Southland kapa haka group heading for regionals
“It’s a huge passion, but passion doesn’t even give justice to what I’m really trying to say of how kapa haka makes me feel."
Shaz Reece is a former journalist who now works in the youth sector.
A newly formed kapa haka group in Murihiku Southland has its sights set on the biggest stage in Aotearoa for Māori performing arts.
Te Kapa Haka o Ngā Hau e Whā ki Murihiku, the first adult competitive kapa haka group to represent Murihiku for a number of years, will head to Christchurch later this month for the Kapa Haka Regional Competitions.
The group, made up of more than 80 people, has high hopes of qualifying for Te Matatini in 2025, the pinnacle biennial event for Māori performing arts, and one of the most highly anticipated events for performers, and supporters from all over the country.
The group was recently funded by rangatahi as part of Te Rourou, One Aotearoa’s Te Ōhaka Tīwhera fund. Rangatahi decision-maker Kaiah Beaton said funding the group was an easy decision for the panel.
“A community kapa haka group has always been something we’ve wanted to support as a rōpū. I love the fact that this group will continue to act as a whānau, beyond Te Matatini, that’s what you should want when it comes to kapa,” she said.
Despite not being specifically rangatahi-focused, the young people who participate said being able to immerse themselves in kapa haka was essential for their wellbeing.
“It’s a huge passion, but passion doesn’t even give justice to what I’m really trying to say of how kapa haka makes me feel, of being in this rōpū and everything that I take out of it,” 19-year-old Sharvae Te Huia-Goodman said.
“I have a 6-month-old daughter here and it’s been a really huge thing for me and my partner to give everything to her that I personally didn’t get at her age. To allow her to be fulfilled in the wairua and all the feelings of our kapa.
“Just becoming one big whānau and allowing our tamariki to be a part of that with us and share that with us. It’s for our future, and their future as well,” she said.
Participating kapa haka had a big impact on the wider community, not just those in the rōpū, 22-year-old Destiny Naunau said.
“I’m training to be a teacher in kōhanga, so I work with younger children, and this has given me the tools to give to them, so they can embrace themselves, and immerse themselves in their own culture and who they are,” she said.
“Our babies are already learning now from this kapa how to express themselves and be
open with themselves in a safe and positive way.”
Te Kapa Haka o Ngā Hau e Whā will head to Christchurch for the Kapa Haka Regional Competitions on April 27.