year.
June 24 - 27 Soundings Theatre, Te Papa, Wellington
Kōwhiti - Matariki Festival of Māori Contemporary Dance
www.kowhiti.org.nz
Festival curators, Merenia and Tanemahuta Gray are creating a programme to showcase the achievements of a host of Māori dancers, choreographers, dance film makers, teachers and scholars from New Zealand's dance community. The Grays are siblings, who are leading lights in the contemporary dance world but also have expertise in the more traditional Māori arts. They last collaborated as Director and Choreographer on the mega-production Maui: One Man Against the Gods, which has toured throughout New Zealand and is aiming to go off-shore in the near future.
They see Kōwhiti as a chance to draw attention to 'te puāwaitanga ō rehia' - the blossoming of a new wave of Māori dance talent – a group who use the dance vocabulary, tools and technologies of the 21st Century to create their work but who remain firmly in touch with the traditions and wairua (spirit) of their people. Although Māori contemporary dance has long figured as a major player in the mainstream development of the art form in Aotearoa, it is only recently that a definitive and burgeoning movement of indigenous artistic dance choreographers has emerged to create a uniquely New Zealand dance form – one that is quite distinct from its European and American roots.
The festival will afford a feast of dance at a time of new beginnings - Matariki. Te Rangi Huata, who has been organising Matariki celebrations in Hastings since 2000, describes Matariki as "New Zealand's (version of America's) Thanksgiving".
Kōwhiti will run for four days at Te Papa, Wellington, June 24 – 27 2010. Participants in the festival will be able to watch the Kōwhiti Premiere performance and Māori dance film at Soundings Theatre and dance demonstrations at The Marae. There will also be talks by leading Māori dance scholars, a forum and the opportunity to participate in dance workshops.
More Dance events & festivals:
Win tickets to Atamira performance Whetu as part of Kowhiti
DANZ Diary
DANZ Festivals page
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