Kapa haka teams make big impact
Two Manawatu teams have made waves at the national secondary school kapa haka competition.
Heats started on Tuesday, and after three days Te Piringa was one of nine groups to reach the finals on Friday. The team is made up of students from Freyberg High, Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Mana Tamariki, Palmerston North Boys’ and Palmerston North Girls’ High.
Boys’ boarding school Hato Paora’s Parorangi also garnered attention for performing in poi.
Boys were controversially banned from poi earlier this year, before the rules were changed after a swell of public criticism.
Parorangi manukura tane (leader) Ihaia Ropata said he was proud of his classmates.
‘‘We came to make our message clear ... we wanted to show something quite complex, to show them boys can do poi, but do it with fun.
‘‘From the establishment of Hato Paora in 1947, poi has been a prominent thing, and from the Whanganui and the Taranaki area, they are two main areas that really use the poi.
‘‘They were used at Parihaka and other important events, they are symbolic of peace, so we are an area that has a rich history of the poi and we showed that.’’
The performance received a standing ovation from the crowd, and he was pleased three other teams in the competition included poi performance by boys.
The standard of kapa haka from throughout the country was ‘‘awesome’’, he said.
‘‘With kapa haka you’re having fun and delivering a message.
‘‘Many of the participants had deep, relevant messages, and to me that’s quite healthy.‘‘
Representatives for Te Piringa could not comment on Friday.