"Feel the Mauri!" - Pononga of Te Tini o Rākaihautū Kapa Haka share what they experienced over the Te Rangaihi Campaign.

Excited, uncertain voices followed me as I lead a select few pononga out of their classes to a quiet space "It's just an interview about Kapa Haka..."

I took out my phone, turned on the voice recorder and put it in the middle of the table..."ok, let's get started!"

For a good portion of the year, pononga from Waimarie and Karikari teina combined to create the ultimate  Kapa Haka. The experience was new for many, "I'd done a Hui-a-iwi before..." Jordan Cameron mentioned, while the others at the table named all the different places they'd previously performed at. He was fairly new to competition Kapa Haka, I asked, "How did you go?"  to which Jordan replied... "I just kept trying..."

Humble words for a young Kaihaka who's only experience in haka was one stand with a  whānau group... and suddenly found himself in the midst of a roopu of 100+ tamariki all vying for that chance to compete and represent Te Pā on a national platform.

“Far, there was a lot of stuff we always had to do… we always had to do papahoronuku… Our faces, were the hardest thing to work on… (We had to practice) Everyday! We’d have to do like, A-frame like a couple hundred times...”
- Morehu

Our pononga shared how  it took a lot of discipline to make the cut.  "...you have to be more than just good at kapa haka - you have to have good listening, you have to be on top of your schoolwork." 
- Alix and Te Rā. 

This didn't stop our kaihaka - perseverance and hard work got them through each cut, down to 60, then to 44...

"Lots of things were hard, that is...Having to maintain...keeping on track, because, there was always so much haka, you would just be tired...so, maintaining that energy to just push on."
- Ewarini

For some, it was the repetition that challenged them... "We did the haka so many times, there were lots of words and actions - and we did it over and over again, felt like all day long..."
- Te Rā and the boys

Others, it was the little things. "...I struggled with my face, trying to remember everything - I had to remember to smile, and it hurts!! Don't forget to wiri, things like that..."
- Bethany 

Luckily, they had each other's back - pononga helping one another...

"Because of netball, I’d always miss the first part of learning the poi… and there was this one beat that I couldn’t get until a few days before the performance… that was because Ewa helped me get it…"
- Alix

All those practices, all of the hours put in to the Kapa and their performance, bought them to one day, one chance, 30 minutes on the stage...

"Who got any sleep?"
"Oh, I went to bed petrified!" - Ewarini

Finally the day was here and all the hard work these tamariki did to get this far was about to be presented to all.

“I felt excited when we walked on the stage… and nervous at the same time. And then when the audience started cheering for us, I started to feel really nervous… I think I was about a 9 (out of 10)“
- Hikurangi

Each of our kaihaka had their own experience while onstage - all piled with nerves and worries, quickly washed out by the cheers of their whānau and carried up through the roof  by the power of their waiata.

"When I walked on the stage, I felt like I was gonna spew… I was so nervous. But, then I started singing and then everyone started cheering and then I like felt the mauri and kept going… Doing my Pao was one of my favourite parts of the performance."
- Georgiana

For one girl in particular, the roopu relied on her leadership - which only added to the stress of the pending performance...

"Before we were about to walk onstage I was so nervous, as soon as I walked on (to the stage) it all went away.. I just thought, yes! Let’s do this!
(About being Kaitātaki Kōtiro) At first I was scared, I didn’t think I was good enough...Then as we went more into practicing and got closer to performance I started to think and feel like, “cool” (like you believed more in yourself?) yeah! My favourite item to perform was the poi."
- Bethany

Even some of the coolest heads found themselves feeling the nerves...

"When we were in the waiting just before I went on stage, I felt really excited and nervous.. But when we went on stage - you can’t really see the crowd, cause it’s really dark. And we practiced so much… It just felt like another practice to me."
-Jordan

"I didn’t get nervous during rehearsals or when we were getting ready or backstage… but, side of stage, something just came over me.. And woah… I felt nervous. Then I got onstage and I just carried on… the eke was my favourite, it had really good choreography."
- Te Rā

"When we first walked out on stage, I felt so nervous… when I was holding my dad’s photo I was just like ‘Oh my god.' In my head…. I don’t want to muck this up. When we did 'e noho ana au' I didn’t want my voice to crack…It was sad doing the waiata a ringa, we didn’t really practice that part..."
- Morehu

It's fair to say that our pononga, these kaihaka truly shone onstage, in more ways than one.

