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If
you thought the All Blacks' haka was the epitome of a
dynamic Maori performance, think again.
A
real haka in full-blown action performed by a vibrant group
of Maori men and women can send shivers up your spine - and
that's just as a spectator. Imagine the fear in pre-European
days when haka were done before battles to intimidate
enemies!
Today
events like the Kapa Haka Super 12 National Festival give
Maori groups the chance to hone their kapa haka skills and
compete against the country's foremost Maori
performers.
Held
in Gisborne at the end of December, the groups are made up
of the crème de la crème of Maori performers
from up to twelve rohe or regions: Tamaki, Waikato, Aotea,
Te Arawa, Mataatua, Tairawhiti, Aotea, Takitimu, Rangitane,
Aotea, Te Whanganui a Tara in Te Ika a Maui (the North
Island) and Te Waipounamu (the South Island).
The
competition was first held by Maori organisation, Kapa Haka
International (KHI), last year to develop Maori performing arts and
encourage innovation. It also acts as a precursor
for the Aotearoa Maori Performing Arts Festival, the
biennial national competition that will be held in Auckland
next year.
Like
the name suggests, each group in the Super 12 festival has a
dozen performers and can only perform waiata (song), poi and
haka brackets for twelve minutes.
Organiser,
Wiremu Te Aho, says the smaller numbers of performers changes the
dynamics of the competition unlike the national competitions where
groups are made up of forty people. He likens the theme variation to
the way Rugby Sevens differs to rugby proper. "It's an
innovation in terms of the way we're moving kapa haka from
being traditional to more modern," says Te Aho. "With a
smaller group it can be more exciting. Also it's the smaller
groups that are likely to travel overseas and get more
international exposure. This competition will stand them in
good stead."
Te
Aho says if groups have the potential and ability to
perform, they have a good shot at winning in the KHI Super
12.
"You
don't necessarily have to be a star group like Waihirere or
Te Roopu Manutaki," says Te Aho. "Last year, Te Roopu Manaia
won and Te Iti Kahurangi came second.
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Te Iti Kahurangi had a group of mainly new performers at competitive
level so they really did well."
Last
year's judges included kapa haka celebrities, Howard
Morrison jun. from Ngati Rangiwewehi in Te Arawa (Rotorua
area) and Tomairangi Paki from the Waikato group
Taniwharau.
This
year's judges haven't been announced yet but the same
judging criteria will still apply. All performances must be
in the Maori language, contain no anti-Government or
negative inter-tribal statements and they must celebrate
being Maori - the constant theme of this
festival.
"We
also want to make the festival a user-friendly, family
affair," says Te Aho. "We'll be promoting healthy kai
(food), with no alcohol allowed and plenty of entertainment
for our tamariki (kids)."
Photographs
courtesy of Paul Rickard, Gisborne Herald: Spectacular
performance by Te Roopu Manaia from Rotorua - the inaugural
winners of the Kapa Haka Super 12 festival. The majority of
the members hail from Ngati Rangiwewehi of Te Arawa.
For
more information, check out:
www.kapahakainternational.com
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