A new Māori cultural festival is set to bring kapa haka, kōrero, kai and generations of Māori talent into the heart of Tāmaki Makaurau, with some of Aotearoa’s most celebrated kapa haka rōpū taking centre stage.
The inaugural Poumatua Festival will run from September 17 to 19 across Auckland Town Hall, Aotea Square and Q Theatre, bringing together tamariki, kaumātua, artists, performers and whānau for three days celebrating Māori culture and identity.
The festival has been created by Tumutumuwhenua Cultural Trust, in partnership with Auckland Live and with support from Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and Auckland Council Events.
One of the major events will be Te Kahu Tōpuni Kapa Haka Festival, where primary school tamariki from across Tāmaki Makaurau will perform at Auckland Town Hall in a non-competitive celebration of kapa haka.
But Poumatua is also about connecting those young performers with the generations who helped build the modern kapa haka movement.
The festival finale, Tuku Iho – Golden Years of Kapa Haka, will bring together four legendary rōpū — Waihīrere, Te Waka Huia, Ngāti Rangiwewehi and Te Rōpū Manutaki — alongside Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei for a rare celebration of Māori performing arts.
At the cultural heart of the festival will be Tuku Whenua, an ōkawa or traditional ceremony commemorating the tuku whenua of Apihai Te Kawau.
The ceremony on September 18 will acknowledge the allocation of whenua that enabled the establishment of Auckland and recognise the spirit of generosity in which that whenua was given.
The wider programme will also bring Māori enterprise and ideas into the central city.
Mākete Whātua at Aotea Square will feature handcrafted taonga, contemporary Māori art, fashion, gifts and kai, while Tuku Kōrero – Tāmaki Talks will bring established leaders and emerging rangatahi voices together to explore identity, belonging and the future of Auckland.
For Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, the festival also reinforces its position as tangata whenua of central Tāmaki Makaurau and its intergenerational relationship with the whenua and waters of the city.
Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei now represents more than 8,000 registered whānau and continues to play a significant role across cultural leadership, housing, education, hauora, environmental restoration, infrastructure and urban development.
Poumatua follows the success of Matariki Herenga Waka, which brought thousands into central Auckland in July, including for the national Hautapu ā Motu at Takaparawhau.
The new festival will arrive just a week after the opening of Auckland’s City Rail Link, with Te Waihorotiu Station expected to make access to the Aotea Arts Quarter easier for whānau attending the events.
From tamariki performing kapa haka on one of the country’s biggest stages to legendary rōpū celebrating decades of excellence, Poumatua is designed around he taonga tuku iho — connecting what has been handed down with what will be carried forward.
For three days, the centre of New Zealand’s biggest city will become a stage for the whakapapa, history, creativity and future of Māori culture.
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