scholarly journals Māori Performing Arts and the Weaving Together of Local, National and International Communities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Jonathon Avery
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
School Of Music ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Art Form ◽  
Performance Context ◽  
And Performance

<p>Māori performing arts provides a valuable contribution to Aotearoa New Zealand society. Māori performing arts has an intrinsic link to Māori culture and is used to connect 1) Māori who are disengaged from iwi/hapu/whanau, as well as 2) non-Māori, in New Zealand and around the world with Māori culture. Performance genres such as waiata-a-ringa, haka and mōteatea contain a body of knowledge that communicate Māori ways of being and doing and provide participants with an opportunity to become connected to a culturally literate and informed community. Using ethnographic techniques of participant observation, interviews and performance, this thesis examines the experiences of individuals who engage with Māori performing arts and the meaning they attribute to their engagement with the art form. Drawing on contemporary ideas of community and meaning, this thesis also investigates how Māori performing arts builds and strengthens relationships and whanaungatanga by connecting participants to local, national and international Aotearoa New Zealand communities. This thesis draws on two contexts in Wellington where people engage with Māori performing arts - The Ngāti Pōneke Young Māori Club at Pipitea marae and Te Kōkī New Zealand School of Music. Along with exploring two Māori performance context in detail, this these explores how Māori performing arts is used as a platform to educate participants about Māori knowledge, language and culture while also discussing how Māori performing arts is used to symbolise and represent Aotearoa New Zealand nationally and internationally.</p>

scholarly journals Māori Performing Arts and the Weaving Together of Local, National and International Communities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Jonathon Avery
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
School Of Music ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Art Form ◽  
Performance Context ◽  
And Performance

<p>Māori performing arts provides a valuable contribution to Aotearoa New Zealand society. Māori performing arts has an intrinsic link to Māori culture and is used to connect 1) Māori who are disengaged from iwi/hapu/whanau, as well as 2) non-Māori, in New Zealand and around the world with Māori culture. Performance genres such as waiata-a-ringa, haka and mōteatea contain a body of knowledge that communicate Māori ways of being and doing and provide participants with an opportunity to become connected to a culturally literate and informed community. Using ethnographic techniques of participant observation, interviews and performance, this thesis examines the experiences of individuals who engage with Māori performing arts and the meaning they attribute to their engagement with the art form. Drawing on contemporary ideas of community and meaning, this thesis also investigates how Māori performing arts builds and strengthens relationships and whanaungatanga by connecting participants to local, national and international Aotearoa New Zealand communities. This thesis draws on two contexts in Wellington where people engage with Māori performing arts - The Ngāti Pōneke Young Māori Club at Pipitea marae and Te Kōkī New Zealand School of Music. Along with exploring two Māori performance context in detail, this these explores how Māori performing arts is used as a platform to educate participants about Māori knowledge, language and culture while also discussing how Māori performing arts is used to symbolise and represent Aotearoa New Zealand nationally and internationally.</p>

scholarly journals Towards a New Pacific Theatre: Practice‐Led Enquiry into a Model of Theatre Making that Relates  to the Geography, Cultures and Spiritual Values of  Aotearoa/New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Bert Van Dijk
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Specific Work ◽  
Site Specific ◽  
Devised Theatre ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Intercultural Performance ◽  
Time Space ◽  
And Performance

<p>This practice‐led research enquiry sets out to develop and test a model of theatre practice that relates to the unique geographic, cultural and spiritual dimensions of Aotearoa/New Zealand. In this practice, actors are connected with their body and the earth (they have feet), archetypal qualities inherent in nature and culture are incorporated into training and performance (return of the gods), a sense of adventure and risk‐taking is emphasized, and the practice relates to the multiple cultures and communities of Aotearoa/New Zealand. Presence, defined as the ability to be sensorially alive in the moment, and site‐specific performance, a creative response to locality, emerged as two of the key strategies to connect with self, other and the environment.  By investigating selected principles, strategies and values from the indigenous, pre‐European, Māori performing arts (whare tapere), devised theatre, the Michael Chekhov technique, and Japanese Noh theatre, an intercultural approach to site specific theatre evolved that interweaves the four pathways of collaboration, connection, exploration and transformation and their corresponding values. After considering the political and ethical issues of intercultural performance a number of principles to guide the process of intercultural exchange were formulated and tested. A vital component of this study was the creative development and performance of Ex_isle of Strangers – a site‐specific work developed in response to the tangible and intangible dimensions of Matiu/Somes Island. The research generated moments of practice that investigated the creative potential of residential devising processes and the transformative value of audience mobility in performances that involve physical and metaphorical journeying. These moments provided the participants (performers and spectators) time, space and opportunity to interact with one another and with the site they occupied, thus significantly increasing their level of physical and mental engagement with the work.</p>

