Ngongotahā Primary School pupils delight their whānau at the ahurei. Photo / Supplied by A Gifted View Photography
Ngongotahā Primary School pupils delight their whānau at the ahurei. Photo / Supplied by A Gifted View Photography
Tears and smiles - it’s a mix of emotions when whānau watch their children performing kapa haka and this year was no exception at the Rotorua Primary Schools Māori Festival.
More than 20 schools have taken part in the festival, which has this year been held a little differently.
The festival, Te Ahurei o nga Kura ki Rotorua, has been held in Rotorua since the 1970s and each year sees between 32 and 40 Rotorua primary schools put on non-competitive performances for their whānau at the end of the year.
The Covid-19 pandemic cancelled the 2020 event and last year’s event was only held under some strict social distancing conditions. This year, the event clashed with another booking at the usual venue - the Rotorua Energy Events Centre - and organisers were not sure during their planning stages if the Sir Howard Morrison Centre would be open in time.
Image 1 of 14: Kaitao Intermediate at the Rotorua Primary Schools Māori Festival. Photo / Carey Bennett
Festival executive member Iwi Te Whau said all the schools still wanted to go ahead regardless this year so a decision was made to utilise the different clusters that would host their own ahurei events.
Te Whau said events featuring several different schools were held at several different schools, including Selwyn Primary School, John Paul College, Kaitao Intermediate, Te Kura o Te Koutu and at combined Catholic schools to ensure the children still got to perform.
Bea Yates, affectionately known as "Aunty Bea", started the ahurei in the 1970s. Photo / File
Te Whau said the ahurei was the brainchild of the late Bea Yates, affectionately known as “Aunty Bea”, who started teaching Māori history and waiata at Rotorua Primary School, Lynmore School, Whakarewarewa School and Rotokawa School in the 1970s.
“Each year she’d bring those schools together for a combined concert and the ahurei grew from there.”
He said hundreds of children from up to 40 local schools were now involved.
Te Whau said the performances were often a way for the children to pay respect to those who had passed on and this year was no exception, with all groups paying tribute to Alfred Webster - a former stage manager at the ahurei - who died in September and whose family were instrumental in the local kapa haka scene.
Te Whau said among the others who were acknowledged were Piwai Tuhua, Bea Yates, Hiro Grace, Louise Jones, Carmelle Waiariki and Charlie Clarke.
Despite the different format this year, Te Whau said the support was still huge.
“Ticket sales were phenomenal. So many people wanted to watch all their kids. This year it was an interactive setting and it made it enjoyable for our tamariki and their parents who were watching.”
Kaitao Intermediate Te Ao Māori lead Frances Wharerahi, whose school was part of Wednesday’s celebration along with Aorangi School, Ngongotahā Primary and Western Heights Primary School, said the evening was “amazing”.
“Our hall was maxed out and the parents were just glowing. It was an absolute pleasure to see everyone walk out with smiles on their faces. One mama walked past me and just said it was ‘absolutely beautiful’.”
Wharerahi said the community needed something like this given the disruptions during the past two years.
Meanwhile, Te Whau said despite the success of this year’s event, next year it would be back to normal with all schools performing in allocated slots from a Monday to Friday during two different time sessions and it would be held at the Sir Howard Morrison Centre.
