Matariki is a public holiday for the first time this year. Image / Supplied
Te Ohu Whakaita Charitable Trust presents the Matariki ki Waikato 2022 festival with events to be held all around the region to celebrate the Māori New Year.
Below is the programme with details for events running throughout the festival from June 17 to July 17. You can also download the Matariki Aotearoa mobile App to stay up to date.
• Interactive Matariki display at Matamata-Piako District Libraries, all throughout June
Throughout the month, the libraries in Te Aroha, Morrinsville and Matamata have a display showcasing the night sky of Matariki. Visit the library to write your hopes and aspirations for the coming year on a star, and add it to our constellation to be in to win a brand-new Wero Mai board game!
• Matariki-themed story walks, along the newly opened section of the river walk in Morrinsville (starts at Studholme Street entrance and finishes at the suspension bridge) and Waharoa along the S27 rest area
• Exhibition Aho Hīnātore with paintings by Jordyn Daniels from now until Sunday, July 17 at Hamilton's The Meteor
Inspired by atua wāhine, this show celebrates the divine light of feminine essence and creation. Through a mana wāhine lens, we see courage, transformation, diversity and control over destiny. Jordyn Daniels re-imagines pūrākau (mythical tales) from her perspective, giving expression and dimension to both the her-stories portrayed, and each atua contained. Free event. For more information visit The Meteor's website.
• Self-guided star walk, from now until July 17, 24/7
Enjoy making your way around the 30-minute self-guided Star Walk trail in the central city, where you can discover the legend of Matariki and her six children. Each location tells the legend of one of the stars with a QR code to scan and view the Star Walk map. Free event.
• Follow the Stars Scavenger Hunt, from now until July 16 at the Hamilton Zoo
Follow the seven stars positioned around the zoo. Learn about the Matariki constellation as you locate each star and be in to win a Hamilton Zoo family annual pass. One winner will be drawn each week over Matariki. Zoo admission applies.
• Sparkling Stars exhibition at Art Health, from now until July 21 at Arts for Health, Norris Ward Park Arts & Craft Centre, 2 Seddon Rd.
Sparkling Stars is an exhibition of handmade stars from the artists of Arts for Health in the Norris Ward & McKinnon Gallery. Based on the theme Matariki, each star is a personal statement of celebration and achievement or of goals and dreams for the new year.
For more information contact office@artsforhealth.co.nz or visit their website. Event is free to Arts for Health artists and visitors
• Matariki and the Stars talk on Thursday, June 30 and Thursday, July 14, from 7pm to 9pm at the Hamilton Gardens, Chartwell Room and Te Parapara Garden
Presented by Piripi Lambert, the Māori astronomer and Maramataka practitioner shares his knowledge on Matariki, Tainui star lore and the stories significant in the Waikato. Followed by a walk to Te Parapara Garden to view the stars (weather permitting). Free admission but booking is essential due to limited seating. To register and for more details visit the Hamilton Gardens website or Facebook page.
• Matariki Rangahau Series workshop on July 29 from 9.30am to 3.30pm, at the Waikato DHB. Online sessions on Mondays July, 4, 11, 18, 25 from 11am to 1pm
Are you an experienced Māori researcher or keen to learn about rangahau? Come along to network, learn about research and evaluation and be supported on your rangahau journey. This series of free workshops will cover the basics of research and evaluation.
Kanohi ki te kanohi sessions will include kai and be at Waikato Hospital. Free event. Contact MaoriSupportNetwork@waikatodhb.health.nz for more information.
• Bilingual Glowworm Cave tour at Waitomo Glowworm Caves on Tuesday, June 28 from 10.30am to 11.30am
If you're just starting out or have some knowledge of te reo Māori, come along to our bilingual tour. This experience will involve a guided walk through the caves, with key elements of the tour delivered in te reo Māori and English, followed by the quintessential boat ride underneath the glowworm canopy. Tickets are available here or call 0800 456 922.
• Old School Arts Centre Paint a Bowl workshop, on Thursday, June 30 at 6pm and Saturday, July 2 at 10am, at the Raglan Arts Centre
What does Matariki 2022 mean to you? Create a lasting souvenir of this special time. Awesome hands-on fun, no artistic skill necessary for this workshop to be enjoyable and successful! Suitable for everyone aged 12+. $20 bookings essential!
With support from Raglan Naturally and Waikato District Creative Communities NZ. Contact info@raglanartscentre.co.nz for more information.
