Tamarii Nunue is performing on Saturday, July 9th 2022 at 9pm at the Heiva i Bora Bora. The love for polynesian culture and the desire to share it unites the members of Tamarii Nunue during the several months of preparation for the Heiva. Mareva, dancer in the group, tells us about it and agreed to be followed in her preparation. Experience the Heiva through Tamarii Nunue…

Months of preparation

It is 7 pm. The night has already fallen on this ground especially lit for this period. Little by little, the dancers arrive on the sandy ground to warm up while hearing the drummers practicing. Already, the sounds of tamau, toere and faakete are reverberating and breaking the silence that reigned on the field a few hours earlier. It is an invitation to dance. It is the daily meeting since April of all these passionate people who will represent the Nunue group at the Heiva in Bora Bora.

Claudia stands. She observes, she is inspired, she thinks. No one will know what’s going on in the head of Nunue’s choreographer who has been leading this group since 2015. She is always coming up with new ideas to produce a 45-minute show that will be seen by thousands of spectators from all over the world, from Polynesia or Bora Bora.

The work behind this preparation is enormous but Claudia gets her energy from her love for dance. She started dancing in Nunue’s group in 1999 and later became its choreographer. What she loves most about her role is meeting new people and sharing her culture. For Claudia “the Heiva is Polynesia”.

Tamarii Nunue

Nunue is one of six groups participating in Heiva i Bora Bora. The group exists since the 1960s. It has been led by president Tiheti Tehihipo since 2014. The different generations unite and the transmission by the elders is essential to the group.

Tiheti also started as a dancer in the group in the 1990s. He is now the president and group leader of Tamarii Nunue. His role is to gather the committee members and make decisions about the theme. The committee is composed of the choreographer, head of drummers, head of mamas, head of flower chars, and head of choristers.

Tiheti is very proud to share his love for the traditions of singing, dancing and drumming through the Tamarii Nunue group.

Otea

The Otea at the Heiva is the dance show. During the Heiva i Bora Bora, the groups present their show twice. The first night is the presentation night and the second is the competition night. The first one is not noted and allows to adjust, if necessary, for the competition night.

The competition night is graded by a jury. The events graded during the otea are

• Arofa (greetings)
• Pa’o’a (dancers sing and clap their hands on their thighs)
• Hivinau (dancers turn around the orchestra)
• Aparima amui (dancers dance to the songs)
• Otea amui (dancers dance to the percussion)

The theme is chosen by the committee and Claudia will create and compose the dances around this theme. It is unveiled by the committee in February but remains secret to the public until the day of the presentation. The show must follow the theme and it is also very important for the judges’ scoring.

Vaitepu and Vaitehi

This year, Nunue chose the theme of the two springs Vaitepu and Vaitehi.

The theme is reflected in several elements such as the set, the two dancers who each represent a spring, the orero (speech) and, of course, the costumes. The costumes are made of natural elements.

The Head Costume Designer creates the costumes that will be made by the dancers. The work behind each costume is enormous. Fortunately, Nunue has its little fairies. The people behind the scenes. The ones you don’t see on stage but who, through their passion, their love for the group, their culture and the Heiva, are there to help and support the dancers. There are days of work, efforts and personal sacrifices to offer the spectators this beautiful traditional Tahitian show.

The work of detail is important. The transmission by the elders is necessary to know the braiding techniques. For example, to braid the pae’ore which composes the structure of the headdress, to make the waist in more, or to make the vegetable costume.

For the novice, the more is the skirt made of purau fiber (Hibiscus tiliaceus) that is seen in traditional dances.

Mareva: dancer and a strong passion for her culture

Mareva has been dancing since she was five years old. She chose Nunue’s group to participate in the Heiva this year. Mother of four children, she has been adjusting her schedule since April to come to rehearsals every day from 7pm to 9:30pm. Her passion for dance and its culture are her main motivation. The Polynesian culture is very important in Mareva’s life. She defends its values and is a true ambassador. She created the Facebook page Mon fenua ma culture, a beautiful sharing of the Polynesian culture. “It is always a pleasure to share my culture and I am pride to do so” she says.

What she likes about the Heiva is to hear the toere, which invites people to dance. She chose Nunue’s group because she likes the choreographer, Claudia. She is a very simple, sweet and kind person who likes to share her culture through dance. Mareva also likes to live these moments with her friends who dance in the same group.

Culture transmitted through the Heiva

The Heiva is the illustration of the love for Polynesian culture. For Tiheti, sharing this culture is important. “It is a pleasure to be able to promote this culture that is unique to us. To defend it and share it as much as possible. It is important because it is our own, it is our identity. We must seize this opportunity to share and promote it.”

Reo Tahiti (the Tahitian language) is an essential element of the culture. The Heiva is an opportunity to promote this beautiful language, which is the mother tongue of Polynesians. According to Tiheti, this language must be shared as long as possible and the Heiva allows to highlight it through songs and dances.

Saturday July 9th, 2022, it is now 9 pm. Tamarii Nunue is about to enter the stage…