Choreographer Makau Foster Delcuvellerie gives her interpretation of the traditional « Poi Maori » dance from New Zealand. “Poi” means “ball”. In ancient times, maori women danced with balls attached to ropes. That dance also served the purpose of keeping women's wrists loose for their weaving work. Maori women would weave flax leaves for the rope and use “raupo” (bulrush) and corn leaves for the ball. Maori men also used the “Poi” to improve their fighting skills and habilities. The “Fire Poi”, dance with burning “Poi”, seems to be a more recent addition to maori dancing.

Source : Marc E.Louvat

Makau Foster Delcuvellerie spent the first years of her life on the atoll of Hao and was brought up, as customary in those days, by her grand parents. They were very simple folks who lived like their parents, and the parents of their parents before them, to the soothing rhythm of the islands, fishing and foraging. Then she had to go to Tahiti for school and to Hawai'i for a college education.

Whenever you start a conversation with her on that period of her life, she remembers the Paumotu (inhabitants of the Tuamotu islands) whom she says taught her everything and had been living in Hawai'i for the longest time, teaching young Hawaiians the traditions of the South Pacific Islands. Their classes were hard, very demanding for these youngsters who had been brought up according to the “American way of life”. She always seems to get a bit emotional when she talks about these moments. She remembers the pain of the long warm up training sessions when yours body does the talking and tells stories. She didn't learn in the books but from the oral tradition that allowed generations to preserve the knowledge of their ancestors.

« At the age of 16 I was already dancing on stage at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Hawai'i. For years I travelled the world extensively to dance and finally came back to Tahiti to keep on learning from Coco Hotahota, the famous choreographer and director of the “Temaeva” dance company. Then time came for me to start teaching “Ori Tahiti” (Tahitian dancing) and to create my own dance company Tamariki Poerani  ».

Since then the company has created various productions: "Munanui" (1999), "Merehenua" (2001), "Te ariki Tuohea" (2003), "Mokorea" (2004) et "Mono'i" (2009).
Choreographies by Makau Foster Delcuvellerie have been recreated by different “Ori Tahiti” dance companies in Japan, Mexico and the USA.

Source : The company Tamariki Poerani 's website

More information

tamarikipoerani.com

Resident of French Polynesia since 1994, director Marc E. Louvat quickly developed some interest for “Ori Tahiti” (Tahitian dancing). Working for the Institute for Audiovisual Communication (ICA) he made numerous recordings of the Heiva i Tahiti annual singing and dancing competition. He also produced videos and CDs for different dance companies such as “O Tahiti E”, “Grands Ballets de Tahiti”, “Heikura Nui”, “Te Hau Nui” and “Tamariki Poerani” from 1997 till 2003. Since 2007 he has been helping “Tamariki Poerani”, directing and producing videos, acting as a webmaster and producing CDs and DVDs.
He is currently directing a documentary film entitled “Ori Tahiti by Makau” with choreographer Makau Foster Delcuvellerie.

Source: Marc E. Louvat