Katikati Trio to headline Te Rā o Waitangi whānau festival

Three young Katikati performers — Tia-Maraea Brown (18), Inyamoka Toker (18), and Manase Uilou (17) — will take the stage together as the Katikati Trio at this year's Te Rā o Waitangi Whānau Festival at Haiku Park. The group brings together diverse backgrounds: Brown is a wahine toa with connections to Ōtawhiwhi Marae, Uilou has Pacific Islands heritage, and Toker, originally from Namibia, grew up in the UK before moving to Aotearoa.

For Brown, Waitangi Day holds deep personal significance. She says the day marks both the beginning of a shared history and an ongoing responsibility — a chance to reflect on where Aotearoa has come from, celebrate Te Ao Māori, and acknowledge the connections that bind communities together. She believes every New Zealander should engage with the country's multicultural and diverse history rather than turn away from it.

Western Bay Museum manager Paula Gaelic, who organises the festival, said the 2025 event was the first time her organisation had held a Waitangi Day festival, deliberately choosing a relaxed, community-focused format over a formal dawn service to make the day more accessible. The 2026 festival opens at 11am with a mihi from kuia and kaumātua of Ngāi Tamawhariua Te Rereatukahia Marae, followed by a diverse line-up including Katikati College's kapa haka group Te Kapa o Uretaraki Wharei, a Cook Islands group from Tauranga, Katikati's Indian cultural group, and headline act King Cool. Interactive workshops covering poi making, harakeke weaving, and Pasifika lei and crown crafting will run throughout the day.

Originally published in Katikati News (Sun Media).