This incredible show will light up the Rotorua Lakefront as part of the Aronui Arts Festival this Matariki.
Many cultures across the globe have links to Matariki says chief adviser to the Government, and astronomy Professor Rangi Mātāmua.
In Japan it’s called Subaru. For some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures in Australia, it is about seven sisters running away from the Jampijinpa man. He follows them into the sky, travelling as a star in the Orion’s Belt cluster.
Here in Aotearoa, it is a time for whānau and celebration, Mātāmua says.
Professor Rangi Matamua grew up in Levin has raised awareness of the significance of Matariki.
“It’s built around unity, collectivity the environment, and sharing food.
Matariki “is part of a lunar-solar timekeeping system which is different to the solar Gregorian calendar”.
“It’s actually noticing that the sun rises in different places throughout the year, noticing the cycles and sinking into the different lunar phases, it’s realising that the stars rise four minutes earlier and the moon rises 50 minutes later.
“When our ancestors arrived from other parts of Polynesia, they brought the system with them, but they had to reapply it because of the different flora and fauna, different temperatures, different weather, different resources.
“As the environment continues to change, you’re meant to continuously adjust your systems of time to sink in with the environment, whether the environment be warming or cooling, whether they be getting wetter or drier, you actually need to sink in with the changes of the environment.
“The system is not meant to stay stagnant forever. Just like no cultural practice is meant to stay stagnant. It’s meant to continuously evolve.
“That’s what I enjoy seeing coming back is people acknowledging the science that’s within this knowledge base and practising it again.
“So the system continues to change and that’s one of the beautiful things about following the system,” Mātāmua said.
The show is created by Māori artists Cian Elyse White (Ngāti Pikiao) and Mataia Keepa (Ngāti Whakaue) and tells the stories of environmental markers connected to this star cluster.
Celestial navigator Jack Thatcher is on a one-of-a-kind waka journey around the world.
Ngāi Te Rangi chief executive Paora Stanley said Jack Thatcher’s hautapu service Matariki ki Mauao 2024 is a highlight for Tauranga.
“That is a very good programme and it helps bring people together, not just Māori people, but many cultures.
”It’s got a really beautiful linking process down there,” Stanley said.
RotoruaNZ said this year more people were engaged in local events compared to last year, experiencing a 20% jump in accommodation bookings for the region.
“We are on track to meet our target of being fully sold out for the weekend,” brand and marketing manager, Haydn Marriner said.
“The Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival Matariki Drone Show has been one of the leading lights,” Marriner said.
Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival chairwoman, Mercia Dawn Yates said it was an extraordinary time, “by telling our story, our way in our backyard”.
“Partnering with our indigenous whanaunga and friends from across the ditch to help support and showcase the story of Matariki this year, will be a world first for Aronui.”
What’s happening this Matariki:
Tauranga
* Matariki ki Mauao 2024 - An early morning hīkoi to the top of Mauao and hear about the importance of Matariki shared by Jack Thatcher.
* Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival First Light Drone Show + Night market
Rotorua Lakefront, June 27 and 28
* Te Puia hautapu ceremony - The ceremony is aligned with the natural timings of our taiao (environment) under the māramataka (phases of the moon), and will begin when the stars are visible, and conclude at dawn.
* Te kete Matariki - an annual community event celebrating the Māori New Year featuring taonga pūoro performance, House of Shem, Te Puke student choir, DJ Pakman + more.
* Matariki Pacific Pulse - An unforgettable fusion of traditions and cultures at Matariki Pacific Pulse. This extraordinary event brings together the vibrant Solomon Island Independence Day Celebration and the spirited Ōpōtiki Matariki Festival for a day of epic cultural festivities.
