Autaia kia tū wanawana,
Autaia kia tū whakaputaina
ki te whai ao,
ki te ao mārama, tihei mauri ora!

(Be brave and think deeply,
let our stories be put out into the world,
to the world of light, behold the life force!)

The excellent Autaia website tells us that ‘every school has a story to be told, and every student has a light to shine.’

Kei te tino whakaae au!

Now in its fifth year, Autaia stands as arguably Aotearoa’s most innovative haka theatre celebration. Jointly presented by Hawaiki TŪ and Auckland Live as part of the inaugural We the Young Festival, the work empowers rangatahi through an impactful blend of kapa haka, theatre, haka movement, and storytelling.

For the 2025 season, twelve kura from Tāmaki Makaurau, Te Tai Tokerau, and Waikato graced the Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre over two nights, bringing weeks of preparation and boundless creativity to life.

Areas such as performance, directing, choreography, costume and set design, sound, and lighting are explored, culminating in a 5–10-minute presentation from each kura. Students have the opportunity to gain insights from expert performing arts practitioners as well as earning valuable NCEA credits.

The kaupapa of Autaia has, over time, been successfully integrated into the currently much-maligned NCEA system and it’s to be hoped that, especially in this instance, Te Minita mo te Matauranga (the Minister of Education), in her back-to-the-future zeal for colonising change, takes heed of the excellence of this integration as it clearly benefits everyone, aligning learning experiences in Te Ao Māori and Matauranga Māori with acknowledged achievements in NCEA is clearly supporting educational growth in the most impressive way imaginable.

Autaia is ‘knowledge-rich’ if anything is.

Among its many successes, Autaia nurtures the growth of future Māori leaders, advances excellence in Haka Theatre, and upholds the twin pillars of Te Reo Māori and tikanga. Autaia offers ‘meaningful performance opportunities and, through strategic partnerships, mentorship, and innovative approaches, equips rangatahi with the essential skills and experience required for leadership roles within the performing arts sector.’

The revised two-night format introduces three new categories to the kaupapa each designed to highlight high-impact, refined performance while celebrating te ahurea Māori as an echelon of excellence. Each school presents an original piece that is conceptualised, choreographed, and performed by the students and to a high standard of excellence.

The new creative categories include The Haka Bracket which embeds traditional kapa haka in the performances and incorporates creative theatrical nuances that enhance storytelling, Haka Musical, a combination of kapa haka and musical theatre, using elements like staging, characterisation, musicality and dramatic intent to create an immersive experience, and Haka Movement which focuses on Haka Movement and choreography-driven storytelling, blending traditional and contemporary movement techniques.

Kei ngā mōtoi kahotea,
kei ngā kanohi kai mātārae o ngā iwi puta noa i te motu, 
e rere arorangi ana te karanga ki ngā uri o Tāne Rore, o Hine Rēhia,
kia tomo mai anō ki te Whare o Autaia.

(In the white and black clouds,
in the eyes of the leaders of the tribes throughout the country,
the call flies through the sky to the descendants of Tāne Rore, of Hine Rēhia,
come again to the House of Autaia.)

The evening opens with MCs Piripi Gordon and Awatea Wihongi setting the scene and outlining the context, sharing the history of Autaia and its kaupapa. As the curtain lifts for the first kura, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Kōtuku, four pou stand tall across the upstage, framing a large digital screen that projects imagery throughout the night.  The piece explores the connections from generational trauma to whakamānawa. This combination of live performance and visual storytelling creates a powerful canvas for the rangatahi to tell their stories.

Each kura choreographs and devises their own unique performance, supported by mentors such as Ava Williams (scriptwriting, makeup, and costume) and Te Raukura Hawke, a pioneer in kapa haka theatre. Over the five weeks of preparation, teachers and mentors work alongside students to refine their concepts, yet what shines most is the rangatahi voice itself – urgent, polished, and unapologetically Māori.

Highlights include Massey High School, whose work explores the theme of disconnection and reconnection. Their story portrays the passing on of knowledge and the rediscovery of cultural identity through learning from the past.

Te Whānau o Tupuranga (Kia Aroha Campus) follows with a heartfelt tribute to the strength of their school and community, grounding their performance in the resilience of Māoritanga.

Kahurangi (Auckland Girls’ Grammar) deliver one of the night’s most striking pieces, centred on mana wāhine. Images of powerful wāhine from the past illuminate the big screen as the performers call their generation to rise up. With battles depicted through haka and waiata, the performance carries a fierce message: Māori strength lives within us, and we must honour the struggles and victories of the past while continuing to grow.

Ngā Taiātea Wharekura from Waikato look to the future with a focus on identity offering a vision that balances heritage with forward momentum.

Meanwhile, Te Rāwhitiroa, Te Kōtuku, explore kotahitanga, asking what unity means today. Their polished delivery, strong voices, and the presence of kuia and kaumātua guiding mokopuna through their stories creates a beautiful intergenerational dialogue on stage.

The theme binding all kura this year is Hawaiki Hō – a call to journey forward while holding fast to ancestral strength. This was felt most keenly in the finale, when all six kura from the evening’s performance united in a breathtaking mass performance. The combined voices and movement of the rangatahi filled the theatre with strength, pride, and wairua, embodying the unity at the heart of Autaia.

Beyond the artistry, the platform’s impact is undeniable. It provides pathways for youth not only to perform but to develop production skills, build confidence, and even explore future opportunities for mahi and tertiary opportunities. What emerges is more than a show – it is a space for rangatahi to stand tall, tell their stories, and see themselves reflected on a professional stage.

Verdict: Autaia 2025 is a triumph – powerful, moving, and fiercely rangatahi. A night of kotahitanga, mana, and vision for the future, it proves once again that haka theatre is not only alive but thriving and there is hope for our future with these rangatira of the āpōpō.

I am reminded, on the first anniversary of his passing of the words of Kingi Tūheitia at the national hui at Tuurangawaewae Marae, Ngāruawāhia where he said that the best protest right now is to, “be Māori, be who we are, live our values, speak our reo, care for our mokopuna, our awa, our maunga, just be Māori. Māori all day, every day, we are here, we are strong”.

Autaia breathes life into his words.

Tihei mauri ora! 

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