What makes a good story?

Characters

Another thing about a good story is making a character relatable, it makes the audience feel empathy for when the character fails. That is a key point in a story, making a character break you get to see what they are made of and how they truly are. If you have ever got into an argument with someone that escalated, you may have noticed how different they acted. This is because some people are only completely true when they let out all that anger and aggressiveness, and it releases the truth inside of a character.

Plot

Many things contribute to the creation of a good story that people understand. The ability to understand the plot line is only given to the audience by the filmmakers. If a story is complex with no plot line, it is not an enjoyable film. The climax is a very important part of the story, it is the point that everyone comes to see it for. The combination of complexity and unique story-telling is a rare thing to find in an undeveloped plot.  

Performance

A good story is not created without acting. While things such as characters written into books may not act, we don't realise that the author acts and plays all of the characters themself. This, however, is different in theatre. Performance is the entire encompassment of theatre, without performance, theatre is quite literally none existent.

Term Two Drama Log

02/05/2019 Log

We’ve discussed which musical scene we would like to do, but haven’t decided yet. However, we spent most of the period discussing roles on and off stage, such as stage manager, props manager, wardrobe manager, so on and so forth, we even have some badges getting made for us. I took the role of media manager, meaning I record the progress and do things such as vlogging the practices, writing about the progression and advancement of the piece etc.

Job Done

Discussion of jobs and musical scenes.

Next Steps

Further discussion.

03/05/2019 Log

We believe we are going to do the ‘School Song’ piece from Matilda the Musical. We haven’t discussed it with Mrs Clark yet. However, Chloe and I believe it would tie in nicely with other pieces and go with the flow as it is planned this time. All the pieces from the several other classes are going to be tied together to flow into one larger piece instead of the announcer having to come onto stage in between each singular scene to explain the storyline and characters.

Job Done

Discussion of the chosen musical scene between some students.

Next Steps

Choose musical scene wanted.

09/05/2019 Log

After discussion, we are looking at doing a class piece from Carrie called ‘In’. It’s a very bendable song that can fit into what we want of moulding it with the other pieces. Even though it is from 1988, the stereotypes and song plays into what high school can be like in the modern day. It is all about teenagers worrying about fitting in with their peers and being annoyed with their parents. This is what I believe will be a project for the class.

Job Done

Choosing of musical scene for the entire class to do a project on, we believe it will be ‘In’ from Carrie
the Musical.

Next Steps

Further discussion of the chosen scene and learning how to use the camera.

10/05/2019 Log

We started off by doing improvisation games and learning a new game, where we could only use three sentence words. Afterwards, I got to use the camera and record Nadia, Chloe and Samantha talking and walking through some choreography from Carries’ ‘In’.

Job Done

Further discussion of the chosen scene and learning of how to use the camera and learning how to add the videos and pictures to files.

Next Steps

Learning further how to use the camera and the laptop movie app thing.

16/05/2019 Log

We went through improvisation games using kinetic stuff, meaning we followed along with each other and every action was in response to another someone did. We then moved onto a second game where the theme was dance and we repeated a game where we only could say three sentences at a time. I was able to record some of the games on my phone instead of the camera this time. We also looked through some choreography for Carrie. We were able to decide that we wanted to use the Riverdale version, as it is shorter and with a lot more flexibility. We also decided that every on-stage actor would have an accessory that made them stand out as a stereotype, popular girls in stiletto’s, ‘nerdy’ girls with glasses or cardigans, girls or boys with rainbow bands on. In a certain part of the song, the actors will strip these off and throw them behind or in front of them.

Job Done

Doing improvisation games and discussing choreography.

Next Steps

Work on constructing some physical choreography and discuss roles.

23/05/2019 Log

Today we were able to walk through the choreography a small bit. We got the actors on stage and had them walk around as if they were in a high school hallway. I was able to record a lot of the practice and talking between ourselves about the choreography and the ending of the performance. I got to do a lot with the camera as in videos instead of pictures this time. I mainly videoed for the behind the scenes video that is being created by myself.

Job Done

Work on constructing some physical choreography and discuss roles.

Next Steps

Further work on constructing some physical choreography and discussion of roles.