• Theatre play Hui (Pronounced 'Who-e') running on Wednesday, June 29, Thursday, June 30 and Friday, July 1 at 7.30pm at Hamilton's The Meteor
Two strangers meet each other in a room waiting for different reasons. Sharing stories about themselves, they find they're connected to each other in more ways than one, fighting a system forcing them into categories they're unsure they belong in. Devised and performed by Hinerangimarie Berryman (Waikato Tainui and Tuwharetoa) and Benny Marama (Kūki 'Āirani), Hui (Pronounced 'Who-ee') explores identity through music and theatre. Funny, heart-breaking, and unapologetically brown, the show explores the collision between different cultures and finding common ground. Hui (Pronounced 'Who-ee') is supported by The Meteor's Boil Up Creative Development programme.
Tickets are available from The Meteor website.
• Kūmara & Hue Wānanga (workshop) on Thursday, June 30 from 3.30pm to 6pm
Presented by Te Papanui, Go Eco, Te Papanui Enderley Community Trust, Te Puna Kai o Waikato.
An opportunity to listen to experts from the community and to share knowledge about the kūmara and the hue. The kūmara and the hue have a rich whakapapa in Aotearoa New Zealand. Learning to grow kūmara connects people back to this history as well as to the whenua. The wānanga will conclude with a shared kai for all the community to enjoy. Gold coin donation (koha) entry. Please register at Eventbrite.
• L.A.B concert with special guests JESS B and MASAYA on Saturday, July 2 at Hamilton's Globox Arena
Fresh from a massive tour of Australia, L.A.B returns to Kirikiriroa. Tickets available via ticketek.
• Movies at the Old School / Whetū Mārama: Bright Star, Saturday, July 2 at 5pm and 8pm, as well as on Sunday, July 17 at 4.30pm, presented by director Toby Mills, at the Raglan Arts Centre, 5 Stewart St, Raglan.
This is the story of Hek Busby, and his significance for Māori in rekindling their wayfinding DNA and for all New Zealanders in reclaiming our place as traditional star voyagers. Gold coin donation (koha) entry. For more information contact info@raglanartscentre.co.nz.
• Whiti 2022 talent showcase, on Saturday, July 2 at 6pm at The Meteor
Showcasing the latest and greatest talents from around the Waikato, Whiti 2022 is your chance to get your finger on the pulse of what's hot in our region. From theatre to music to spoken word, Whiti is a safe space for you to share your talents with us all. This year, we'll be featuring a range of acts from those just starting out to some of our more established artists. And as always, we've got our mics ready for you to come in and share your awesomeness on the fly!
Free event, but please register for tickets at The Meteor.
• Te Whare Toi o Ngāruawāhia Market, on Saturday, July 9 from 10am to 2pm, at 18 Herschel St, Ngāruawāhia
Nau mai haere mai! NGĀ ART, which operates out of the old Masonic building on Herschel St in Ngāruawāhia organises major cultural and creative events. We are hosting our annual Matariki Markets that have a focus on arts, culture, music and kai. Come along and support our local artists and enjoy our space. Free event. For more information visit NGĀ ART's website.
• Matariki at the Museum, on Saturday, July 9 from 10am to 4pm, at the Waikato Museum
Māori New Year is a time to reflect, to honour those that have departed, to play and to attend to our wellbeing.
Events include:
- Raranga Aroha with weaving group Te Roopu Aroha ki te Raranga.
- The Colour of Stars Pompom making for tamariki with crochet artists Lissy and Rudi Robinson-Cole.
- Ihirangaranga Regan Balzer paints to the vibration of sound with Horomono Horo and guests.
- Kōrero Toi: Toi is Rongoā A panel discussion with artists Margaret Aull, Eugene Kara, Lissy and Rudi Robinson Cole, Regan Balzer, Dorothy Waetford and others.
- Slipstream" The healing powers of clay mirimiri (traditional massage) with Dorothy Waetford.
- Pūrakau The power of storytelling with Maria Huata.
- Music at the marae with Kahurangi Heta.
Free events. For more information visit the Museum's website.
• Toi is Rongoa exhibition, opening on Saturday, July 9 from 10am to 5pm, at the Waikato Museum
This large-scale exhibition celebrates fourteen contemporary Māori artists who believe in the importance of creative practice to their wellbeing. The invited artists have been supported by Creative New Zealand to make new work and share this essential kaupapa with our community.
Curated by Margaret Aull (Te Rarawa, Tuwharetoa, Fiji) and Maree Mills (Ngāti Tūwharetoa), these inspiring and deeply personal works explore the need for healing and self-awareness amongst the turmoil of life.
Toi is a manifestation of cultural identity that is used to interpret and disseminate knowledge. The simplest equivalent in the English language is 'art', a word which itself holds layers of meaning and resonance. Rongoā, known as traditional Māori healing, provides physical and spiritual balance through attributes of the natural world. Fluorescent wool, clay, steel, improvised music, oil paint on canvas – the varied mediums within this exhibition showcase the transformational and holistic power of creativity.
