The supreme winner of the Russell Birdman 2013. Maryanne Hooson looking pensive as Mr Whippy before her jump. Photo / Sandy Myhre
Russell Birdman flies back for another year
The rain stopped, the sun came out and the crowds came back to Russell for the first time in three years for the legendary Birdman Festival.
What began in 2007 as a way to enliven Russell during the slow winter months grew to become, at one time, the largest winter festival in Northland. That was before Covid lockdowns.
This year organisers signalled it would be a low-key event. They were hoping for 10 jumpers and got eight.
The preliminary events consisted of a spaghetti-eating competition, a fishing competition with 59 anglers, waka races, a beach dig where 60 ice blocks were dug up, the worst tattoo award and the world’s slowest bike race. That event, new to the festival, attracted 30 entrants.
The Birdman fliers were one woman encased in a cardboard Mr Whippy van complete with wheels. Her accompanying song was, of course, from Mr Whippy. The Russell Fire Brigade jumped to a monologue of Flick the Fire Engine while the girls from the Russell Tennis Club leapt to Pat Benatar’s Hit Me With Your Best Shot.
Project Island Song had two “great footed waddle birds that had been extinct from Kororāreka since 1904″ and the crowd was encouraged to raise their voices because the birds were “rather skittish and could swim away”.
The Russell Sports Club had Percy the Wipe Out Bird. The music was, appropriately, The Surfaris’ 1963 hit Wipe Out.
Tim Grant, a former winner of Birdman, jumped for Russell Kororāreka and mimed cutting down the flagpole to The Howard Morrison Quartet’s spoof song of Hone Heke, he cut, cut, cut that flagpole down.
The final two fliers were the Power Puff Girls there to save Russell from the mad scientist, Professor Utonium, and a wildcard entrant from France who flew to The Trashmen’s Bird Is The Word, another 1963 hit.
In the end, capturing the crowd favourite vote was Moana Stuart of Russell Sports Club and the farthest flight award went to Darren Sigley of Russell Volunteer Fire Brigade.
The biggest flop was from the “great footed waddle birds” from Project Island Song and the biggest splash was made by Debra Mead of Russell Tennis Club.
The supreme winner was Maryanne Hooson as Mr Whippy.
Footnote Dance Company performing in Kerikeri
The Footnote Dance Company was founded in 1985 by Deirdre Tarrant and since then almost every notable New Zealand dancer and choreographer has worked within its structure.
It’s a national arts organisation dedicated to improving the art scene in New Zealand by amplifying dance as an art form.
Recent performances include The Impossible Has Already Happened in May, ChoreoCo 2022: Mea Uma, also in May this year, and Dry Spell on New Year’s Day 2023.
Now the company is coming to the Turner Centre in Kerikeri with a double bill of contemporary dance works that represents a “lens of viewing the human condition”.
It is called IYKYK, or If You Know You Know, and asks the questions ‘How do you win at the game of life’ and ‘What are the rules of the end of the world?’.
Holly Newsome returns to the company to present the dance of life. The Taranaki-born dancer will feature in Advance to Go.
Queer indigenous performance artist Forest V Kapo (Te Atiawa, Ngāti Raukawa) explores how to save the world in Premonition. He has returned to New Zealand after 10 years based in Dja Dja Wurrung Country, Bendigo in Victoria, Australia.
Both choreographers are creating their works alongside lighting designer Elekis Poblete Tierney and with sound managed by Emi Pogoni.
In addition, the dance company will be holding masterclasses. Dancers from Northland Dance Academy and Dance Vibes New Zealand will learn technique, repertoire from the show and some of the creative tasks that were used to create the show.
Head teacher at Dance Vibes, Sherri Philpot, says having the chance to work closely with a professional dance company is an experience most of her dancers have never been offered before.
Tickets from footnote.org.nz.
Local music initiative
A pilot system designed to enhance the creative and financial viability of local musicians and their listeners has been launched in the Far North. If successful it will be replicated around the rest of the country.
The initiative, called Launchpad, is designed to connect local artists to their local audience and encourage collaboration between each of them.
It has been running since January and is currently in stage one which is the research phase. It means making initial contact with artists in different areas and creating a feasibility study into the needs of the local artists.
The programme is designed specifically for original New Zealand music. There is no set genre for the music and no age restrictions.
Seed funding has been awarded by Manatu Taonga, Ministry of Culture and Heritage, through the culture sector innovation fund.
Project coordinator Merv Pinny says there is a large amount of unheard talent in the Far North.
“This is one of the hardest and most isolated areas for artists to find their audience.
“We are aiming for Launchpad to make them accessible to their local audience and easier for artists to collaborate, to gain support and where possible to share resources with their fellow artists,” he said.
“The project has also identified many other talented people in film, writing, art, studios, theatre groups, and production teams that may all benefit from this collaboration.”
Over the next two months those involved will be asking the local community to support their local artists by following them on social media and through live performance.