Featherston Matariki Festival

30/05/2026

LINE DANCING CHALLENGE

Amanda Cuff sent in this link in last night with a challenge, to get your hoedown showdown kanikani buzz on this Matariki. The vinyl club will be playing at the hangi in Anzac Hall..... so now all we need is the whole town to learn this dance..... doable? Any good instructors out there? And gee, that fullah there looks familiar aye?

Anei e te iwi!The Matariki Hunga Nui – Calling Me Home music video is here for us all to enjoy.E mihi ana ki te hunga i whai wāhi ki tēnei kaupapa 💛Mānawa m...

20/05/2026

DECOR 💫🌟🪐

Time is ticking onwards towards Friday 10th July 2026- and we'd love to meet with anyone who would like to be part of decorating Anzac Hall for our Matariki event.

No pressure and no commitment, just a group of people meeting at the hall to have a look and imagine how we could create ambiance- decorate the tables, friendly lighting etc.

If you can just write your name below (on the actual Featherston Matariki Festival page so I don't lose it!) or send us a DM, we can nail down a day and time, likely to be one evening after work, or at the weekend.

01/05/2026

Morena Paetūmōkai! This year we are hoping for some more hands and minds on deck to help with our Matariki planning. Todays shout outs are for people to think of idea's on what we could add to the Hangi event, which will be late afternoon/early evening on Friday 10th July. (There will be other shout outs soon, for example who can help at the dawn ceremony- making soup to warm us up, putting up fairy lights for example.)

So...... this is shout-out number 1....... for you creative people out there who love to create an ambience. We are looking for helpers to come up with ideas on how to decorate the tables (or anything else) for the Hangi in Anzac Hall. Have you got some idea's you'd like to throw into the mix?

Shout out number 2- for foodies out there who like to plan menu's. We are wondering if should consider other kai alongside our main hangi feast, whether that is relishes, or nibbles, an inu, pudding, or something vegetarian, or fish based. Do you have ideas about that?

We don't have to go super-large, we can just build on things as the years go by', evolve and grow over time, together. Budget is always a consideration, of course, so things we can make from things that are locally found, foraged, gifted, grown or borrowed would make things more doable- looking after planet and pocket at the same time. And if you're more of a dreamer than a doer that is wonderful and welcome, but we will needs pairs of hands to do things, so bear that in mind too.

Here's some pictures of something that's a lot fancier than we could probably manage, but surprisingly I couldn't find any more inspiring photo's.... maybe another coffee would help!

Get in touch if you're keen to share idea's. Or just share them here :)

12/04/2026

Matariki herenga waka – for all of us.

Kia ora Paetūmōkai whānau, Wairarapa Moana communities and manuhiri, it's time for us to start planning our Matariki celebrations again.

This year’s theme of "Matariki herenga waka" is all about inclusion, and encouraging ALL people to celebrate Matariki together. The theme has strong connections to multi-culturalism and the sharing of cultural practices; we can ALL connect to the core values of Matariki and embrace the celebration of the holiday.

The Māori New Year is a time of reflection, celebration, and preparation. It is a time to remember loved ones, come together with whānau to give thanks to what we have and look forward to the promise of a new year.

Soon we will put the call out; for those of you who are storytellers, pumpkin choppers, kawakawa gatherers, kaumatua and kuia chauffeurs, chair putter-outers, table decorators, steam pudding makers, sweepers, child wranglers, photographers, leftover hangi dispersers, fairy light arrangers; our small town makes wonderful things happen when we gather together.

In the meantime; here's a new Matariki waiata to get your heart singing. Don't worry, there'll still be the Matariki Macarena!

Our Matariki anthem is finally out! We're so proud of this original composition by Te Whānau Mānihera and stoked to have the amazing Ria Hall feature on it.L...