30/05/2019 Log

We were able to continue with work on constructing some physical choreography and discussion of
roles. We are talking about instead of In we do a different piece due to the lack of effort and
enthusiasm from various actors involved. Instead, we were considering stopping the performance
and instead doing things separately such as Nadia and Sam’s performance, me recording the NCEA
performances, most of the others working backstage. Otherwise, we would switch our performance to
something else, we were considering doing Ex-wives from Six. There is also the chance we will
continue with this, however, many people are unenthused with the idea.

Job Done

Further work on constructing some physical choreography and discussion of roles.

                                              Next Steps

Further work with the camera and discussion of the piece.

31/05/2019 Log

We have decided to continue on with the current piece for now and we have been able to get multiple actors to participate further. I was able to take some pictures and record some small videos documenting our progress and behind the scenes moments. So far I have been unable to continue creating the video of all of this, however, I have chosen to do it in a break time instead, as I do not have much time while helping and rehearsing the choreography.

Job Done

Further work with the camera and discussion of the piece as well as work on choreography.

Next Steps

Further work with the camera and discussion of the piece as well as work on choreography.

Musicals

What is a musical?

A musical is a film or play in which singing and dancing play an essential part in the story or development. 

What are the elements of a musical?

There are many elements to musicals including well-known ones such as dancing and singing. 

There are many different types of songs that are sung, such as the ballads, the ballads are usually love songs, but can also just be songs to do with strong emotion. These songs are normally paired with a slow tempo. An example of a ballad that isn't to do with specifically love is Words Fail from Dear Evan Hansen. This song has to do with the strong emotion of regret and sadness from the singer that is belted out all in one shot, the sheer amount of emotion deeply impacts the audience.

Another form of a song sung is called a charm song, this is used to charm the audience, it is often used in a deceptive way. This isn't always the case though. The Lion King's I Just Can't Wait To Be King is an example of a charm song reflecting Simba and his way of charming the audience into liking him.

The third form of song is regarded as a comedy number, which is quite obviously aimed to create a comedic moment within the musical. This can have many effects on the musical itself, whether it's to further the story along or just stop everything for a moment and create a small part of relaxation for the storyline and its progression.

The final form of song is called a musical scene. These are used to blend dialogue and song, these help with the progression of the storyline. An example of a musical scene would be The Other Side from The Greatest Showman, where the back-and-forth between the characters is blended into the song. This song helps further the storyline in a way where P. T. Barnum convinces Phillip into joining him and helping his business along.

(Apologies I couldn't go into further detail, this had to be rushed because of a short time frame.)

Sharing Messages with Children

Today in Drama, we shared stories from children books and looked at some political satire.

We started with looking into political satire, we looked mainly into songs and videos joking about politicians. There was even one called Donald: The Musical, it represented satire about Donald Trump, obviously, Kellyanne Conway, Sean Spicer and a man named Bruce B. who I don't the full name of because I don't know politicians.
We also shared stories from the books we had brought in, Nadia had one that was made for her called 'Nadia the Dinosaur', Chloe brought in multiple including 'Rough Weather Ahead for Walter the Farting Dog', yes that is a real children's book, and Willbee the Bumblebee. We have looked into these because we are trying to create a play that will keep children interested but still be fun enough for them to laugh at.
We also talked about what conventions we could use and we thought about things such as rhyming, singing, using humour and doing other things to help engage the children and help them remember the plot.

Creating a character

We continue with the production of a play in Drama, as it is still going to be about animals we have been
tasked to create an animal character each.

Species: Goat

Casual Name: Cupid

Full Name: Cupid Duloc Arthur of Camelot The 31st

Age: 6

Talents: Eating everything and anything.

Hobbies: Eating everything and anything.

Personality Type (what's their most common feeling or emotion): Prissy, proud and slightly snobby.

Disliked People: Moxy the cat and Polly the Shepherd's dog

Favourite Colour: Grape

Favourite Food: Anything and everything, but strawberries are preferred.

Least Favourite Food: Peanut butter, as well as apples

Favourite Possession: Dingly Bell, he wears it everywhere

Animaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaals View Pointing

We have continued on with the animal's theme and have moved onto animal view pointing, which is basically looking at how the animals we have 'studied', move.

So far we have been playing with a rabbit, a dog and a turtle, as well as a guinea pig and a second dog. The rabbit was a special rabbit that had been rescued, she had one floppy ear, which I believe was the result of an accident and now she can't use that ear, her name was Lightning. As known, the bunny hopped about. But instead of constantly hopping, Lightning put her front legs in front of her and stretches out before moving the back legs up with them into a more comfortable position.