Last Words (For Now)

2020 ◽  
pp. 157-158
Author(s):  
Sharon Mazer
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
New York City ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
York City ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Time And Space ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Arts Festival ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Madison Square Garden

The move to Aotearoa New Zealand was transformative in ways I could not have imagined when I left New York City “temporarily” in 1994. From the cheap seats at Madison Square Garden to the VIP tent at Te Matatini National Māori Performing Arts Festival, I continue to embrace the excitement (and terror) of entering into theatre and performance arenas that are emphatically not mine, and to be touched, always, by the generosity of performers and audiences no matter where I find myself. It is tempting to picture Johnny, Larry, and the others frozen in time and space, still at Gleason’s right where I left them. And indeed, Johnny is still there, still teaching youngsters the game and maintaining his claim to fame. He has a website: the ...

scholarly journals THEATRE MARAE: Māori theatre pedagogy in research

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Pearse-Otene
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Youth Justice ◽  
Arts Based Research ◽  
Contemporary Theatre ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Kaupapa Māori ◽  
Theatre Pedagogy ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Therapeutic Encounter

Theatre Marae is a contemporary theatre practice unique to Aotearoa New Zealand, and this article outlines its application as an Indigenous-informed creative framework for qualitative research. As a research methodology, Theatre Marae is based in a conceptual partnership between traditional and contemporary Māori performing arts, applied theatre and the therapeutic encounter. As a form of theatre pedagogy, Theatre Marae has been applied as a decolonising strategy in ensemble work, and to craft evocative theatre that honours Māori expressions of colonisation, trauma and social justice. Theatre Marae projects have been carried out in kāinga, schools, prisons, youth justice residential centres, community centres and mainstream theatres throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. Although its creative and therapeutic outcomes are influenced by both Western and Māori psychologies and performance traditions, the underlying principles and day-to-day practice of Theatre Marae are based in te ao Māori. This configuration positions Theatre Marae as an Indigenous creative framework that is also applicable to Kaupapa Māori arts-based research.

scholarly journals Towards a New Pacific Theatre: Practice‐Led Enquiry into a Model of Theatre Making that Relates  to the Geography, Cultures and Spiritual Values of  Aotearoa/New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Bert Van Dijk
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Specific Work ◽  
Site Specific ◽  
Devised Theatre ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Intercultural Performance ◽  
Time Space ◽  
And Performance

<p>This practice‐led research enquiry sets out to develop and test a model of theatre practice that relates to the unique geographic, cultural and spiritual dimensions of Aotearoa/New Zealand. In this practice, actors are connected with their body and the earth (they have feet), archetypal qualities inherent in nature and culture are incorporated into training and performance (return of the gods), a sense of adventure and risk‐taking is emphasized, and the practice relates to the multiple cultures and communities of Aotearoa/New Zealand. Presence, defined as the ability to be sensorially alive in the moment, and site‐specific performance, a creative response to locality, emerged as two of the key strategies to connect with self, other and the environment.  By investigating selected principles, strategies and values from the indigenous, pre‐European, Māori performing arts (whare tapere), devised theatre, the Michael Chekhov technique, and Japanese Noh theatre, an intercultural approach to site specific theatre evolved that interweaves the four pathways of collaboration, connection, exploration and transformation and their corresponding values. After considering the political and ethical issues of intercultural performance a number of principles to guide the process of intercultural exchange were formulated and tested. A vital component of this study was the creative development and performance of Ex_isle of Strangers – a site‐specific work developed in response to the tangible and intangible dimensions of Matiu/Somes Island. The research generated moments of practice that investigated the creative potential of residential devising processes and the transformative value of audience mobility in performances that involve physical and metaphorical journeying. These moments provided the participants (performers and spectators) time, space and opportunity to interact with one another and with the site they occupied, thus significantly increasing their level of physical and mental engagement with the work.</p>

A Conversation on Directing Opera

2021 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 246-255
Author(s):  
Katie Mitchell ◽  
Mario Frendo
Keyword(s):  
Performing Arts ◽  
Musical Score ◽  
Senior Lecturer ◽  
Contemporary World ◽  
Art Form ◽  
Don Giovanni ◽  
National Opera ◽  
Dramatic Text ◽  
Theatre Studies ◽  
And Performance

