Tourism New Zealand is bringing a bit of New Zealand history and
culture to downtown Tokyo today (Friday) by hosting a Māori
cultural workshop at the Giant Rugby Ball.
About 70 high school children from Ikubunkan School will visit
the Giant Rugby Ball under the Tokyo Tower. The school sends groups
of students to New Zealand every year. On Sunday a second cultural
workshop will be held for family groups.
Led by Māori cultural group Te Arawa, Japanese visitors to the
Ball will be taken through the basics of kapa haka, including
learning more about the haka, poi and the meaning behind some of
the movements and rituals of a Māori welcome.
The haka is already well known in Japan through the nation's
love of rugby and long-standing interest in the New Zealand All
Black team.
Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive George Hickton says the
cultural workshop is a way to promote an important element of New
Zealand culture and history to visitors from New Zealand's fifth
largest visitor market.
"Alongside New Zealand's natural scenery and landscapes, our
Māori culture and history is a major draw for Japanese visitors. We
are delighted that Te Arawa is with us in Tokyo to provide a more
in-depth workshop explaining the haka and its history and meaning,"
says George Hickton.
Wednesday night's formal opening of the rugby Ball under the
Tokyo Tower was covered by over 100 journalists from Japan's 11
national television stations, 11 national newspapers and more than
40 websites.
The television coverage has been viewed by an audience estimated
to be well over 34 million, while the newspapers have a total
readership of 30 million. The cultural workshops are expected to
prove another huge media draw.
The group of eight performers will also entertain and educate
visitors in a series of daily workshops in kapa haka as they queue
to enter the Ball.
The Rugby Ball Venue will be open from 28 October to 3 November
and will gain enormous exposure for New Zealand as the host of the
next Rugby World Cup in 2011. An estimated 7500 visitors are
expected to visit the Giant Rugby Ball in Tokyo during the seven
days it is open.
A national award-winning group, Te Arawa was born out of the
highly acclaimed Ngati Rangiwewehi cultural group, which has
previously acted as New Zealand's cultural ambassadors at key
events such as the Edinburgh Military Tattoo and the South Pacific
Festival of Arts.
Kapa haka is the traditional performance art of New Zealand's
Māori people. The art form is frequently performed in modern Māori
society and at important New Zealand ceremonial and competitive
events.
Read
more about the Rugby Ball Venue
For further information please contact:
Cas Carter, Tourism New Zealand, Mob +6421 915 410
Background
The Results So Far:
Paris, France in 2007
- During the 15 days the Ball was open to the public in Paris
next to the Eiffel Tower, the Ball achieved a potential world-wide
media reach of over 137 million people. 25,000 went through the
Ball and saw the show.
London, England in 2008
- During the 8 days the Ball stood in Potters Fields Park next to
London Bridge, 7,500 people went inside the Ball and experienced
the AV display.
- Over 200 million people from around the world had the
opportunity to see the Ball on screens and in newspapers and
magazines.