MAC Magazine 2015

There have been a lot of changes for kapa haka this year. Matua Jeromy started the year
off with good routines adding Wednesday afternoons to the schedule allowing two and a
half hours a week to practice. We spent the first half of the year learning new material to
put together a full bracket involving whakaeke, hiimene, waiata, haka, taiaha and poi.
The second half of the year saw the students perform at events for the winter season. We
welcomed new staff to Cardrona Alpine Ski Resort in the Lake Wanaka Centre, opened
the final for the men’s half pipe at the Audi Winter Games and opened the Special Winter
Olympics at the Hawea Hotel.
We have been busy helping with the MAC house haka competition, ERO powhiri, junior
school powhiri for international students and senior and junior prizegivings. This group
is fortunate enough to not only have passionate seniors who are confident and can
lead at a high intensity but also many junior students that are equally committed and
improving all the time. It was also great to see so many international students join us
and get involved for a while, we really enjoyed teaching you all a part of NZ heritage and
hopefully you’ll be able to take the haka and waiata home with you.
Although this is a new cultural experience for me, it has been an absolute pleasure to
facilitate and be apart of the MAC kapahaka group this year. I am incredibly proud
of their performances and the way they uphold such an important part of our culture
within the school and wider community.
Here are also some highlights from the students:
“Having the para-skiers join us while performing at the welcoming for them”
“Enjoying our Wednesday afternoons and being able to have fun and laugh as a group
when we made mistakes”
“Performing up at Cardrona wearing piupiu in the snow”
“The overwhelming praise from the welcoming powhiri of the Special Olympics”
Kaz Saunders
KAPAHAKA
Students involved in kapahaka
2015: Noel Bisson, Riley Bruce,
Matty McLean, Alex Mitchell, Anna
Edwards, Olly McKenzie, Sean Dickey,
Ben Harrington, Jamie Toomey,
Mitchell Evans, Jahnaan Hodson,
Ayla Smalls, Jessie McKenzie, James
Suddaby, Kahu Griffin, Aden Cassaidy,
Jin Wook Hong, Phoenix Cooper.
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