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See below for English translation
E wera tonu ana ngā rekereke o tēnei wahine hakoke whenua nō ngā rangi tata nei ka pā anō mai tōna tinana ki ngā waiariki o tōna ūkaipō.
o Rosie Te Rauawhea Belvie tō tatou manuao, pou kanikani mō te kamupene MAU kātahi nei ia ka tau ki tana pae kainga. He wahine titiropae tawhiti, he wahine e whāia ana i ana moemoeā huhua.
He kanohi kitea nōna i te whakakitenga tīata a Hiruharama.He whakamihi nāna ki tōna puna oroko. Nō Ngai Te Arawa, nō Ngāti Rangitihi, nō Ngāti Te Iwimokai me Te Whakatōhea a Rosie Te Rauawhea Belvie.Nō te tau e rua mano mā iwa whakahope atu ai ia ki te kamupene MAU, ko te take he aroha nui nōna ki te whakaari whaihoki te hakoke whenua. Mātua ko te kawe i tōna ahuerea rangatira ki ngā whenua huhua o te ao.
' He koroingo nui nōku kia kawea tō tatou ahurea ki ngā hau e whā o te ao. Ko te Kapa Haka te matatihi o tōku ao whakaari. E kore e mutu aku kupu rangatira ki taku rōpū ki Te Mātārae I Ōrehu otia ki tō tatou Amokura ki a Pāpā Wetini Mītai Ngātai, nana kē i whakatupu te uho ki roto ki ahau ki a pūāwai ai he kahika whakaari, he rākau kawe korero;.
Engari anō a Hiruharama te whakaari nei. Ko Lemi Ponifasio te ringatohu nana hoki ngā whakanekehanga. Heke iho ai te mauri o tēnei whakaari i a Adonis’ Concerto aL Quds. He rangatira tito kōrero nō Syria. Nō te tau e rua mano, e rua tekau ka whakaari tuatahingia a Hiruharama ki Te Whanganui a Tara, nā wai rā, kua piki te kaha o tōna wairua, kua whai huruhuru ai ia nā reira e tope haere ana ki ngā whenua kē atu, ko Ītārī te whenua i tēnei tau.
' Koia nei te ahuatanga ki a Lemi me āna kaupapa huhua, mātua ki a ia ko te whakakōrero i te hunga mātakitaki, ka rua ko te tātari i ngā kaupapa e noho puku ai te tangata, e murakehutia ōna whakaaro. Ehara i te mea he whakangāhau noa ā tātou whakaari, ehara! Engari kē he whakahuri i te wairua o te tinana e kapakapa ai te kōhamo o te tangata ‘. Hai tana.
Tūturu he kaupapa rongonui a Hiruharama, engari he tapu rawa ki a tāua te Māori. Kua tanikongia he wāhanga waiata, he mōteatea, he karakia me te whaikōrero hoki. Engari ko te whakangungu kia maia ai te tinana, he kaupapa nui hoki tērā. Ka pau i a Rosie he rau o ngā hāora e whakapakari ana, he whakatīoioi kau tōna tinana kia Māori noa te kanikani, he ako tika ki te tuku hau, te kawe anō i tana reo waiata, ā, e makao taniwha ai tōna hinengaro. Kāti – ehara ia i te tauhou ki te tuku werawera.
' Tenei mea te whakapakari ki a maia ai te tangata mō te kaupapa a Hiruharama , ehara i te mea he whakakaha tinana anake. Me uaua kē e angitu ai te tangata ki te tihi o te ātāmira me he tauhou ia ki te kapa haka.Nā reira i waimarie ahau. He wahine tupu ake i te whare o Rehia. He marama ki te kawe i toku taha rangatira me te whakaatu ki te marea.
Kai reira kē ngā tini taumata e puta ai te wairua me te tinana o te tangata ki te tihi o tēnei mahi. He rangatira whakaari katoa matou, nō mātou te whiwhi, kia whai tunga ai mātou ki ēnei tūranga, hai aha? Hai whakaohooho , hei whakatō kaha ki roto ki tēnā tangata, ki roto ki tērā tangata e puta ai te mauri ora ki te whai ao ki te ao marama’.
Engari e titiro pae tawhito ana a Rosie ki te anamata e marama kehokeho ana ōna kanohi.
' Ko tāku he tuku iho i taku puna mātauranga. Kai konei ahau me ōku hoa e tahitahi ana i te ara tātaramoa kia mā ai. Ko tā te whakatupuranga hou, he whai noa, he kawe i te rama o te maramatanga, whaihoki kia whai take ai te hinengaro, he noho haupuaroaro ki te tātari kaupapa nā wai rā kia tu hai ringatohu’. Koia aku kupu itiiti nei e hoa mā. Tēnā kotou katoa.
Fresh off a tour of Rome with dance troupe, MAU Company, Rosie Belvie is living her dream of taking Māori performance to the world.
Belvie’s (Te Arawa, Ngāti Rangitihi, Te Whakatōhea) performance in Jerusalem is a nod to her roots and love of performing arts. She joined MAU Company in 2009, marking the beginning of a journey that would see her traversing global stages, sharing the richness of Māori culture.
“I wanted to share our culture with people from around the world. I wanted to share kapa haka. For me, it has always been the stage. I pay immense respect to Te Mātārae I Ōrehu and Uncle Wetini Mītai Ngātai for building the foundation of my performing arts career,” she says.
Directed and choreographed by Lemi Ponifasio, Jerusalem draws inspiration from Syrian poet Adonis’, Author of Concerto aL Quds (Concerto Jerusalem). Since its Wellington premiere in 2020, it has embarked on a global journey, with its most recent stop being Rome this year.
“Like all kaupapa initiated by Lemi Ponifasio and MAU Company, the main purpose for making work is to share in time and space and evoke conversation or self-reflection.
“What we do is not for entertainment but to cater to our often quiet but deep human need to understand our conscious existence and personal transformations,” she says.
While universal in its appeal, Jerusalem holds specific resonances for Māori, interweaving elements of waiata, mōteatea, karakia, and whaikōrero.
However, training for such performances is no easy feat. Belvie’s regime involves hours of physical movement, interspersed with breathing exercises, vocal explorations, and activities to test mental endurance. But she believes the effort is worth the reward.
“Training for Jerusalem comes in many forms other than just physical. There are levels of psychological training.
“And then for us as Māori, there are the ancestral and tribal trainings we’ve received from home, from culture and from kapa haka.
“The overall goal is to incite an awareness of self and of the cosmos in which we reside and are connected. To expand our consciousness regardless of time. We, as artists, are privileged to inspire others. To guide them towards their potential and help reconnect with the divine,” she says. Belvie is optimistic for the future.
“My personal succession plan will be to pass on the knowledge I’ve obtained on this path through similar means of performance and engagement. To allow the next generation to hold the light and be critical thinkers and directors of their future,” says Belvie.
The project has employed about 300 tradespeople, mostly from Rotorua, since October 2023.