Tama Ma – Auckland – Okareka Dance Company

Okareka Dance Company present their new production Tama Ma, at the Maidment Theatre, June 24th – 28th 2009.

Tama Ma features two of New Zealand’s most acclaimed contemporary dancers Taane Mete and Taiaroa Royal. Tama Ma premiered at Tempo Dance Festival in 2008 to sell out crowds and rave reviews. Now due to popular demand they are taking their award winning show to audiences all around New Zealand.

Taane Mete and Taiaroa Royal performed for Ka Mau te Wehi – conversations in Maori dance on its opening night and I can unhesitatingly recommened that you make a point of going to their show.

http://www.nzlive.com/en/nzlivecom/tama-ma-auckland

http://www.okareka.com/

Okareka Dance Company is a vibrant contemporary New Zealand dance company formed in 2007 and led by Taane Mete and Taiaroa Royal with the aim to fuse contemporary dance with other creative art mediums.

The essence of Okareka Dance Company is guided by Maori beliefs, these beliefs – Mana (Honour and Integrity), Whanau (Family) and Matataki (Challenge) are brought to its work and to its audiences.

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Photographs from the opening night

The opening began with a beautiful and powerful performance by Tai Royal and Taane Mete

Then Welby Ings, Associate Professor at the School of Art and Design welcomed us and introduced the curator Moana Nepia.

Moana Nepia spoke about his the show and thanked all the people who helped him make it happen.

Later in the evening Tru Paraha and Nancy Wijohn performed in response to the works.

Photographs taken by Clinton Cardozo

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Opening Night Performers

We are excited to confirm the performers for the opening night: Tai Royal and Taane Mete, Tru Paraha, Nancy Wijohn and Poto Stevens Dunn. They have been visiting the gallery and planning some wonderful responses and conversations in dance. I went online and found some links to their biographies. Those of you who are regulars on the New Zealand dance scene will know these talented performers already. Be sure to turn up on the 4th of June between 5:30 and 7:30 to catch their performances during the evening

Tai Royal

http://www.thelivingdanceproject.org/royal.htm

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/dance/news/article.cfm?c_id=169&objectid=10535982

Taiaroa Royal is one of New Zealand’s leading Maori dancers. Tai has worked with all of the major dance companies in NZ including the Royal NZ Ballet, Douglas Wright Dance Co., Human Garden, Origins Dance Co., Commotion Dance Company and as a senior dancer with Black Grace Dance Company from 1996 – 2004. A 1984 graduate of the NZ School of Dance, he has also competed in competitive aerobics and has represented NZ at the World Aerobics Champs in San Diego.

Tai enjoys his many roles as teacher, choreographer, dancer and now as director, along-side Taane Mete, of their newly formed Okareka Dance Company Ltd. They recently premiered their Company’s debut work – Tama Ma to sell-out audiences under the Tempo and Stamp Festival umbrellas.

TAANE METE

http://www.thelivingdanceproject.org/taane.htm

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/dance/news/article.cfm?c_id=169&objectid=10535982

Taane Mete is considered one of New Zealand’s most outstanding and versatile dancers. After graduating with honours from the NZ School of Dance in 1988, his 21 years of experience has seen him perform with companies such as Footnote Dance Company, Fusion Dance Theatre, Taiao Dance Company, Michael Parmenters (Commotion Company), Douglas Wright Dance Company, The Royal New Zealand Ballet, and Human Garden Dance Company. Taane was a founding member and a senior dancer for Black Grace Dance Company.

Taane also works as a choreographer and dance tutor at UNITEC Performing Arts, The New Zealand School of Dance & Douglas Wright Dance Company. Taane has toured nationally and internationally with various companies.

In July 2007 alongside Taiaroa Royal and Ann Dewey, Taane choreographed “Renu O Te Ra” a youth dance project performance with THE EDGE Performing Arts Centre, Auckland. The work gave new light to the direction Taane wished to lead and drew a strong sense of purpose to the collaboration and joint company between Taane and Taiaroa Royal ‘Okareka’.

Nancy Wijohn

http://www.atamiradance.co.nz/people_collaborators.php

http://www.jackgraydance.co.nz/profile07_artists.html

Nancy is a fresh and new face to New Zealand’s contemporary dance industry. She graduated from AUT’s Maori contemporary dance certificate in 2003 and UNITEC’s Contemporary dance degree in 2007, and since then has gone on to work for two of New Zealand’s finest contemporary dance companies — Black Grace Dance Company and Atamira Maori dance collective.

She performed exerpts of Black Grace’s new work Gathering Clouds as part of Manukau Festival 08 and has also worked with Mika’s Torotoro nesian dance crew, Jack Gray Dance in Tuawhenua, Kirk Torrance’s Flintlock Musket production, Charles Royal and Moana Nepia’s dance film project09.

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