The future looks bright with artists like Tai Hemana (Te Arawa) — the pōtiki of our 2025 company whānau. A proud Te Arawa artist, Tai brings energy, spark, and heart to everything he’s involved in.

In 2025, Tai performed in Rongo Whakapā and toured Ka Mua Ka Muri — his debut work with Atamira — to Pōneke and Rotorua. His solo in Rongo Whakapā, “Hemana is the youngest of the performers, yet holds the space beautifully”.

Throughout 2025, he’s shared his passion for connecting with taiohi through workshops with aucklandartgallery, tepoutheare and school’s throughout the motu. Your presence shines, Tai — a born performer, easy-going, full of aroha, and always lifting the room. And of course, it runs in the whānau! We were so moved seeing your whānau haka tautoko in the foyer after the Rotorua performance of Ka Mua Ka Muri.

We shine a light on Abbie Rogers (Kāi Tahu, Te Arawa), a powerhouse on stage and a driving force behind the scenes.

In 2025, Abbie’s brilliance as a performer shone across Rongo Whakapā, Ka Mua Ka Muri, Ka Tiri o te Moana, and the TOMO VR tour. “A duet between MacDonald and Abbie Rogers sweeps through space in expansive arcs, while Rogers’ solo blends gestural motifs with quiet intensity.” Paul Young, Theatreview

Alongside her performance work, Abbie carries her roles as Education Producer and Marketing Coordinator with heart and vision — the spark behind our digital platforms, education outreach, and community connection. She leads Haka Toi, our weekly programme with Unitec, connecting emerging dancers with the extended Atamira whānau of teachers and mentors. She’s also behind workshops for tamariki and rangatahi at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, the Auckland Writers Fest, and Due Drop Event Centre, among others.

We acknowledge and uplift one of our long-standing artists and collaborators — Gabrielle Thomas (Kāi Tahu, Te Atiawa ki Te Tau Ihu).

Gaby has contributed so much to Atamira over the years as a dancer, teacher, choreographer, and creative leader. Now based in Te Tai Tokerau with her whānau, she continues to deepen her connection to community through dance and teaching — and we’re always inspired by the generosity and artistry she continues to share.

In 2025, Gaby toured internationally with Atamira, presenting TOMO VR at Ten Days on the Island in Lutruwita / Tasmania — a special cross-cultural exchange and milestone in our 25th year. She also returned to Tāmaki to lead and teach Kōri Pūrākau, a long-standing Atamira education programme she helped develop in partnership with the Due Drop Events Centre.

In our 25th year, we celebrate Madison Tumataroa (Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairau, Ngāti Pāhauwera) — an artist whose creativity, generosity, and drive continue to enrich Atamira and the wider arts community.

In 2025, Madi travelled to the Gold Coast for the Ngari Ngali-Wahlu Dance Residency with Karul Projects — a cultural exchange between First Nations artists. She also performed in Ka Mua Ka Muri and was a dance artist for Kia Pohewatia, the Atamira choreographic residency nurturing emerging Māori voices.

Her artistry extends beyond the stage — with a natural gift for design, image, and form, she contributed her design eye to Rongo Whakapā, helping source, adjust, and refine the costuming.

Madi’s passion for dance education continues to shine — this year she taught through the Atamira Haka Toi programme at Unitec (where she trained and graduated), and led workshops for tamariki and rangatahi at the Auckland Writers Festival and Auckland Art Gallery.

How lucky we are to have artists like Sharn Te Pou (Tūhoe) contributing to the Aotearoa creative landscape — and to have his presence enrich Atamira in our 25th year.

Sharn has long been a force across the performing arts — a vocalist, performer, storyteller, and motion-capture stunt performer (one of the go-to artists for Wētā-level productions). This year, he joined Atamira for the re-mount and tour of Ka Mua Ka Muri — he brought immense humility, power, and presence to the work.

Sharn’s creative range is astonishing — yet it’s his humility that truly shines. He brought warmth, generosity, and quiet brilliance to the process, fitting into the Atamira environment with such ease and care.

As Atamira turns 25, we honour the creative force that is Kasina Campbell (Te Rarawa, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairoa, Tarara).

In 2025, Kasina performed in Ka Tiri o te Moana by Louise Pōtiki Bryant — anchoring te taha wāhine. Her presence carried the weight of ancestral knowing — a reminder of the power and responsibility of wāhine to protect and sustain life. Kasina also taught at unitecdance throughout the year as part of our Haka Toi Aotearoa program — sharing her practice, improvisational techniques, and methods of movement generation through imagery and story with the next generation of dancers.

Kasina’s artistry is grounded in integrity, shaped by experience, and guided by care for those who dance beside her — and those who will follow.

A cherished artist whose professionalism, integrity, and aroha continue to uplift Atamira and the wider dance community, we acknowledge Dana Moore-Mudgway (Te Āti Awa, Rangitāne, Ngāti Apa, Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Mutunga).

Dana has been part of the Atamira whānau since 2021, touring nationally and internationally and contributing her artistry to multiple company works. In 2025, Dana performed in Ka Tiri o te Moana, premiering in Tāmaki Makaurau and later in Ōtautahi — a special moment to perform in her hometown. Louise first worked with Dana on Te Wheke (2021) and was drawn to her sensitivity and presence as a performer, eager to collaborate again on Ka Tiri o te Moana, a work grounded in their shared Kāi Tahu whakapapa.

As we mark 25 years of Atamira, we also celebrate one year of steadfast, aroha-led leadership and artistry from our Kaihautū, Bianca Hyslop (Te Arawa).