“I just felt, super nervous...I felt like I was gonna scream…”
But you're pretty famous for that poi pickup, aye?  It looked effortless like you do this kind of thing every day.
“I got scared, Koka just did it (showed us how to recover in the poi). When she did it, it looked really easy but was actually really hard."
- Let's be real Matangi, you made it look super easy!

Our kōtiro overcame obstacles to deliver an award-winning poi...

"So when Bethany and Chase walked out I was freaking out, because everyone was really loud… everyone walked out on stage and I was smiling, I was trying to look for Te Pā, but I couldn’t find them… I was freaking out that they weren’t there...but they were up the top.. and they started yelling and calling out to us and I started to relax...yeah. My favourite item to perform was the poi...
(during the practices) It sounded like some people thought that our poi was dumb… but on stage it felt really good. And we did a really good job. They were just people (Ewa: like, haters…) people we don’t need to listen to. The trophy we got (for the poi) explains it all."
- Alix

From my point of view (at the back, far from people who might judge for me for the tears rolling down my face), all that hard work paid off - what I saw were these beautiful smiling faces, beaming with confidence standing with pride, singing the songs of our whakapapa, our takiwā, our loved ones. Even through the tears I saw the strength in this Kapa Haka.

"So before we even got backstage, I was already doing a wiri, but that was just me... I was very... frightened, so you would’ve imagined how scared I was backstage ...I heard everyone screaming, you know “applausing”, is that the word? When we hopped on there was only one thing on my mind… don’t go flat...and make sure adrenaline doesn’t take over, and just, KIMI HAA."
- Ewarini

I was sharing a table with these intelligent, beings... able to talk about events honestly and weren't afraid to acknowledge the strength and beauty in their fellow kaihaka.

"I want to acknowledge Morehu for pushing through with the waiata a ringa, and how he pushed through… I thought was really cool, how he took his dad on the stage with us (do you think that took courage?) Yea."
- Te Rā

“You should’ve seen it, at Te Puawaitanga... where Mihi(marino) was doing that thing. *does an action* there was a picture of her doing the waiata a ringa… and her face was just “oh my god” - so sad, so much emotion… " (did she do a good job?)
All: "YES!"
- Morehu

Our pononga celebrated the success of their performance, some surprised... others not so much, "I actually wasn’t surprised, I knew, we would win some of them…" However, all of them agreeing on one thing  "I would do it all over again".

The whole process from beginning to end has lit a fire in these young performers - hungry for that next competition... But happy to be given a break... for now.

“When I first saw performances… with the adult groups and other schools, I was like ‘omg they’re so good.’ And I thought ‘oh no, I don’t wanna do that when I grow up.'

Now, I’m like, I’ll do it! Anytime, any day, anywhere…”

- Morehu

As we approach the end of our interview I give them a moment to reflect on all the people that helped during the entire haka journey. "Name one person..." "But, there are so many!"

Georgiana: "Koka Krystal… because, she was there for everything."

Jordan and Hikurangi: "Hākui Terina for designing our Kākahu, thank you to Whaea Ana for being there and helping to design our kākahu…"

Matangi: "My mum - for helping with kākahu, dressing us and taking me to practice"

Morehu: "Nani Tui for doing the food."

Seriously, nothing went by unnoticed...

"Miharo was there - to help us boys with the haka."
- Te Rā

"I’d like to thank Hakui Terina for all of the art, moko, designs, kākahu…"
- Bethany

"Whaea Rangima, because, to be honest...before she came in our singing was pretty kaka… so she taught us how to sing properly and taught us how to harmonise…"
- Alix

"I want to acknowledge Koka Horowai, it’s awesome, how much choreography she did for us, the work she’s put into our kapa and she’s taken us through this journey the whole way… shout out to you koka!"
- Ewarini

Look out senior Kapa Haka... get ready for a new wave of kaihaka, he ngaru hou, ko Te Tini o Rākaihautū.