21 Questions Atamira dance company's 21st anniversary

Atamira Dance Co celebrates 21 years with a new work, featuring new recruits Oli Mathiesen, Dana Moore-Mudgway and Caleb Heke. Photo / NZ Herald Dean Purcell

They're contemporary Māori dancers in their early 20s from Tāmaki Makaurau with the world at their feet. Fresh out of Unitec's Performing Arts School, Caleb Heke, 21, (Ngāpuhi), Oli Mathieson, 21, (Ngāpuhi) and Dana Moore-Mudgway, 22, (Te Atiawa, Rangitāne, Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāi Tahu) have scored their first professional gig for Atamira Dance Company.

A new show, Te Wheke, is Atamira's 21st anniversary celebration piece. Aroha Awarau asked the company's youngest members 21 questions.

1. What's it like being 21 in 2021?

Oli: I thought that turning 21 would be the pinnacle of my life. That it will be a really exciting time. This stage in your life is when you're going to know the most people, you have the most friends and family surrounding you. The older you get, this decreases and everyone dwindles away. That's a daunting thought. That's why it's really important to remind ourselves to live in the moment with our loved ones.

What's it like being young and Māori in 2021?

Dana: I didn't grow up in a Māori environment. I struggled with identity, especially being a light-skinned Māori, I didn't know whether I could claim my Māori heritage because I was concerned about what others would think. I feel like the world is more open now, and I feel that I am able to celebrate my culture a lot more.

Did anyone else feel like their light skin had affected the way they saw themselves as Māori?

Oli: I knew about my whakapapa throughout the majority of my youth. But I also didn't feel I could embrace it because of my fairness. I have only recently begun my journey with embracing my Māori side. That has been intertwined with joining Atamira Dance Company, being surrounding by Māori dances and mentors and working in a kaupapa Māori space. It's been confronting because lots of my dance training has come from colonised western spaces. So, embracing my Māori side has meant letting go of lots of those bicultural spaces.

Has joining Atamira helped you rediscover your Māori heritage?

Caleb: I didn't have much dance training when I was younger. When I studied at Unitec, we are taught a westernised way of moving, dancing and holding your body. This was new to me because when I started dancing, I was a wiggly, octopus-like kind of dancer. When I joined Atamira, which is strongly steeped in Māori culture, it opened my eyes to the possibility of dance. It's about bringing your whole whakapapa and bringing everything that you value and putting that into your movement.

Have you performed kapa haka or have done any other traditional forms of Māori dance?

Dana: I remember doing it at primary school, about once a week. That was the extent of it.

What did you learn about dance by doing kapa haka?

Oli: I loved it and it was another way of moving my body. I stopped it at high school to focus solely on contemporary dance, thinking it was one or the other. They couldn't inform each other.

When people think of Māori and dance, they think of kapa haka - is there more to it than that?

Oli: Because Māori visibility in contemporary dance is so low, people tend to look for symbols that they can categorise and recognise as Māori. If it doesn't look like kapa haka or anything from traditional Māori movement, then it mustn't be Māori. I disagree. If the people who are creating contemporary dance pieces are Māori, then that automatically makes it Māori dance.

How does it feel to be the same age as Atamira Dance Company?

Dana: I feel honoured to be here. My first big gig just out of Uni and I'm involved in this major 21st anniversary work. Just the fact that they have been going since I was born feels like everything has lined up throughout my whole life just so I can be part of this company right now. It makes sense.

What challenges do you face?

Oli: We are living in the age of social media ... Our challenge is being able to do the mahi on social media and back it up with our real life actions.

Are there any other issues young people face?

Caleb: I agree with Oli. Social media is one of our generation's best achievements as well as its biggest downfall. We strive to be this figure of pure happiness and joy and we want to share this with the world on our social media platforms, but we also compare ourselves to these standards and are always wondering why our lives don't look or feel like that. We as humans love to compare our lives to the people around us. It has almost become second nature; with social media we are exposed to this all the time.

What are your fears?

Caleb: I'm scared of living a life that is for others and not for myself. I want to be able to look back on my life and be proud of the things I've accomplished. I want to look around at this world I've created and be surrounded by the friends and family that have helped lift me to be the best me I can be.