Bianca has been part of the Atamira whānau for more than 15 years as a dancer and choreographer, including being one of the choreographers of work toured this year. She embodies both continuity and evolution within our whānau, grounded - generous, and deeply committed to the people and practices at the heart of our kaupapa, while guiding our company with courage and clarity.

Bianca’s leadership reminds us that growth does not mean leaving ourselves behind. It asks us to expand courageously from our centre.

A valued member of our whānau, we celebrate Toalei Roycroft (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Kauwhata, Samoa).

A bold, multitalented artist across movement and mahi toi, Toalei brings style, vision, and authenticity to everything they do. Their work sits at the intersection of identity, expression, and resistance — grounded in Mātauranga Māori and unapologetically true to who they are.

In 2025, Toalei was a dance artist in Kia Pohewatia, the Atamira Māori choreographic residency nurturing Māori choreographic voices, returning to the studio with their 3-month-old baby Hīwaiwaka. It’s been incredible to witness them step into parenthood while continuing their creative practice — bringing the same energy, humour, and fearlessness they bring to every space. What a lucky pēpi to be surrounded by so much aroha and artistry. This year, Toalei has also been a kaiako for Haka Toi and will join Atamira and the wider whānau for our December Wānanga in Rotorua.

As Atamira marks 25 years, we celebrate Matiu Tapsell (Te Arawa — Ngāti Whakaue, Tainui) — a dance artist whose presence, clarity, and incredible physicality continue to enrich Māori contemporary dance in Aotearoa.

In 2025, Matiu was a dance artist in Kia Pohewatia, the Atamira Māori choreographic residency, contributing to two sharings as part of Te Pou Theatre’s Kōanga Festival. Their responsiveness, listening, and grounded performance helped hold and shape the kaupapa, offering a steady and thoughtful presence within the room.

An artist whose presence and artistry continue to shape Atamira today, Caleb Heke (Ngāpuhi) brings extraordinary grace to the company. His movement flows like wai — fluid, grounded, and deeply connected to story and space.

In 2025, Caleb performed in Rongo Whakapā and toured Ka Mua Ka Muri across Aotearoa — continuing to bring strength and poetic beauty to every stage. Reviewer Deirdre Tarrant described his solo as “inspirational… unbroken flow and powerful transitions.”

A true creative force, Caleb embodies the evolving wave of Māori contemporary dance — multi-layered and multidisciplinary. In Ka Mua Ka Muri, he also wove his own voice into the sound score — he korokoro Tūī ia— his exquisite vocals lifting the work to another level. Beyond performing with the company, he is a generous teacher, helping facilitate workshops for unitecdance and aucklandartgallery this year.

Artist, choreographer and researcher whose practice continues to expand the creative and conceptual horizons of our artform — Rachel Ruckstuhl-Mann (Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Rangitāne).
In 2025, Rachel joined Atamira as Choreographer in Residence for Kia Pohewatia, our Māori choreographic residency nurturing new voices and methodologies. Through this residency, she developed a body-led, whenua-centred process that explored the Ōpānuku catchment area — treating place as collaborator and living archive. Her approach, grounded in Te Ao Māori, somatic inquiry, and regenerative design thinking, invited the dancers to “listen through the body to the land”.
Rachel was also a performer in Brydie Colquhoun’s Rongo Whakapā. Reviewer Claire O’Neil wrote: “Ruckstuhl-Mann’s movement seems to breathe the land itself — delicate, spacious, and alive with quiet knowing.”

Atamira has always been guided by the principle of tuakana–teina — artists of different generations learning from and uplifting one another, creating space for the next wave of dancers coming through.

Tyler — a recent Unitec graduate — joined us during the first development of Rongo Whakapā, offering movement material and their unique style, contributing to the early foundations of the work.

Josie — also a recent Unitec graduate — supported the Ka Mua Ka Muri process as an understudy, bringing her commitment, ease, and joyful energy into the rehearsal room.

Te Atawhai — joined us through the 2025 Kia Pohewatia residency and performed in both public sharings, bringing focus, clarity, and her artistry to the work.

We acknowledge choreographer and dancer Eddie “Eru” Elliott (Ngāti Maniapoto) as Atamira celebrates 25 years of Māori contemporary dance.
In 2025, Eru has been studying te reo Māori me ōna tikanga at Te Wānanga o Raukawa, completing Heke Reo and continuing into Heke Poutuarongo Reo. This journey of reclamation enriches not only his own practice but also the wider dance ecology, deepening his leadership within Māori contemporary dance spaces.
Eru co-choreographed Ka Mua Ka Muri (with Bianca Hyslop), showcased at the Opera House Kia Mau Festival and the Sir Howard Morrison Centre in 2025.

“Tradition colliding with innovation through a wonderful mastery of movement, sound and lighting.” — Theatreview

25 years in, Atamira continues to be shaped by artists like Brydie Colquhoun (Ngāpuhi) — an artist, teacher, and choreographer whose strength, grace, and commitment continue to uplift the artform and the people around her.

2025 marked a huge milestone — Brydie’s debut choreographic work Rongo Whakapā premiered at Te Pou Theatre to critical acclaim. What an honour for Atamira to platform her first full-length work — described as “a beautiful unfolding of that journey…holding space for presence and reconnection — with each other, and with the environments we move through.”

Brydie’s history across the dance sector is remarkable — she’s danced with various Aotearoa contemporary dance companies, teaches at the New Zealand School of Dance, is a lululemon ambassador, yoga teacher, and student of Zenthai, and this year undertook full-time te reo Māori me ōna tikanga study at Te Wānanga Takiura — grounding her artistic practice firmly in te ao Māori.