CubaDupa 2021 Ngā Toi o Te Aro Stage + Final Lineup Announced

Pōneke seems to have its outdoor festival game sewn up, as the newly announced full lineup for CubaDupa 2021 is a FOMO-inducing one indeed for those living outside of the capital. Featuring a massive schedule of 500 events with 1750 artists, the annual extravaganza unveils today their newest addition, the Ngā Toi o Te Aro stage curated by CubaDupa Ngā Toi Māori Director Noel Woods (Te Āti Awa / Ngāti Porou / Ngāruahine) — showcasing Māori artists, te reo and tikanga Māori in Te Aro Park. The stage will feature 32 acts over the two day community festival, with the majority of performances in te reo Māori.

The top tier lineup includes Pere Wihongi of Tui Best Māori Artist of the year award winners Maimoa, Waiata Māori Music award winners and finalists Amba Holly, Kristen te Rito, Majic, Maaka Fiso and NLC, while hip hop heads will be stoked with the sounds of DMC champion DJ Gooda and six-time New Zealand Beatbox Champion King Homeboy (world record holder for the longest individual beatboxing marathon). Kapa haka performances and wānanga will be held in the park throughout the weekend, including Wānanga Taonga Pūoro where attendees can learn to make their own kōauau and porotiti, and the Wānanga Rāranga where audiences can learn to weave a putiputi and make their own poi, led by weaving collective Te Rito Maioha.

Director Noel Woods stated: “Kia rongohia te reo, kia kōrerohia te reo, kia kitea te reo, kia Māori te reo. Let the Māori language and culture be heard, in conversation, and seen worldwide so that it becomes normalised. I am so excited with this great opportunity to showcase our language and culture at one of Aotearoa’s largest street festivals”

Along with the welcome addition of the Ngā Toi o Te Aro stage, the jam-packed programme for CubaDupa 2021 promises to showcase a vast variety of local sounds, featuring performances by Troy Kingi, JessB, Hans Pucket, composer ​John Psathas' Cubasonic "mass musical interruption" and absolutely tonnes more.

CubaDupa
Saturday 27th March and Sunday 28th March 2021 - Cuba Street Precinct, Wellington (free)
500+ performances and 20 parades with over 1750 artists
Head along to www.cubadupa.co.nz for the full programme and daily schedule

Check out Pere Wihongi's 2019 hit 'High On Ingoingo'...

Experience Amba Holly's video for 2020 single 'Tōku Reo'...

Press release:

CubaDupa, New Zealand's most diverse and creative street festival, has released its final line up and daily schedule for the festival which will be held on the weekend of March 27-28, 2021

The final line-up brings the festival to a massive 19+ hours of curated entertainment across 46 stages and creative zones, delivering 500+ performances and 20 parades with over 1750 artists. A comprehensive daily schedule has been released on the CubaDupa website for audiences to begin planning now.

The newest addition to the beloved festival is Ngā Toi o Te Aro in Te Aro Park. The park will be transformed to showcase Māori artists, te reo and tikanga Māori. Ngā Toi o Te Aro stage, programmed by CubaDupa Ngā Toi Māori Director, Noel Woods (Te Āti Awa/Ngāti Porou/Ngāruahine), will showcase 32 acts and 18 hours of programming across the 2 days with the majority of performances in te reo Māori.

A whakatau will signal the start of CubaDupa, led by Te Āti Awa iwi members through taonga pūoro, taiaha, karanga, haka and karakia. Ngā Toi o Te Aro stage will be streamed worldwide on radio and social media platforms with a collaboration between Āti Awa Toa FM and Te Ūpoko o te Ika Radio.

Festival Director, Gerry Paul says “2021 has seen CubaDupa take an exciting step forward by creating a space at the festival dedicated to Kaupapa Māori. In consultation with Te Wharewaka o Pōneke Trust, the Creative Capital Arts Trust (producers of CubaDupa & NZ Fringe) have created a specific role and appointed Noel Woods as our Ngā Toi Māori Director, to develop a Kaupapa Māori programme and showcase Māori arts practitioners at the festival”.