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Home / Bay of Plenty Times

What’s on for Matariki in the Bay of Plenty: Celebrations in the Bay of Plenty get bigger each year

Aleyna Martinez
By Aleyna Martinez
Multimedia journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
25 Jun, 2024 03:00 AM6 mins to read

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Watch: Sneak peek at drone show set to light up Rotorua this Matariki
This incredible show will light up the Rotorua Lakefront as part of the Aronui Arts Festival this Matariki.
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      This incredible show will light up the Rotorua Lakefront as part of the Aronui Arts Festival this Matariki.
      NOW PLAYING • Watch: Sneak peek at drone show set to light up Rotorua this Matariki
      This incredible show will light up the Rotorua Lakefront as part of the Aronui Arts Festival this Matariki.

      Many cultures across the globe have links to Matariki says chief adviser to the Government, and astronomy Professor Rangi Mātāmua.

      In Japan it’s called Subaru. For some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures in Australia, it is about seven sisters running away from the Jampijinpa man. He follows them into the sky, travelling as a star in the Orion’s Belt cluster.

      Here in Aotearoa, it is a time for whānau and celebration, Mātāmua says.

      Professor Rangi Matamua grew up in Levin has raised awareness of the significance of Matariki.
      Professor Rangi Matamua grew up in Levin has raised awareness of the significance of Matariki.

      “It’s built around unity, collectivity the environment, and sharing food.

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      “It’s a moment where you step away from all the bothers and the headaches of the world and spend time with your closest and dearest,” he said.

      Mātāmua, who was part of the push to make Matariki a public holiday, spoke to the Rotorua Daily Post ahead of this year’s celebrations.


      Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner
      Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner
      Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner
      Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner
      Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner

      Image 1 of 5: Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner

      “It’s about understanding that it’s a cycle that’s built into the natural rhythms of the environment.

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      Matariki “is part of a lunar-solar timekeeping system which is different to the solar Gregorian calendar”.

      “It’s actually noticing that the sun rises in different places throughout the year, noticing the cycles and sinking into the different lunar phases, it’s realising that the stars rise four minutes earlier and the moon rises 50 minutes later.

      “When our ancestors arrived from other parts of Polynesia, they brought the system with them, but they had to reapply it because of the different flora and fauna, different temperatures, different weather, different resources.

      “As the environment continues to change, you’re meant to continuously adjust your systems of time to sink in with the environment, whether the environment be warming or cooling, whether they be getting wetter or drier, you actually need to sink in with the changes of the environment.

      “The system is not meant to stay stagnant forever. Just like no cultural practice is meant to stay stagnant. It’s meant to continuously evolve.

      “That’s what I enjoy seeing coming back is people acknowledging the science that’s within this knowledge base and practising it again.

      “So the system continues to change and that’s one of the beautiful things about following the system,” Mātāmua said.

      Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner
      Matariki drone show. Photo / Andrew Warner

      .

      This year the Bay of Plenty has a packed programme for Matariki with the Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival hosting the first ever matauranga Māori story to be told with 160 drones over the Rotorua Lake this Thursday and Friday.

      The show is created by Māori artists Cian Elyse White (Ngāti Pikiao) and Mataia Keepa (Ngāti Whakaue) and tells the stories of environmental markers connected to this star cluster.

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      Celestial navigator Jack Thatcher is on a one-of-a-kind waka journey around the world.
      Celestial navigator Jack Thatcher is on a one-of-a-kind waka journey around the world.

      Ngāi Te Rangi chief executive Paora Stanley said Jack Thatcher’s hautapu service Matariki ki Mauao 2024 is a highlight for Tauranga.

      “That is a very good programme and it helps bring people together, not just Māori people, but many cultures.

      ”It’s got a really beautiful linking process down there,” Stanley said.

      RotoruaNZ said this year more people were engaged in local events compared to last year, experiencing a 20% jump in accommodation bookings for the region.

      “We are on track to meet our target of being fully sold out for the weekend,” brand and marketing manager, Haydn Marriner said.

