Members of “Kralj Tomislav” Folklore Ensemble from New Zealand Visit Office of the President
The President of the Republic Zoran Milanović welcomed today in the Office of the President members of the “Kralj Tomislav” Folklore Ensemble from New Zealand, who were accompanied by members of the Maori kapa haka group “Te Roopū Manutaki” and the vocal quartet “The Shades” from Auckland. All of the performers are on a joint tour in the Republic of Croatia entitled “Kia ora Hrvatska 2023.”
The Ensemble has been active for 30 years at the Croatian Cultural Club in Auckland as a promoter of traditional Croatian culture. It successfully collaborates with Maori dancers and singers from Polynesia. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the “Kralj Tomislav” Folklore Ensemble, 165 years since the arrival of the first Croat in New Zealand – Pavle Lupis from Nakovana on the peninsula of Pelješac – and 164 years of Croatian-Maori friendship, on which occasion the Ensemble is paying a visit to Croatia and is due to hold performances in several cities.
Apart from yesterday’s performance in Vukovar, the group will hold concerts in Zagreb, Sinj, Zagvozd, Makarska, Metković, Korčula, Vela Luka and Pupnat. As part of the two-week “Kia ora Hrvatska 2023” tour, the dancers, singers and musicians from the “Kralj Tomislav” Folklore Ensemble, the Maori kapa haka group “Te Roopū Manutaki” and the vocal quartet “The Shades” will hold one-hour concerts with up to 50 performers. In the Office of the President, members of the vocal quartet “The Shades” and the Maori kapa haka group “Te Roopū Manutaki” presented themselves by performing several musical pieces that they will perform at the announced concerts.
The Ensemble was accompanied by the member of the Council of the Government of the Republic of Croatia for Croats outside the Republic of Croatia, representative of Croats in New Zealand and president of the Croatian Cultural Society in Auckland Goran Katich, member of the Presidency of the Croatian Cultural Society in Auckland Antony Ivo Arnerich, artistic director of the Folklore Ensemble Goran Kačurov and councilwoman of the City of Auckland Linda Ann Cooper, who presented the “Kralj Tomislav” Folklore Ensemble to President Milanović.
Adviser to the President of the Republic for Foreign and European Policy Neven Pelicarić was alongside President Milanović at the meeting.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Tomislav Bušljeta