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Body Festival cancelled due to earthquake damage

The Body Festival board and director last night made the decision to cancel this year's Body Festival, which was to have opened on 24 September, due primarily to concerns over the safety of public and artists following the earthquake in Christchurch on Saturday.

The cancellation covers the entire workshop and performance programme. Body Festival staff, board and performers are now looking ahead to a bigger and better event in 2011.

Dust, Water, Wind: Choreographed by Louise Potiki Bryant, Atamira Dance Company.

“Did the message come to her on the wings of a fantail or the cry of an owl?”

‘Taonga, Dust, Water, Wind’ is a poetic dance experience inspired by the true life story of Rona Williamson, a kuia of Ngai Tahu whanui.

In ‘Taonga, Dust, Water, Wind’, young Rona, growing up in the care of her Great-Aunt in the small seaside town of Kaka Point, enters a magical landscape where bodies inhabit a world of seaweed and stone, where a fantail echoes death, and the moon guides the young girl and her Aunt through the struggles and phases of their lives.

With bush clad hills to its back and the Southern Pacific Ocean spread out in front, Kaka Point is a magical place to live. Set in 1934, the childhood memories of choreographer Potiki-Bryant’s Aunty Rona, are brought to life. Atamira’s reputation for powerful and poignant choreography will be on show with an internationally experienced ensemble.

Combining a live score by taonga puoro (traditional Maori instruments) expert Richard Nunns, this performance provides a tantalising journey to an old way of life.