Kia Pohewatia
We are thrilled to announce Rachel Ruckstuhl-Mann (Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Rangitāne) and Samara Reweti (Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi Te Rangi, Te Arawa) as the selected artists for Kia Pohewatia — Atamira Dance Company’s choreographic residency programme dedicated to nurturing and empowering Māori choreographers.
THE PROCESS
Over the course of two weeks each, Rachel and Samara had the opportunity to deepen their choreographic practice through dedicated studio time, expert mentorship, and close collaboration with a team of four Māori dance artists.
Rachel and Samara each presented a Work-In-Progress showing as a part of Te Pou Theatre’s incredible Kōanga Festival, which cultivates new ideas and shares the bounty of new narratives through Māori performing arts.
Rachel Ruckstuhl-Mann
Work-in-progress showing
Sunday 14 September | 2pm
Kōanga Festival
Rachel Ruckstuhl-Mann’s work-in-progress draws on indigenous performance methodologies, activating space through whakapapa, memory, and embodied storytelling. Honouring place-based knowledge and the unique histories within each body, her work creates intimate connections between audiences and whenua through movement and non-linear narratives. This work-in-progress incorporates improvisation, object manipulation and moving images to explore the nested system of Ōpānuku as an alive and evolving force. This presentation includes a sharing of Rachel’s research and insights behind the work-in-progress.
Samara Reweti
Work-in-progress showing
Saturday 20 September | 3pm
Kōanga Festival
Kupi is a live installation by Samara Reweti exploring the politics of the gaze—investigating surveillance, intimacy, and perception. Through improvisation, movement, and technology, Kupi invites audiences into an immersive experience that challenges how we see and are seen. This showing will feature a sharing of Samara’s creative process and research.