There was also Mr Mitchell's turtle, Yurtle. He was a little rascal who almost sent me into a panic attack because he decided it would be a good idea to crawl under the deck. It was terrifying and the only other person there was Kaela, who thankfully stopped the turtle and brought it out. The turtle seemed faster than I thought it would be, but it still was quite slow. It had very sharp claws and an even sharper beak.

Chloe and Gizzy

Finally, I got to meet Mrs Beer's dog, Gizzy, a short little fluffy thing who is adorably excitable. I and a few others spent most of the period sitting and playing with the dog who couldn't stop moving. Gizzy has short and fast legs, she could only sit down for a moment or two before running around again. It was hilarious to watch as the dog left from leaning and lying down next to a person to go and bark at Mrs Beer.











The next week we got to meet Jakita's guinea pig, George of Durham, a pedigree, who has to have a certificate to state that he is pedigree bred. He's quick to move and has really sharp claws. When he's scared he tends to hide under things, particularly the towel he was brought with. While I am writing this he has pooped on Jakita and Chloe multiple times, thankfully, it isn't messy. Unfortunately, my phone doesn't want to connect and upload the pictures.

On the same day, we got to meet Kaela's dog, Rosie, a scruffy dog who can't stop moving for a moment. It was a bit of an extravaganza, seeing as the dog came fashionably late and then got dressed in a unicorn onesie. That wasn't the end of it though, Kaela had brought treats so she could get the dog to do tricks, as you do. But, when Kaela wasn't paying attention, Chloe opened the treats, intending to give only one accidentally lent down and the dog started eating from the container.

Lollipops

We have been discussing putting on a children's show for some of the children at the primary school right next door. While being on the topic of animals, we have been told to make a children's show that lasts around twenty minutes for children of the age of 5 - 6 years old. During this we were also given a group name for the entire class, seeing as we only have ten people, and we have been named the lollipops, hence the title. We have also been continuing work on kinesthetic response and using space and have been able to get out and do some improvisation around the school.
In the past few weeks, we have also memorising our text for the term,

'Rumour is a pipe,
blown by surmises, jealousies, conjectures,
and of so easy and so plain a stop,
that the blunt monster with uncounted heads,
the still-discordant wavering multitude,
can play upon it'

If the language used didn't make it obvious enough, this is a quote from Shakespeare, to be specific the play, King Henry IV, Part 1. Mrs Clark, our Drama teacher, gave us this text to memorize on the account of whenever we are doing an activity and she yells out 'Text!!', we have to recite the text, no matter what situation we are in.

In Drama 2019 we have been working on using our bodies to tell the story instead of words. In the first scene, we were doing an exercise to learn about tempo and lanes, meaning moving with the others and responding to their actions with our own while keeping the tempo (or pace) that is set. In the next scene, we began work on a kinesthetic response, meaning we responded to everyone else's actions with actions of our own while having to keep with the given tempo. In the scene, we also worked on building a story without having to communicate and speak to tell it, basically, we were all a bunch of mimes. We also worked on using the stage and it's different levels and area's to enhance the story and help it progress. The third scene is self-explanatory.

Reflecting...

ON BUGSY MALONE!!!!

No, this ain't no emotional stuff because it's getting closer to the end of the year. I'm answering questions about how the production of Bugsy Malone so far.

What have I learnt so far?

From this production, I have learnt about how important it is to have every actor there and available. Often people won't respond to their characters name or just not respond when they are called as a general group, this means that not everyone is one stage, or knows their lines or their cues. This can be very frustrating for those who are more dedicated and into the activity, as they can be blamed for their partners or entire group not being on cue or even on stage. Even so, this has been an important lesson for myself and others, as some did expect this project to be short, sweet and fun, and while it is fun, some people don't understand how fun it can be to pretend to be another person. Because, for some time, you aren't you, you don't have your problems, you have someone else's, the problems of someone who doesn't even exist, the problems of someone who will never be real and actually feel the guilt or anger or sadness from these problems you are pretending to have. With acting, you can pretend to be someone constantly angry or sad, and through this, you can take out the anger or sadness that you have and take it out how they would.

How have I been challenged?

