Atamira Dance Company

What Atamira Dance Company does

Atamira Dance Company, founded in 2000 and headquartered at Corban Estate Arts Centre in Henderson, Auckland, is Aotearoa New Zealand's leading contemporary Māori dance company, operating as the Atamira Dance Collective Charitable Trust. The company produces full-length dance theatre works drawing on whakapapa, tikanga, and iwi-specific mātauranga Māori, with a repertoire of more than 20 full-length productions over its 24-year history including Ngāi Tahu 32, Te Wheke, TOMO, Onepū, Pango, and recent works such as Ka Mua Ka Muri (2024), Ka Tiri o te Moana (2025), and Rongo Whakapā (2025). Its productions integrate professional choreographic practice with full production design disciplines — lighting, sound, projection, scenography, video, and costume — and the company extended into immersive digital formats with the launch of TOMO VR in 2022, a VR adaptation of the stage work TOMO. Supporting the performance portfolio is the Kia Pohewatia choreographic residency programme, which develops emerging Māori choreographers in partnership with Te Pou Theatre's Kōanga Festival, and the Mātauranga Education programmes (Mōhio, Kori Pūrākau) delivering dance and cultural education to schools and communities.

The company's revenue model is hybrid and typical of mid-sized Aotearoa performing arts organizations: ticket and box office revenue from national and international touring; multi-source grants from Creative New Zealand, Auckland Council, Foundation North, and Rotorua Civic Arts Trust; earned income from educational workshops and residencies; and koha (donation) contributions at free events. Distribution operates through theatre venues (Q Theatre, Forum North, Opera House, Te Pou Theatre), major arts festivals (Auckland Arts Festival, Tempo Dance Festival, Kia Mau Festival, Moana Auckland Festival), and international touring to USA, Canada, Australia, Taiwan, China, and Korea. Marketing is delivered through the company's website, email newsletter, an active multi-platform social media presence (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok), and earned media coverage including Theatreview, NZ Arts Review, and the New York Times. The organization is governed by a Board of Trustees (Kaitiaki) with no outside equity ownership, no parent company, and no venture capital exposure. Customer-facing segments span general theatre audiences, festival and venue programming partners, educational institutions, and international presenting partners.

Name

Atamira Dance Company

Legal name

Atamira Dance Collective Charitable Trust

Website

https://atamiradance.co.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Atamira Dance Company is a Māori-led contemporary dance company based in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand, producing full-length dance theatre works, immersive VR experiences, and cultural education programmes for theatre audiences, schools, and international touring partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Performing Arts (Contemporary Dance)

NAICS

Dance Companies (71112), Performing Arts Companies (7111), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Contemporary & Modern Dance (MPAGADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Dance Theatre (Narrative/Experimental) (MPAGADAC), Dance Education (Ballet, Contemporary, Hip-Hop, Cultural Dance) (EDAMAAAH), Dance Performances (THAJAFAD)

Keywords

• Contemporary Māori dance
• Performing arts productions
• Dance education programs
• Choreographic residency programs
• Indigenous dance works

Headquarters

HQ city

Auckland

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Performance Box Office: Revenue generated from ticket sales for theatrical performances at various venues and festivals across New Zealand and internationally.
2. Government and Foundation Grants: Funding support from Creative New Zealand, Foundation North, Rotorua Civic Arts Trust, Auckland Council, and other cultural funding bodies.
3. Education and Workshop Programs: Mātauranga Education programs providing dance workshops and educational experiences to schools and communities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Atamira Dance Company produces and tours contemporary Māori dance works, delivering live stage performances, choreographic residency programmes (Kia Pohewatia), education and workshop programmes (Mātauranga Education), and digital experiences such as TOMO VR. The company creates, premieres, and tours a portfolio of full-length dance theatre productions that explore Māori cultural identity, storytelling, and contemporary perspectives to audiences in New Zealand and internationally.

