Atamira Dance Company and Indigenous Performance: The Making of Māori Worlds

Abstract

Mutton bird rituals, harvesting kelp, bush clad hillsides, and the majestic moon illuminating the southern Pacific ocean at Kaka point/Catlins is danced by Aotearoa/ New Zealand’s stand out Atamira Dance Company based in Auckland. Their dancing is accompanied by the mesmerizing soundscape composed by Richard Nunns and Paddy Free, who provide rich audio textures that combine electronica beats with stone percussion and gourd instruments. The work is entitled Taonga: Dust, Water, Wind and premiered in 2009 at the Sky City Theatre in Auckland as part of the Auckland Arts Festival. Louise Potiki Bryant, the distinguished (Kai Tahu) choreographer made the work to ruminate about her great Aunt Rona Williamson, who was born in 1924. The dance was about her experiences of growing up by the sea during the Great Depression, the piece uncovers what could have remained buried family stories.