Students from around the country continue to impress on day two of the national secondary school kapa haka competition, Te Tāwharau o Ngā Waka, held in Tauranga.
The week-long event will see 42 secondary school haka groups take the stage to vie for the title of best in the country, and with a change to rules where the maximum number of performers raises from 40 to 50, over 2000 students are set to perform.
Heywood Kuka, organising committee member, told Breakfast that for many of the tamariki, kapa haka is part of life and the calibre is increasing.
“Ten years ago when I first joined the national committee, you could tell that some schools were still developing kapa haka, but now, yesterday [on] day one, all 14 schools could potentially be in the top.
“[They] have got the skills to be in the top nine at the end of the week, so the quality and the standard of kapa haka due to competitions like this have really risen over the last few years.”
He said it helped when kapa haka is an NZQA-accredited performance-based subject.
“That's given these tamariki a qualification, part of their qualification is kapa haka, so they're getting the best of both worlds. They're getting to stand on a stage, but they're also getting to get qualifications through their secondary schooling.”
With schools coming from as far south as Invercargill and as far north as Te Hāpua, attending the competition is a significant undertaking for all involved, he said.
“Planes, trains, automobiles to get here. Accommodation, food for the week, and you know, that's just the tamariki on stage.
“You've got their supporters, their whānau to cater, to work with so for some of these schools it's a huge undertaking but it's a trip of a lifetime for a lot of them.”
But the reward is worth it.
“For us at secondary school level this is their Matatini, and we've also got tamariki here that also stand at Matatini, so the standard and the calibre of kaihaka (haka performers) in our secondary school students is amazing.
“I was in awe yesterday of just the talent, and the skill, and the dedication to kapa haka - it was amazing.”
What are the groups saying?
A trio from Te Kapunga, haka group from Te Haikura ā Kiwa (formerly James Cook High School) in Manurewa, told Te Karere they were proud of their efforts despite some mistakes.
“We made it here and we did it,” said one student.
Another said: “I think it was very important for us, especially our cohort, because not only did we build this bracket, but we also put it on the stage and left it on the stage.”
A third said it was a long journey, but a really important one leading up to the competition. “Yeah, proud of our team, just heaps of room for improvement.”
Tuheimoa Maruera, tutor of Te Kupenga o Maruaonui from Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngāti Ruanui in Hawera, Taranaki, said their campaign approach for nationals was different to their regional one.
“I mōhio me eke taumata anō te terenga engari kia kite i ngā whakaaro o ngā kaihaka hoki, kia taea e rātou te kuhu atu i ō rātou hiahia, i ō rātou whakaaro hei kipakipa i tēnei terenga.”
(“We knew we needed to go up another level and we wanted to include our students’ thoughts and their wants to motivate them in this campaign.”)
Te Kahamaiterangi Waitai Taiaroa, tutor of Cullinane College’s Te Ngākau o Te Awa from Whanganui, said their goal for the nationals was to reach another level.
“Kua maha ngā taero a Kupe i tēnei terenga engari i eke ki tētahi taumata, heoi, he wahanga me whakatika.”
(“There have been many obstacles in this campaign, and while we lifted to another level, there are still some things to fix.”)
The first three days of competition is a preliminary round. The top three groups from each day – nine in total – will advance to Friday’s sold out finals day.
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