New theatre show brings Kirikiriroa stories to life

Performing Arts students from the School of Media Arts will debut ‘Te Awa –-The Untold Pakiwaitara o Kirkiriroa’ to eleven primary schools this week.

 The high energy show features pūrākau (legends) about Te Kopu Mania o Kirikiriroa (the smooth belly of Kirikiriroa) inspired by local hapu Ngāti Hauā , Ngāti Māhanga and Ngāti Wairere

The stories were gifted by manawhenua as part of a rangahau project connecting the hapu to students at Wintec-Te Pukenga. One of the project aims is to share knowledge so students from Media Arts can make creative work as a community resource.

Te Awa –-The Untold Pakiwaitara o Kirkiriroa’ is the first output of the project and showcases five pūrākau of Te Waikato Awa, Kingi Tāwhiao, Hotumauea, Karutahi and Little Shrub.

Tutor Jane Leonard (Ngāpuhi ) and the students have used a mix of waiata, haka, dance and theatre for the 30-minute show, and added plenty of interaction for their young audiences.

The second-year theatre students, who come from as far afield as Samoa and South Africa, have all enjoyed learning the hapu stories and participating in the process of devising a show for a primary school audience.

Michael Kerei, who plays Kingi Tāwhiao, says the group listened first, then took up the stories and researched to develop the different elements to focus on. Kerei thinks the original songs are the best part of the show for him.

Musician Iosia Tofilau said the class collaborated on the songs, breaking into groups to work on lines and verses. He feels the music is good and that the show has the right balance of being “faithful to the culture as well as entertaining for the kids”.

Teamwork was something several of the cast mentioned with Tofilau saying the unity of the group project was a strength and brought the class together” while Kobe Young said they were “all proud of each other and of their finished product”.

Eckard Becker said he loved creating the show with the class and that as a South African it was a “pretty cool” personal experience to be part of an inclusive Māori kaupapa. Becker said learning and performing a haka was something he never thought he would experience.

Performer Paige Landon hopes their young audience is inspired by the place they’re growing up in. She felt it was a privilege to learn and share knowledge that has been passed down by generations.  Cultural knowledge was something Patrick Ward  also appreciated saying the process was inclusive. Ward said it was good to learn a Te Ao Māori perspective, as a lot of history had been recorded from a Western view. 

The collaboration also included Spatial Design student Megan Bowden, who worked with the group to create a portable set that can be easily taken to the different schools. Bowden designed two screens to show representations of key characters and locations in the stories and said she appreciated support from Tony Nicholls who constructed the frames, Dion Ormsby from Wintec’s Toia Mai team, and her tutors.

The rangahau project was initiated by former staff member Moko Tauariki as part of Wintec’s Toia Mai strategy, and supported by Media Arts research leader Nick Braae and colleagues from communication, design and contemporary art. It was established as a long-term collaboration with hapu so that students from all areas of Media Arts will have the opportunity to work with manawhenua on special creative projects.

‘Te Awa –-The Untold Pakiwaitara o Kirkiriroa’ will be going Hukanui School, Hamilton East School, Marian Catholic School, Endeavour School, Nawton Primary, Tauwhare School, Glenview School, Woodstock School, Te Totara Primary, Knighton Normal School and Aberdeen School