Product overview

Atamira Dance Company is a contemporary Māori dance organization offering a portfolio of performance works, digital experiences, and choreographic development programmes. The company's core offering consists of full-length dance theatre productions (such as Te Wheke, TOMO, Ka Tiri o te Moana, KA MUA KA MURI, Rongo Whakapā), innovative digital experiences (TOMO VR), and collaborative programmes (Kotahi, KAHA-Tripleboost). Supporting these is the Kia Pohewatia choreographic residency programme nurturing emerging Māori choreographers. The company operates from Corban Estate Arts Centre in Auckland and tours nationally and internationally. Founded in 2000, Atamira creates work that embodies Māori perspectives, cultural identity, and storytelling through contemporary dance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rongo Whakapā Intimate dance work choreographed by Brydie Colquhoun (Ngāpuhi) exploring tensions between individualism and community through movement, immersive sound design, and spatial design. Premiered July 2025 and touring the Te Tai Tokerau region.
• Ka Tiri o te Moana Immersive dance work choreographed by Arts Foundation Laureate Louise Pōtiki Bryant addressing sea level rise and climate change impacts on coastal communities, drawing on Kāi Tahu mātauraka and integrating dance, sound, and visual design.
• KA MUA KA MURI Double bill dance programme combining 'Whakamaheahea' by Bianca Hyslop (Te Arawa) and 'Remain' by Eddie Elliott (Ngāti Maniapoto), exploring Māori perspectives of time where past, present, and future are intertwined.
• TĀTAI WHETŪ Constellation of choreographic ideas and movement practices shown via film and live performance by Atamira artists with filmmaker Kelly Nash, presented at Tempo Dance Festival NZ 2024.
• Te Wheke Major full-length work with eight dancers and eight choreographic practitioners, exploring Te Wheke's eight tentacles (Mauri, Whānau, Wairua, Whatumanawa, Hinengaro, Mana Ake, Tūpuna, Tinana) through soundscapes, floating black silk set pieces, video design, and reflective lighting.
• TOMO Full-length stage work by Gabrielle Thomas exploring the whakapapa of light and darkness, birth, life and death, set within shifting architecture where two wairua journey between realms.
• TOMO VR Virtual Reality adaptation of the TOMO stage work using individual VR headsets to deliver an innovative digital experience of the full-length dance production; Atamira's first foray into VR.
• KAHA - Tripleboost Triple performance programme combining STILL (a solo by Sean MacDonald), KAHA (five short pieces by emerging Māori choreographers), and TOMO VR (a Virtual Reality experience).
• Ngā Wai Full-length dance work by Sean MacDonald celebrating Waimārama and the feminine energy of his ancestral home in Hawkes Bay, drawing on mythology, seers, shapeshifters, warrior protectors, and thwarted romance from history.
• Onepū Expression of mana wahine (intrinsic spiritual power of women) inspired by Kāi Tahu tradition, named after the sand bank Pikopiko-i-whiti and featuring six atua wahine (female deities) controlling the principal winds of the world.
• Kotahi Two-programme presentation showcasing senior Māori choreographers: Kotahi I featured Onepū by Louise Pōtiki Bryant; Kotahi II featured Indigenous Stamina by Jack Gray and Shapeshift by Frances Rings (NAISDA/Bangarra).
• Atamira Dance work investigating themes of death, aloneness, time, Māori culture, ageing, and sexuality, named after the literal meaning of 'atamira' (stage/platform for the dead body).
• Awa - When Two Rivers Collide Multi-disciplinary arts spectacle weaving stories of New Zealand's sacred rivers and China's Yellow River through contemporary dance, kapa haka, Tai Chi, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, and an 80-strong choir.
• Pango Meditation on Te Kore (the space of potentiality and existence before light) created by Moss Patterson with musicians James Webster and Shayne Carter, featuring six male dancers within a black rope wharenui.
• Manaia Triple bill touring programme featuring works by Gabrielle Thomas, Kelly Nash, and Nancy Wijohn exploring maternal connection, mythology, and gender stereotypes.
• Rūaumoko Modern Māori fairytale collaboration between Atamira, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, and over 100 Auckland school students, following Hine Ariki confronting mining threats to a sacred mountain.
• Te Houhi Dance work choreographed by Maaka Pepene exploring hope and unity of people affected by injustices common to Māori during colonisation, following the history of Patuheuheu, Ngāti Haka hapu of the Tuhoe iwi and the Ringatu faith.
• Ngāi Tahu 32 First full-length work by Atamira (2004), following one man's journey through time and whakapapa, drawing on Louise Potiki Bryant's personal family history and Kāi Tahu land purchases between 1844 and 1863.
• Kia Pohewatia Choreographic residency programme dedicated to nurturing and empowering Māori choreographers, providing studio time, expert mentorship, and collaboration with Māori dance artists, with work-in-progress showings at Te Pou Theatre's Kōanga Festival.
• Mātauranga Education Programmes Education and workshop programmes providing Māori dance and mātauranga Māori learning experiences to schools and communities, including movement sessions and Kori Pūrākau.

