Chas Mamea
PhD candidate in Dance Studies Chas Mamea is passionate about providing rangatahi with platforms to express themselves through dance.
Why did you choose to study Dance?
“I chose to study dance because I wanted to provide more platforms for South Auckland rangatahi, particularly Pasifika and Māori, to express themselves through dance.”
Postgraduate Study and Research
“I decided to continue with postgraduate study because as my degree progressed, I noticed more and more South Auckland-based Pasifika and Māori street dance practitioners choosing to pursue higher education. However, from experience I knew that there was little literature or research surrounding our knowledge systems and backgrounds, let alone valuing what we had to say.
“My Honours research was dedicated to valuing my communities’ ways of knowing and being in the world, so these young aspiring teachers, educators, and researchers could see themselves reflected in this mahi.
My Honours was a bridge to my PhD where I am looking at how the Vā transitions into, or, has always existed within the street dance spaces of South Auckland and how learnings from my studies could be used to develop better-informed community initiatives for urban Pasifika-Māori rangatahi.
What motivates your research?
“My community and the potential in every young person. I always pay homage to those who have contributed to my journey as a young dancer growing up in South Auckland. Shoutouts to Crosspower 274, Soar dance programme and Tau Faaeteete, Ennaolla Paea, Ken Vaega and Andrew Cornish, who mentored me and believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. My community is always at the forefront of my mahi.”
2022 Summer Research Scholarship Project: ‘Urban Dancing Indigeneity: An investigation of Wā-Vā within street dance crews in South Auckland’
“For this project, I curated a dance wānanga for Nappyboyz Dance Company. The aim of the wānanga was to establish relationships between all involved through a full-day dance intensive, provide an opportunity for each dancer to upskill and grow, establish connections with well-known street dance practitioners, as well as educate our dancers around the foundations, culture and history of each style presented.”
Chas is a recipient of a University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarship. In 2020 she was awarded the Prime Minister’s Scholarship Award for Latin America, and spent one month in Brazil with nine other students as part of an Indigenous History and Rights programme.