      “The Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival Matariki Drone Show has been one of the leading lights,” Marriner said.

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      Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival chairwoman, Mercia Dawn Yates said it was an extraordinary time, “by telling our story, our way in our backyard”.

      “Partnering with our indigenous whanaunga and friends from across the ditch to help support and showcase the story of Matariki this year, will be a world first for Aronui.”

      What’s happening this Matariki:

      Tauranga

      * Matariki ki Mauao 2024 - An early morning hīkoi to the top of Mauao and hear about the importance of Matariki shared by Jack Thatcher.

      Dates: June 28

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      Location: Mauao Summit

      Cost: Anyone

      * Sculpture Trail - Discover the magic of augmented reality art.

      Dates: June 10-June 30

      Location: The Strand Reserve, Tauranga CBD and Te Papa o Ngā Manu Porotakataka, Mt Maunganui.

      Cost: Free and open to the public

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      * The Incubator - Art exhibitions

      Date: From June 8 to June 29, open 10am-3pm, Monday to Saturday.

      * Tae Ako - Whenua Student Roopu Exhibition - Okorore – Ngā Toi Māori Gallery

      * Hauora – a Matariki Exhibition by Pip Lewis - The People’s Gallery

      * Toi ka rere Darlene Walters - Kōrari Collective Exhibition in The Incubator Gallery

      Rotorua:

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      * Aronui Indigenous Arts Festival First Light Drone Show + Night market

      Rotorua Lakefront, June 27 and 28

      * Te Puia hautapu ceremony - The ceremony is aligned with the natural timings of our taiao (environment) under the māramataka (phases of the moon), and will begin when the stars are visible, and conclude at dawn.

      When: Friday, June 28

      Time: 5am-7am

      Venue: Te Puia, Hemo Rd, Tihiotonga, Rotorua

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      Katikati

      * Matariki Katikati celebration - Park Rd Reserve, Katikati June 28, 5am

      Pāpāmoa

      * “Light up the waterway” Te Ara ō Wairākei Matariki 2024

      When: Friday, June 28

      Time : 5pm-10pm

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      Where: Papamoa Plaza

      Te Puke

      * Te kete Matariki - an annual community event celebrating the Māori New Year featuring taonga pūoro performance, House of Shem, Te Puke student choir, DJ Pakman + more.

      Where: Jubilee Park, Te Puke

      Time: 10am-4pm

      Whakatane

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      * Whakatāne Matariki Market

      When: Friday, June 28

      Where: Mitchell Park, Pyne St

      Time: 9am-12.30pm

      * Dune Planting and Weaving with Te Whare Taonga o Taketake - Planting pīngao with Coast Care.

      When: Tuesday, July 2, 9.30am -11.30am

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      Ōpōtiki

      * Movie Premiere: Ka Whawhai Tonu

      Where: Ōpōtiki De Luxe Theatre.

      When: Thursday, June 27

      Time: 5.15pm

      * Waka Ama

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      When: 10am Saturday, June 29

      Where: Ōhiwa boat ramp

      * Matariki Pacific Pulse - An unforgettable fusion of traditions and cultures at Matariki Pacific Pulse. This extraordinary event brings together the vibrant Solomon Island Independence Day Celebration and the spirited Ōpōtiki Matariki Festival for a day of epic cultural festivities.

      When: 11am to 6pm

      Where: Saturday, July 6

      Kawerau

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      * Community Awards

      Where: Concert Chamber, Ranfurly Court, Kawerau

      Time: Wednesday, June 26

      When: 1pm

      * Community tree planting ceremony

      When Monday, June 24 10.30am

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      Where: In front of the council offices, Ranfurly Court, Kawerau.


      Discover more

      • 7 places to celebrate Matariki in New Zealand in 2024 ...
      • Theme for Matariki 2024 announced - ‘Matariki Heri ...
      • Matariki ki Waikato Festival 2024: Region comes together ...
      • 'Always a Friday': Matariki public holiday dates for ...
      • Rainy Matariki for Central Hawke’s Bay
      • Matariki in Hawke’s Bay: Fire, water, and a feast for ...


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