Being young and Māori, is there a pressure to retain your culture?

Dana: Yes, but in a good way. I want to be immersed in it. There needs to be some pressure put on us for us to do that.

Atamira Dance members answer 21 questions on what it's like to be 20something in 2021. Photo / NZ Herald / Dean Purcell

How has the journey been in rediscovering your Māori heritage?

Caleb: I was brought up in a very white family who did not identify as Māori for the longest time. I was 13 when my parents told me that we were Māori. Even though my last name is Heke, I didn't put two and two together. I didn't hear or see the struggles that my people were facing every day. At same point, I felt very shameful for not knowing my whakapapa and knowing how to speak te reo Māori. Now, my parents are learning te reo. There are foundations in place for people to embrace their culture and they feel a sense of fulfilment. They are reclaiming their whakapapa.

Do you think it's up to your generation to spearhead that change?

Oli: Every young generation always brings about certain change. I'm sure the generation before us thought they were being radical and paving the way, as much as we are now. The conversation is about growing up to maintain a wide vision of the world and to adapt as a new generation informs us as well. We are resilient, we have lots of drive and we are also naive. Naivety is amazing because it allows us to take risks.

Are you learning te reo Māori?

Dana: I was doing te reo classes last year as part of a mentoring programme, and I'm planning to continue with night classes to fit into my busy schedule. The journey has been interesting because at primary school, most people learn the basics. I've returned to learning the language after doing nothing during high school. To see how much I remembered and coming back to it at an older age, it meant so much more.

You spoke earlier before about being light-skinned Māori. Have you faced racism?

Oli: Our identity is always questioned. That's why Atamira has been so amazing and fully embraced us. Often when you identify as Māori, you get put in a situation where it's implied that you need assistance or you are underprivileged. At Unitec, when we first signed up as students, I didn't tick on my form that I was Māori. With my knowledge of things, this normally meant that I was eligible for Māori scholarships. I had this privilege of having white skin and I didn't want to claim those things.

Has anyone else had similar experiences?

Dana: I've had experiences where I've told people that I'm Māori and then they think that I'm just saying that because I want to claim scholarship money. A lot of people I was surrounded by had viewed it as taking an opportunity away from those who were less fortunate, just because of my skin colour. I did a te reo mentoring programme last year because I wanted to fully embrace my culture. I came out of it feeling so sure of myself, that I could stand up and say that I am Māori and I don't care what anyone else things about that. This is who I am, and you can't tell me otherwise.

Is this a reaction from Pākehā or Māori?

Dana: It's mainly been Pākehā. Most of the Māori that I talk to have embraced and supported me. It's mainly Pākehā that have questioned my identity and motivations.

Did you always want a career in dance?

Caleb: Dance was not in my brain when I was a child. When I was 13, I was sure I was going to be a police officer. At intermediate, my friend had a dream that I was a dancer and that I was good at it. She kept pushing me. Then at 17, she said I needed to take up dance classes at high school. To amuse her, I did it. I actually thought it was fun and I was quite good at it. That's when the passion started and I wanted to pursue it further.

Atamira Dance members Oli Mathiesen, Dana Moore-Mudgway and Caleb Heke. Photo / NZ Herald / Dean Purcell

How were your parents with this decision?

Caleb: It was hard to convince my parents that I was going to be a dancer. They were telling me that I wouldn't get anything out of it, I'd earn no money, I would be struggling to find a job. For me, that wasn't the point. I wanted to do something in my life that I loved. This was my passion; this is what I want to live and breathe. When I got this gig with Atamira straight out of Uni, It was great to tell them that I have a job and I'm getting money to dance.

What does the future hold for you?

Caleb: I'd hope to be talking marriage with my girlfriend, plans on moving in together, possibly kids. I want to be a dad so bad. I'd like to become more involved with my whakapapa and really understand where I come from, who I am as a person. I want to be strong in my own identity.

Atamira performs Te Wheke in Tāmaki Makaurau June 11 ahead of touring to the Kia Mau indigenous festival in Wellington, Christchurch and Whāngārei.