Quantifiable outcome

• International touring to USA, Canada, Australia, Taiwan, China, Korea

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Auckland LivecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAuckland Live is a key presenting partner for Atamira's work, including the presentation of Ka Tiri o te Moana as part of their programming at Queens Wharf and other Auckland venues.
• Moana AucklandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMoana Auckland Festival partnered with Atamira for Ka Tiri o te Moana, supporting the presentation of this work exploring ocean connections and climate change themes.
• NAISDA Dance College (Australia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational collaboration bridging creative and cultural spaces between Atamira Dance Company (Aotearoa) and NAISDA Dance College in Darkinjung Country (Australia) through the Kotahi project.
• Te Pou TheatrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenue partner for Atamira's Matariki events and Kōanga Festival presentations, including the Kia Pohewatia work-in-progress showings.
• Auckland Philharmonia OrchestracoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on large-scale productions including Rūaumoko (2016) and AWA (2017) featuring live orchestral accompaniment.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Royal New Zealand Ballet: Largest dance company in New Zealand, producing classical and contemporary works. Overlaps with Atamira in the NZ dance market, audience overlap for live performance, and government funding sources, but operates at much larger scale with a broader repertoire.
• Australian Dance Theatre: Major Australian contemporary dance company producing full-length works and touring internationally. Comparable as an Asia-Pacific contemporary dance company with similar production scale and festival presence.
• Sydney Dance Company: One of the largest contemporary dance companies in the Asia-Pacific, producing full-length works and touring internationally. Comparable as a large-scale contemporary dance producer competing for similar international festival programming.

Direct peers

• Bangarra Dance Theatre: Australia's leading Indigenous dance company, comparable as a First Nations contemporary dance company with international touring, education programmes, and a comparable mission to platform Indigenous storytelling through dance.
• New Zealand Dance Company: NZ contemporary dance company producing full-length works for national and international touring. Comparable as a New Zealand-based contemporary dance company competing for the same festival slots and audiences.
• Black Grace: New Zealand contemporary dance company of Māori and Pacific heritage based in Auckland. Directly comparable as a NZ-based Indigenous-heritage dance company producing full-length works and touring internationally.

Others

• Creative New Zealand: New Zealand government's arts funding body and core financial partner of Atamira. Relevant as the funder whose decisions materially shape Atamira's production capacity and programming choices.
• Te Matatini: National body for Māori performing arts (kapa haka) in New Zealand. Comparable as a broader platform for Māori performing arts, with shared audiences and cultural mission, though focused on kapa haka rather than contemporary dance.

Emerging players

• NAISDA Dance College: Indigenous dance training institution in Australia and existing partner of Atamira via the Kotahi project. Comparable as an Indigenous dance talent development organisation serving a related creative pipeline.
• Body Island: NZ dance collective that has co-produced works with Atamira (KIKO at Tempo 2022). Comparable as an emerging NZ contemporary dance group with overlapping collaborators and audiences.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/atamiradance
• Facebookfacebook.com/atamiradance
• Instagraminstagram.com/atamiradancecompany
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/atamira-dance-company

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Atamira Dance Company