Music, dance, food and storytelling from around the world will take centre stage at the Te Puke Festival of Cultures tomorrow.
The free festival on June 6 from midday until 8pm will celebrate the many cultures that make up Te Puke, with performances, workshops and international cuisine spread across three community venues and a number of local eateries.
Organised by the Te Puke Festival of Cultures organising committee, consisting of Colab, Epic Te Puke, key community members and the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, the festival aims to bring people together through shared cultural experiences while recognising the town’s tangata whenua heritage.
Māori welcome
The event begins midday at the Experience Te Puke Kiwifruit Capital of the World Complex with a welcome from Māori cultural heritage specialist Dean Flavell, followed by a kapa haka performance.
Festival-goers can also learn about local history through Harakeke Stories, a short film highlighting Te Puke’s heritage, and take part in harakeke weaving workshops led by Phillipa Kahotea.
The festival then expands across the town, with the Te Puke War Memorial Hall hosting an afternoon and evening of cultural performances showcasing traditions from around the world.
Cultures galore
School groups from Fairhaven School, Te Puke Intermediate and Te Puke High School will perform Indian bhangra, giddha and Bollywood-inspired routines, while other groups will represent cultures including Pasifika, Vanuatu, Indonesia, the Cook Islands, Cambodia, Chile, Rapanui (Easter Island), Latin South America and Te Moananui a Toi.
Fairhaven School teacher and dance co-ordinator Neena Chauhan said she was proud of the growth of the school’s cultural dance groups during the past 20 years, and the diversity of students involved.
“We started in 2007 or 2008 with just seven or eight students. Now we have more than 100 students across junior, middle and senior groups, including boys’ bhangra and girls’ Bollywood,” she said.
For the festival, Chauhan said the Fairhaven School group alone included nearly 40 students performing Bollywood bhangra, involving students from a wide range of cultural backgrounds.
The dance group from Fairhaven School has students from many cultural backgrounds. Photo / Kelly O'Hara
“For me, being part of the festival is a huge honour. It’s about celebrating cultural diversity in Te Puke and learning from each other. If we don’t respect and understand each other’s cultures, we can’t move forward as a multicultural society.”
Workshops, activities
Alongside the stage performances, a range of free interactive workshops and activities will run during the afternoon and evening. These include Indian cultural workshops featuring henna, traditional costumes and crafts, a Creative Kai Arts workshop presented by The Incubator, a dance workshop with the Inclusion Dance Crew, Indonesian musical instrument demonstrations and face painting.
“It’s not just bhangra or kapa haka – the festival is a vibrant mix of cultures,” Chauhan said. “I’m also really proud we’re including the Inclusion Dance Group, involving children with additional needs. Everyone is welcome, and when they perform, they absolutely shine.”
A free photobooth will also operate from 2pm-7pm.
Families can start their festival experience even earlier at Te Puke Library and Service Centre, where multilingual storytelling, crafts, a colouring competition and a scavenger hunt will be held from 10am until midday.
Cultures via cuisines
Food will be another major attraction, with a Festival Food Trail encouraging visitors to explore local eateries and sample signature dishes from around the world.
Visitors can head to Eat Street for international food truck fare or enjoy special festival offerings including Biscoff cinnamon scrolls from Dolce Bakery & Café, fish and chicken pakora from Love Punjab, smoked fish savouries with kūmara mash from Blackbird Records, bread pakora and samosas from Punjab Express, and seafood kebabs from Oceans Fresh Fish.