Katie Mitchell has been directing opera since 1996, when she debuted on the operatic stage with Mozart and Da Ponte’s Don Giovanni at the Welsh National Opera. Since then, she has directed more than twenty-nine operas in major opera houses around the world. Mitchell here speaks of her directorial approach when working with the genre, addressing various aspects of interest for those who want a better grasp of the dynamics of opera-making in the twenty-first century. Ranging from the director’s imprint, or signature on the work they put on the stage, to the relationships forged with people running opera institutions, Mitchell reflects on her experiences when staging opera productions. She sheds light on some fundamental differences between theatre-making and opera production, including the issue of text – the libretto, the dramatic text, and the musical score – and the very basic fact that in opera a director is working with singers, that is, with musicians whose attitude and behaviour on stage is necessarily different from that of actors in the theatre. Running throughout the conversation is Mitchell’s commitment to ensure that young and contemporary audiences do not see opera as a museum artefact but as a living performative experience that resonates with the aesthetics and political imperatives of our contemporary world. She speaks of the uncompromising political imperatives that remain central to her work ethic, even if this means deserting a project before it starts, and reflects on her long-term working relations with opera institutions that are open to new and alternative approaches to opera-making strategies. Mitchell underlines her respect for the specific rules of an art form that, because of its collaborative nature, must allow more space for theatre-makers to venture within its complex performative paths if it wants to secure a place in the future. Mario Frendo is Senior Lecturer of Theatre and Performance and Head of the Department of Theatre Studies at the School of Performing Arts, University of Malta, where he is the director of CaP, a research group focusing on the links between culture and performance.

Unfolding tensions within post-settlement governance and tribal economies in Aotearoa New Zealand

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 296-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Paul Mika ◽  
Graham Hingangaroa Smith ◽  
Annemarie Gillies ◽  
Fiona Wiremu
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Wealth Distribution ◽  
Transformative Change ◽  
New Governance ◽  
Wealth Creation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Citizens ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Governance Models

Purpose This paper aims to examine indigenous governance and economies of iwi Maori (Maori tribes) in Aotearoa New Zealand. Research into persisting inequities amongst iwi that have settled treaty claims and the potential for intervention through new governance models and indigenous entrepreneurship contextualise the paper. Design/methodology/approach Kaupapa Maori (Maori philosophy) is used as an indigenous methodology to facilitate and empower transformative change, underpinned by Maori knowledge, language and culture. A multi-level approach is used to collect data from international, national and local tribal organisations. Validity is established through stakeholder engagement. Findings A central challenge in the post-treaty settlement context is exponentialising tribal capabilities because of the multiple purposes ascribed to post-settled iwi. Four themes, characterised as “unfolding tensions”, offer a critique and basis for solving tribal development challenges: how do tribes create culturally grounded global citizens; how do tribes rebalance wealth creation and wealth distribution; how do tribes recalibrate tribal institutions; and how do tribes embed entrepreneurship and innovation within their economies? Research limitations/implications As data collection is still underway, the paper is conceptual. Practical implications Five strategies to address unfolding tensions are identified for tribes to consider. Social implications Tribal governors and tribal members are implicated in the analysis, as well as the architects of post-treaty settlement governance models. Originality/value The paper contributes to theorising about tribal governance, economies and entrepreneurship.

Beyond Legitimation: A Tribal Response to Māori Education in Aotearoa New Zealand

2012 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 146-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huia Tomlins Jahnke
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Intervention Strategy ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
The Core ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Overwhelming Evidence ◽  
Cultural Standards ◽  
Tribal Region

This article describes an intervention strategy, initiated under the New Zealand Government's tribal partnership scheme, which promotes a culture-based/place-based approach to education in mainstream schools and early childhood centres in one tribal region. Through place-based education children are immersed in local heritage, including language and culture, landscapes, opportunities and experiences. The strategy is a tribal response to the overwhelming evidence of Māori underachievement in education in the tribal catchment. A case study is presented of a place-based/culture-based initiative called the Ngāti Kahungunu Cultural Standards Project (NKCSP). It is argued that the development of cultural standards offers an opportunity by which teachers and others within the education sector can develop and incorporate practice that reflects, promotes and values the student's culture. The core assumption underpinning the project is that cultural knowledge contributes to Māori student success in education.

scholarly journals Performing Arts Festivals, Festivalization and Global Public Sphere: Locating DNT Performances of India and the Māori Performances of Aotearoa/New Zealand in Post-colonial Asia-Pacific

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Swatibahen Bhatt
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Public Sphere ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Post Colonial ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Arts Festivals ◽  
Arts Festival

