The Te Matatini National Kapa Haka competition celebrates 50 years
of gracing our stages across Aotearoa.
Tens of thousands of people have taken to the stage
since the first 17 groups competed in Rotorua in 1972
for the Duncan McIntyre trophy.
In 1982 reigning kapa haka champs Taniwharau toured Europe
and Te Karere was there to film it.
Then ten years later came a new name
and a new team to beat.
Te Waka Huia would dominate for years to come.
In 2002 Waihīrere breaks the record with five national titles.
It then became Te Matatini
with a renewed focus on promoting te reo Māori
and getting more performers on stage.
Te Matatini is now New Zealand's largest cultural festival.
Covid has kept the now 50 groups from the stage.
We'll talk to Kawariki Morgan from defending champions
Ngā Tūmanako shortly about when we can expect
to see them haka again.
But first our report from Taroi Black.
It's takes blood...
...sweat and tears...
Who else but Wahīrere?
...to create an electrifying 30-minute haka bracket.
More than a hundred groups have appeared
at the national kapa haka festival
since its inception in the early 1970s.
Every performer knows the feeling when it ends.
Of all the 50 years only 11 teams have experienced glory.
Five-time champions Waihīrere Māori Club being one.
However, it's not just about winning.
The festival was built out of the promise
to diversify New Zealand's culture.
And to provide a way for our performing arts to elevate.
Te Matatini chair Selwyn Parata has seen his people flourish
because of it.
Seeing the kids hungry for the language
and the ways of their ancestors.
It will take four years for another festival
since the last one in 2019.
Auckland based club Ngā Tūmanako holds the longest reigning win
in one cycle
because of the Coronavirus that has pushed the event out
to four years since 2019.
Let's talk now to Ngā Tūmanako's Kawariki Morgan.
Tēnā koe!
Tēnā koe.
You honour us with presence,
it makes me want to get up and haka right here, right now.
Your mana gives me the urge to get up and haka!
I remember when you stood up at Te Matatini
for Ngā Pūmanawa o Te Arawa.
That changed my world
and I've followed kapa haka ever since!
Oh my gosh!
I'm humbled!
I guess you've already started to reminisce
about your childhood Matatini memories.
Who were your favourite teams back then?
And who were your favourite performers back then and why?
There's no team better than the West Auckland teams,
we're Te Rōpū Manataki,
Pāpā Pita's team,
and Te Waka Huia.
I remember when Te Waka Huia
performed their "Lion King" song in '96.
That was the first time that I saw te ao Māori
and the world I live in combine.
It was amazing, just amazing.
I'll never forget it.
If I remember right the 96 comp was in Rotorua wasn't it?
Correct.
When they performed the Lion King whakaeke,
and Ngāti Rangiwewehi won,
with the "Hou Mai Tawhiti! Tamatekapua!" whakaeke.
See we still remember!
Those were the days.
The performers were so good.
The songs they performed back then were really good.
How do you think these 50 years have shaped you
(and this generation)
as a performer and a tutor of the reigning national champs?
Te Matatini made te reo go wide and far.
It didn't matter if you were fluent in te reo or not.
You didn't need that to join a kapa haka.
It was because of Te Matatini,
or rather Te Matatini is a vehicle for people to experience
Māori creative arts and te reo Māori.
You get karanga, karakia, oratory, singing and haka all in one place.
All because of Te Matatini.
It's an open space of our ao Māori
to throw kaupapa out there for our people to consider.
Some will throw them aside,
some will respect it.
We put it out there as food for thought for our people.
There's no better way to express ourselves,
and our customs than through kapa haka.
While we're on the topic
of Te Matatini spreading our reo to every corner of the nation,
I see the modern day groups operate differently.
Back in the day,
when we performed,
in '92, '94 and '96,
We operated in English. (But performed in te reo Māori).
But I see groups like yours operate under the ethos of:
"Leave English at the gate,
because run this kapa haka entirely in te reo Māori."
Is that right?
You guys who grew up in kura kaupapa do it like that now right?
We do our best to immerse our performers in te reo Māori.
Don't just use te reo Māori
for your 20 minute performance bracket.
We immerse the haka performers in te reo
so they understand exactly what they are performing.
That's what Reikura and I try to do,
but she's the one cracking the whip!
I just want to help them!
Kawa! Kawa! Do it like this Kawa!
I think that's the beautiful thing about kapa haka.
Ngā Tūmanako is a safe space to raise our children in te reo.
Great!
So, Te Matatini is 50 years old today.
What are your aspirations for kapa haka for the next 50 years.
I want Te Manahau to come back!
I miss seeing you on stage!
The sun has set on my haka days.
It's over!
To keep going,
I want it to keep going.
I want you and me to be sitting here 50 years from now,
talking about the life of kapa haka,
how it's a vehicle to carry our culture and our traditions
to the whole world.
Do you know when Te Matatini is on?
Have the plans changed?
Or has it yet to be decided?
Only God knows!
Ok.
It all comes down to the last minute and what Covid does.
It's been a hard time for kapa haka.
We've been a holiday for too long!
The groups will need to exercise a lot to get back into shape.
We just hope that it will go ahead next year,
here in Tāmaki City of Sails,
NZ's most populous city.
Your team isn't complaining
because you're still the reigning champions
after four years
so you aren't complaining!
Tēnā koe Kawariki,
thank you for all the great work you do.
Especially what you do in schools,
kapa haka, our reo, and all that.
I thank you again,
you've graced Te Karere with your presence
for a really important occasion,
the Te Matatini's 50th birthday.
Kawariki, chief, tēnā koe.
Tēnā rawa atu koe.