I don't think I have been too challenged with my role as Knuckles, in a way it is very much similar to my role as Ed, the character I played in the play last year, basically, say what you have and nothing more. I think what I have been challenged with is the dancing and trying to bond with these people I don't know, I have never been that great of a dancer and I can be very awkward at times with strangers or people I haven't talked to in a long time.

What have been some of my favourites moments so far?

Some of my favourite moments have been watching Nadia getting really mad as Fat Sam and watching others being terrified of her and her yelling, that's kind of mean, isn't it? But, it isn't the only thing I've enjoyed, even though I'm a horrible dancer, I enjoy our short dances at the beginning of lessons, they're fast-paced, keep me moving, and even though it is very cramped, I enjoy the dancing component, but if you ever find a video of me dancing either crop me out or delete the video, I will most definitely look stupid. Even still I am going to put videos of me dancing on here and I know I will severely regret this later in life.

What am I looking forward to?

I am looking forward to doing both of the shows twice in a row. This sounds crazy, doesn't it? Well, I want to know what's like to have that sort of pressure to have two shows in a row, it will be a form of a taster for what a real full-length musical would be like, except very diluted, seeing as the shows are each forty minutes long.

How do all of these blog posts show my working?

They show that I have taken time to study what it would have been really like to be a gang member in the 1920s, how it would have been to really have been Knuckles all that time ago. What I would have seen on my way to Becker's Book Emporium, what I would have worn while passing everyone else on the streets, what kind of words I would have heard people using. Because of the blog's I have done I understand all of this and it's importance.



What am I wondering?

Should Knuckles death have more of a comedic aspect to improve upon the humour like in the video? Or should it still be an emotional, heartbreaking moment for Sam Stacetto, a mobster, who's never known more than nothing and his gang? (I could smell the cheese from a mile away)

Does anyone have a fedora I could use?

How many people can Nadia terrify before this is over?

Don't actually answer that last one, she'll hit me and then she'll find you, if you're a student, and likely hit you as well. Love you Nadia :)

You complete and utter noodle!!!

You heard me right! You're a complete and utter noodle!!! This time we're looking at the 1920's slang and noodle is slang for 'head', so I was practically saying 'You complete and utter head!!!'.
It's not that good of an insult, is it? Well, nevermind, there are other really confusing words I can tell you about!

Alderman: A man's pot belly
Ameche: A telephone
Ankle: To walk or a woman 
Applesauce: A way to show a lack of appreciation
Babe: Woman
Baby: A person
Bearcat: a lively, spirited woman
Beef: Problem
Bee's Knees: An extraordinary person, thing or idea.
Bent Cars: Stolen cars
Big Sleep: Death
Button man: Professional killer
Buttons: The Police
Canary: Woman singer
Clam: A dollar
Cooler: Jail
Cop: Detective
Copper: Policeman
Cut down: Killed
Dope fiend: Drug addict
Dope peddler: Drug dealer
Dough: Money
Egg: Man
Fella: a man
Gal: Woman
Giggle juice: Liquor
Giggle Water: Liquor
Gowed-up: On dope or high
Gumshoe: Detective
Gumshoeing: Detective work
Guns: Pickpockets or hoodlums
Guy: A man
Heebie-Jeebies: The jitters
Hooch: Liquor
Hood: Criminal
Hoofer: Dancer
Kale: Money
Kick off: To die
Mitt: Hand
Mob: Gang
Mugs: Men
Nailed: Caught by the police
Newshawk: Reporter
Nippers: Handcuffs
Noodle: Head :)
Packing heat: carrying a gun
Sap: A dumb guy
Stiff: A corpse
Swell: Wonderful
Tail: Shadow or follow
Wop: derogatory term for an Italian

I tried to only include words that would appropriate and suiting to Bugsy Malone. But, if you would like to know more words to completely and utterly confuse the ever living heck out of everyone, look at these websites! (My sources!)

https://thoughtcatalog.com/nico-lang/2013/09/59-quick-slang-phrases-from-the-1920s-we-should-start-using-again/
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/10/how-sound-bees-knees-dictionary-1920s-slang/322320/
https://alcapones.com/slang_dictionary.php

Crackin' Down On Knuckles!!

Brutus "Knuckles" Adras, the full name I created for the character I am playing in Bugsy Malone, Knuckles. I created this name because, in both the film and Broadway show, their real name is never shown or told, they are referred to only as Knuckles. As I have previously mentioned in my last blog post, Knuckles is named so because of their habit of cracking their knuckles so often.

