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Māpuna for Saturday 21 February 2026


Famous 1990s play, Waiora, set to re-open

Waiora

Photo: Waiora

Soon the 30th anniversary production of Waiora Te Ūkaipō - The Homeland, written by Hone Kouka will open in Wellington and then Auckland. It's set in 1965 and tells the story of a whanau who move from the East Coast to the Deep South and the impacts of colonisation and intergenerational tensions. Hone Hurihanganui composed the original waiata and haka, returns for the new production and talks to Julian Wilcox about the play's relevance 30 years on.  

 

Te Kaha 1973, and the hui that launched an artistic movement

Silhouetted figures, including a flag bearer and a young person sounding a pūtātara (conch shell trumpet), walk along a ridge against a deep red sunset. The title reads: "Pūtātara: Revolutions in Māori Art" in golden yellow and red.

Photo: RNZ

On Monday a major new podcast series will launch called Pūtātara: Revolutions of Māori Art. It starts with the famous hui in Te Kaha in 1973 which ushered in Nga Puna Waihanga, the Maori artists and writers collective. Jamie Tahana is one of the producers and talks about the impact that 1973 hui had on Aotearoa's artistic landscape.