<p>The project aims at theorising the idea of ‘festivalization’ of the local and global public sphere generated by performing arts festivals. The thesis challenges the concept of ‘festival’ in its popular framework of a celebratory event that is well-planned, culture specific and entertaining. I provide three different study models to accommodate my theoretical conceptualization and discuss the theory in detail in context of selected case studies.  The research also seeks to investigate the politics around (re)presentation of indigeneity through the medium of theatre within various socio-political contexts through case studies from several Indigenous theatre groups located in Oceania and beyond. The project offers detailed discussion of the first two theoretical models developed by me in context of case studies from India and Aotearoa/New Zealand followed by an exploration of the artistic festivals and their implications within and beyond Oceania in context of my third and final study model.  The theoretical models study theatre performances in the contexts of their representation, reception and efficacy within the festival generated space as well as the initiatives of Indigenous communities across the globe to create artistic festivals to celebrate their Indigeneity and authority over Indigenous arts. These two focuses together will locate the reception, representation and (re)production of Indigeneity through the medium of theatre within the festivalized space locally and globally. The third study model finally locates the festival itself within both local and global space to explore its political implications within the socio-political context.  I also aim to investigate the politics behind provisions of ‘space’ and ‘funds’ for the international display of indigeneity through international performing arts festivals; and juxtapose the tourist centred performing arts festival against the festival created by the Indigenous communities through funding generated though ‘donations’ made by local communities. The discussions on this segment is focused on the politics of (mis)presentation of indigeneity through hybrid performances alongside exotic traditional indigenous performances on international stages.  As an Indian citizen, crossing multiple boundaries between the so-called third world, indigenous world and metropolitan culture, I am aware about, respect and acknowledge the Indigenous intellectual and cultural property rights. Being a non-Indigenous researcher working with Indigenous communities, I followed the principles of ‘decolonising methodologies’ (Smith, 1999). I am aware and adhered to the matters including self-determination, cultural aspiration, socio-economic mediation, culturally preferred pedagogy, collective philosophy, extended family structures, respect to Treaty of Waitangi and growing respectful relationships as essential aspects of conducting this research. I have applied collectively chosen pedagogy and philosophy when I conducted the interviews within Indigenous communities and when wrote about them in my thesis.  Indigenous theatre within the context of performing arts festival is a rarely explored area of post-colonial studies which makes the present project significant in itself. The project will document original ideas directly from indigenous theatre practitioners and their experiences of participation in international performing arts festivals. And finally, I believe this study could contribute to a better understanding of the politics of international performing arts festivals in (re) producing indigeneity, distinct from their conventional reception as an exotic 'other' culture.</p>

scholarly journals "Thank you, your English is very good also": Asian Panethnicity and its Performance in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sophia Edwards
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Identity Work ◽  
Social Forces ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Ethnographic Approach ◽  
Asian Identity ◽  
Creative Artists ◽  
Asian People ◽  
Diverse Groups

<p>Existing studies suggest that Asian panethnicity is the political mobilisation of diverse groups of people under a new name, to oppose racism and discrimination. Asian panethnicity is shaped by social forces, including those that exclude. As such, it is inherently political. However, it is limiting to think of it only as a kind of intentional, collective action bent towards achieving a predetermined group goal. This thesis expands this understanding of panethnicity, by considering how “Asiannness” is experienced on an intersubjective level and asks what “Asian” means to and for the Asian individual.  Lingering Orientalism perpetuates a sense of Asian people as not quite belonging in the West. Though by now cliché, this narrative of non-belonging continues to determine ideas of Asianness and set the parameters of appropriate Asian behaviour. But, this non-belonging is also the site in and from which Asian actors make their own meanings and seek their own kind of situated belonging. This thesis takes an autoethnographic and ethnographic approach to field sites in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand to observe some of the ways Asian identity is formed. It is inevitable that transnational processes contribute to this identity work, but these global processes are also subsumed by localised structures and contexts.  Drawing from participant observation with social and community groups, and interviews with creative artists, writers, administrators, community workers and activists addressing the question of what it means to be Asian, I argue that Asian panethnicity is constituted by “doing”. It is made up of different acts, repeated over time, and in different settings. As a product of relationships between externally imposed, in group enforced, and self-made conceptions of “Asianness”, Asian panethnicity is both performative and performed. This thesis presents scenarios in which these performances and presentations of the Asian self take place. In considering some of the possible contexts and conventions that give rise to the performative act/s of being Asian, I argue that being Asian is a creative, collaborative, ongoing endeavour. It is a means by which to accomplish belonging in the world.</p>

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