Cat Ruka
Cat Ruka (Ngāpuhi, Waitaha) is an artist and arts leader based in Tāmaki Makaurau. She holds a Bachelor’s degree, Post-Graduate Diploma and Master’s degree from the University of Auckland’s Dance Studies programme, and in 2021 was named as a ‘40 under 40’ influencer.
As an emerging sector leader Cat already has a rich background; she was Programme Leader of performing arts at Manukau Institute of Technology where she worked for 10 years, was Artistic Director of Tempo Dance Festival, and is now the Executive Director of Basement Theatre and Chair of HER Festival. She is the Co-Founder of arts charity Heart Party, and has developed creative education programmes and strategies for acclaimed youth organisation, Ngā Rangatahi Toa. Cat has also won awards for her own body of performance works which have toured nationally and internationally, and she has mentored some of the sector’s most promising emerging Māori and Pasifika artists.
What does leadership look like to you?
Cat: The style of leadership that I am interested in is about the flow and exchange, the shepherding and the guiding, the watching over and protecting, of other peoples’ mana. Leaders that I look up to are those that are able to stand in the shadows and quietly guide their people to the leader that’s inside them.
Leadership is also about decision-making, it’s about knowing when to be as still as a summer lake and knowing when to pounce. For me the only times I let myself down in my decision-making is when I forget to listen to my puku – it is the greatest ancestral compass, the fail-proof navigator.
And what does leadership actually look like? Well to be straight up it’s intense and unglamorous – it’s hard work, it’s sacrifice, it’s a lot of alone time, it’s a lot of really challenging conversation, and it’s an emotional rollercoaster. But it’s also a very blessed and magical space to occupy when it’s harvest time and you get to experience the fruits of your work.
What are you hoping to get out of this experience?
Cat: When you’re in a leadership role it can be quite an isolating experience. So if I’m honest, what I’m looking forward to the most is being able to share space with my peers and deepen the commune between us.
Our combined knowledge is off the hook and it’s rare that a rōpū like this gets a chance to be in wānanga together. I am hoping to have my leadership habits agitated and critiqued, I am hoping to sharpen the tools in my kete and acquire some new ones, and perhaps figure out how I can continue to be of value to my community in the coming years.