Featured artists are Regan Balzer, Louise Potiki Bryant, Hemi McGregor, Dorothy Waetford, Eugene Kara, Tawhanga Nopera, Israel Birch, Hiria Anderson, Natalie Robinson, Aimee Ratana, Lissy and Rudi Robinson Cole, Margaret Aull, Leilani Kake and Elizabeth Gray.
Free entry. For more information visit the Museum's website.
• Matariki Glow Show, on Friday, July 15 from 11am to 11.40am, at Hamilton's Globox Arena
A giant scale glow-in-the-dark puppet show! Come and celebrate Matariki with us as we bring you a beautiful Matariki story, upbeat music and highly visual, spectacular ultraviolet puppetry! Perfect for all ECE groups, Kohanga, primary schools during Term 2! Tickets available via ticketek.
• Matariki in the City, on Saturday, July 16 from 9.30am to 3pm at Hamilton Central Library
Join us for Matariki in the City, a high energy event gathering whanau together in Hamilton to celebrate all things Matariki. Bring all the family along and learn traditional and contemporary matauranga Māori through entertainers, traditional arts and crafts, face painting, Māori games and activities.
This year's theme centres around the star Matariki. This star signifies motherhood, health and wellbeing, reflection, hope and our connection with the environment.
An epic lineup of performers this year will include musicians, master storytellers, kapa haka and street dance. While the children are entertained, enjoy a relaxing mirimiri, get a health check, smear test and advice from health and rongoā experts. Food trucks/stalls selling traditional and local foods will be available in Garden Place.
Held at Hamilton Central Library, Garden Place, entry to the event, all arts and crafts, hauora activities and games are free. for more information visit the library website or contact Briar Downes at briar.downes@hcc.govt.nz. For updates follow Matariki in The City on Facebook.
• Music and food event Matariki Ahunga Nui Matariki Kanohi Iti on Saturday, July 16 from 5pm to 11.30pm at Hamilton's The Meteor
This event includes a three-course menu incorporating traditional Māori ingredients, live entertainment from a variety of artists, a Matariki runway show providing local designers a platform to showcase their creations, and a space for Pakihi Māori to display and sell products.
Tickets are available online or contact Tania David at tania@tkd.events. For updates follow MatarikiAhungaNui on Facebook.
• Online event Waikato District Libraries Matariki Competition 2022 runs until 5pm Friday, June 24
Ngā mihi o Matariki, te tau hou Māori! Waikato District Libraries are celebrating Matariki with their annual Matariki Online Competition. This year they are challenging you to write a Matariki poem, and design a T-shirt that reflects what Matariki means to you.
There are three age divisions for each competition: 0-9 years, 10-17 years, and 18+, so the whole whānau can join in. There are loads of amazing prizes up for grabs.
To enter, email your entry and entry form to librarycomp@waidc.govt.nz or pop into the library and we can do that for you. Free event. Entries close 5pm Friday, June 24.
Winners will be announced on Wednesday, July 6 in the District Libraries Facebook group.
• Matariki at Hamilton City Libraries runs until July 16, at 5pm, Hamilton City Libraries, 9 Garden Place
Learn about the seven stars of Matariki is celebrated in the Waikato, over the span of seven weeks at each of the six branches of the Hamilton City Libraries and Te Whare o Te Ata Fairfield Chartwell Community House. From stargazing, watercolour painting to making manu tukutuku (traditional kites). Collect a booklet from your local library, visit each venue to collect a star sticker and be in to win at every activity.
A final prize draw of a Kaupapa boardgame will take place at Central Library on July 16 July. Free event. For more information contact Briar Downes at 021 169 0405.
• Online event Mauri Tau from Friday, June 17 until Sunday, July 17, sessions from 6am to 10am and 4pm to 8pm
A unique storytelling experience that weaves together the magic of theatre, your whakapapa to the stars and nature. This guided experience immerses you: the listener, in a playful and reflective Sound Play alongside Te Kāhui o Matariki (the star cluster of Matariki). Writer and director Scotty Cotter collaborates with sound designers Fran Kora, Matt Eller and Komako Silver to celebrate and usher in the Māori new year, inviting you to reconnect to your own mauri (life force, essence).
Tickets are available here or contact tickets@silotheatre.co.nz
• Hamilton Gardens Cafe, Matariki dishes, cafe open daily from 9am to 4pm.
Matariki themed kumara based dishes available on various days throughout the month of Matariki (while stock lasts).
• Everyday Eatery (at the front of Hamilton Zoo), Matariki dishes, cafe open daily from 8am to 4pm
Matariki themed kumara based dishes available on various days throughout the month of Matariki (while stock lasts).
For all events visit the festival website.
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