Here is their character profile!!

Name: Brutus "Knuckles" Adras, the names Brutus and Adras each have different meanings, Brutus meaning 'stupid', I chose the meaning for obvious reasons, Knuckles being one of Fat Sam's dumb gang members. Adras means 'horseman', I was originally looking for a name that plainly meant man, so that the two names would come together to mean 'stupid man', but for some reason, 'stupid horseman' sounds a bit funnier, more original and unique, doesn't it?

Age: In the film and Broadway shows Knuckles is played by a tween, which is one of the things that makes 'Bugsy Malone' so different, the entire cast are children and tweens. Even so, if this had been a production with older, more suitable, cast, I believe that Knuckles would have been portrayed as someone either in their late teens or early twenties.

Most Common Emotion: Fear, I believe that Knuckles would be in either constant fear of the gang leader, Fat Sam, or in admiration.

Physical Characteristics: The cracking of the Knuckles, as discussed.

Fears: Fat Sam, can you blame him? The guys always yelling about how stupid they are and often threatening to kill them. Even still, Knuckles could never leave him, Fat Sam would hunt him down.

Strengths: Knuckles strength is his strength, it is often mentioned how dumb the gang members are and Fat Sam even says 'You've got muscle where you ought to have brains,'. It is stated quite a bit how Fat Sam's gang member s are slow and dumb, having no other better characteristics.

Early Life: Brutus grew up as a down and out until he walked into Becker's Book Emporium while trying to get away with stealing some food from a shopkeeper. He was allowed in and Fat Sam offered him a job for some good cash. Since learning that Fat Sam was also a down and out when he was young, Knuckles has been in constant admiration of the gang leader who built an entire empire out of nothing.

Makeup Ideas: With Knuckles, I think it would be best that, if there was any makeup, it could be depictions of scarred skin and dirt covering their face.

Costume Ideas: A suit of some kind would be best for a character like Knuckles, but seeing as I don't have something like that. I imagine it would be something along the lines of a plain white shirt, dress black jacket, and black jeans or tights.

https://www.google.co.nz/searchq=bugsy+malone+fat+sam&rlz=1CAACAJ_enNZ690NZ691&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwid067gk-HeAhVTOSsKHZlRD1kQ_AUIDigB&biw=1366&bih=618&safe=active&ssui=on#imgrc=CG3teRjSlI1oSM:
https://www.google.co.nz/searchq=makeup+dirty+face&rlz=1CAACAJ_enNZ690NZ691&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwid_5ajlOHeAhVHdCsKHXTlAoEQ_AUIDigB&biw=1366&bih=618&safe=active&ssui=on#imgrc=6hOVN7BZm4VV-M:

The Very Beginning Of Bugsy Malone!

This year, instead of the Festival of The Arts, we have Passion Projects, although there is really not much of a difference to me, seeing as I've been doing the same type of project for the last two years as well, those plays being Annie and The Lion King. But, this year, we're doing the play production of the movie, Bugsy Malone, a play about two gangs going to war in the 1920's, the gang led by Sam 'Fat Sam' Stacetto and the other led by Dandy Dan, yes, that is his name, yes, it does sound really stupid when we rehearse the script, but we can't exactly change it. This year, I am playing a character nicknamed 'Knuckles', known to be named that because they crack their knuckles, this character is in Fat Sam's gang and the leader of this gang actually played Scar in The Lion King last year, so I'm their lackey once again, except we're kind of the good guys.

What were the buildings like?

The buildings, in the 1920's, were commonly skyscrapers and other forms of tall buildings, they were commonly duller and grey colours with straight and flat walls for architecture. 

What was fashion like?

The fashion in 1920 was clean and outrageous, with shiny, and frilly skirts for the women, and tight, and bold suits for the men. The hairstyles were really short cut, ending as bobs for the women and cut even shorter for all of the men. Most people wore hats, headbands and all other forms of different head accessories. The shoes were often high heels/stilettos for all of the women and leather dress shoes, coming mostly in either black or brown. 

What was home life like?

