Te Reo Whakakoko o Mauāo (Te Wharekura o Mauāo) and Te Mānukatūtahi (Whakatāne High) are brimming with excitement as they acknowledge the journey of challenges and triumphs that have led them to the eagerly anticipated kapa haka competition taking place tomorrow, in Ōpōtiki.
Whakatāne High School’s kapa haka tutor, Dwayne Hudson, emphasises that a fundamental aspect of kapa haka is not centred on winning competitions. Instead, it revolves around collective learning and the shared experience of embracing new and exhilarating kaupapa as a cohesive group.
“In any campaign, there are ups and downs and obstacles to overcome and that’s the same for this one. It’s all part of the journey, pushing through all the ups and downs and now we are here, one day away from the stage - everyone’s excited and ready.”
Hudson says while Whakatāne High School remained operational despite the recent cyclone storms in the Bay of Plenty, its effects were felt primarily by students residing in rural areas like Waimana, Ruatoki, and Tāneatua.
“The weather also affected our students, our practices and time and, although it didn’t close our school down, the floodings in parts of our region didn’t allow our kids to attend kura and that took a toll on our mahi but despite the hardships we all went through, we are proud and ready to see our students perform on that stage.”
Te Wharekura o Mauāo’s kapa haka tutor, Wiremu Mako, notes that the journey to the competition has taken a unique turn, as the school has recently incorporated maramataka Māori into their daily curriculum.
Māori-focused approach
“Our school has taken a new approach by bringing maramataka Māori into our work. This means we’ve adjusted our holiday weeks and schedules to have a more Māori-focused way of learning. This change has given us more time to get our students ready for the competition, which is great.”
Mako says that in the 10 years’ history of the school, this year is the first that they have practised away from the kura premises, and at a marae with their kaumātua Patrick Nicholis.
“The reason we held our first practice outside of kura is so we could be closer to Patrick Nicholis, who is the kaupapa of our performance. We felt the need to be closer to him and his marae, Tawhitinui Marae, as he was a prominent figure in Tauranga Moana, who held our histories and taught them to most of our tamariki.”
“The main kaupapa I push is that haka is bigger than a competition but it is about being Māori and being on our marae with our whānau, so our performance isn’t about winning but purely about acknowledging those of great importance to us, Patrick Nicholis and our whaea, Sally Ririnui .”
The kapa haka competition is set to start tomorrow, August 10 at the Ōhui Domain in Ōpōtiki and will be livestreamed via the Mātaatua Kapahaka 2023 facebook page.