The home life is a broad subject so I'll start off with gender roles. Even with women being viewed as more individualistic and rebellious in this age, many of them were still housewives, cleaning, cooking, and taking care of children. All of this while their husbands worked for long hours of the day.  Moving on, The Roaring Twenties is often a nickname for this set of years, named so because in this time, in America, women earned the right to vote, great technological advancements were made, more children than ever started to get an education, more women than ever got a job outside of their household and attended school's and universities, and men and women began to marry for love.

What was entertainment like?

The entertainment of the 1920's included the first commercial radio stations, where they broadcasted across America. By 1929, ten million houses had radios, there were 800 different stations and sales of the radio's reached $426 million US dollars. Radios weren't the only form of entertainment though, as 'movie palaces' began to appear in all of America's major cities, costing a quarter (25 cents) for a double feature and a live show. Movie Palaces were able to seat thousands at a time and by the end of the decade, the weekly average of people became 90 million, some even going more than twice a week! Even so, the movies were just in development, and during this time, they were still colourless, and silent!

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/rise-to-world-power/1920s-america/a/movies-cinema-sports-1920s

https://sites.google.com/site/unitedstatestakesontheworld/entertainment-of-the-1920-s

https://1920sentertainmentbybrianna.weebly.com/entertainment-in-the-1920s.html

https://family.lovetoknow.com/about-family-values/family-life-1920s

https://glamourdaze.com/history-of-womens-fashion/1920-to-1929

https://classroom.synonym.com/home-life-1920s-18988.html

https://geeks.media/bugsy-malone-cast-then-and-now

https://vintagedancer.com/1920s/1920s-fashion-men/

http://owwmedia.com/2016/09/the-roaring-twenties/
https://www.widewalls.ch/1920s-architecture/

Final Blog post for Drama 2018

What I have learned about performance skills is that to play a character you need to know their story and their emotions. If you don't know who the character is and how they react to different situations you could portray the character completely wrong and the storyline could go into disarray and confusion.

The evidence that I have of how I have improved my performance skills is that I do Drama activities outside of school times and seen how actors have portrayed themselves. I think that seeing and experiencing acting for yourself is the best way to learn and I believe that there is no better way to learn about acting and performing. When I act I think about who the character is and how the character would really react to the situation, then I would apply the necessary acting techniques to myself.

What I know about performing arts jobs is that there aren't just actors, for a production you need so many different jobs. You need someone to control the lighting. You need stage crew to move props. You need directors to control how the production goes. Sometimes you even need acting, dance or even singing coaches to help enhance the quality of the performance.

What I am wondering about performing arts is how many people did it take to perform big productions, like Hamilton and Les Miserables?

NZ Performing Arts

In Christchurch, we have several performing arts companies and venues

Court Theatre

- The types of shows we have here are mainly smaller productions, especially kids acts and comedy shows. The people who are more permanently stationed there are 'The Court Jesters', they do improvisations that are often about comedy. There are no recorded lists of what skills are needed for joining the Court Theatre on their site, you would most likely have to contact them.

Imagine Youth Theatre

- The Imagine Youth Theatre do productions that include younger children and adults as main roles, that are most well known for productions such as Alice through the Looking Glass and Pinnochio where they include children. There are no permanently noted actors on the Imagine Youth Theatre site although there are two main people who make up the company and hire the actors and children for the productions. As a child there you do not need too much experience in acting as this is mainly to give children a chance to act and have fun.

So we've been looking at scripts to perform for Drama...

and we've been looking around and narrowed it down to these -

• God, I hate Shakespeare - By Something Rotten. This is probably what we are going to do at this rate.
• A Shakespeare script that Miss will give us. She said she would look around for something that would suit the number of people we have.
• We looked at doing something from Wicked. But, it seemed the notes were too high for us.

Maori Music Task and other tasks

Maori Music Task

This is a version of pop music by Stan Walker and featuring Ria Hall, Troy Kingi and Maisey Rika, I believe maori language week is what inspired them to perform this song. I liked how catchy the song was and how they used part of the national anthem in the song. How with progress everything came along and together.

I found a translation of a few lyrics:

Nō tawhiti, nō tata                                 No matter if you're near or far

nō te whenua o te Atua tātou              We come from the land of God

ahakoa nō hea mai koe                       No matter where you Belong

ka whawhai tonu mātou mōu              We'll fight for your freedom

Maori Matariki Story Task

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MN-OluHpI6I

It is a traditional story from long ago, it was written for people to pass from generation to generation. The main story idea was for the legend to be told how the author perceived it.