14 October 2014 / leggypeggy

Bums, backs and bustles—more Goroka Show ‘exposed’

bums, bustles, dancing, Goroka, Goroka Show, highlands, music, Papua New Guinea, performances, singing, tribes

Dancing cheek-to-cheek—the Junife group from Henganofi

Hamming it up for the crowd

I was totally out of control at the Goroka Show in Papua New Guinea—all that flesh, all those flashy get-ups, all those muscles, all that body art, all that pulsating music, all those thumping drums.

It was a complete sound-and-sight overload, so I caved in and did what I swore I wouldn’t do again after the last time my senses took a similar hammering in the Himalayas in 2011.

So what did I do? I confess. I took 800 pictures (and a few movies) in two days. I’m not proud, but then again, I suppose I am.

Now it’s taking me ages to wade through them (luckily I’m popping quite a few in the trash).

But I’m not going to keep you in suspense while I fiddle with photos.

So I’ve settled on sharing a big dose of bums, backs and bustles (I’ll save that other ‘b’ word ‘boobs’ until later).

Cassowary feathers

Shells and bark rope

But first I’ll tell you a little more about the show. It’s one of many such extravaganzas held each year in Papua New Guinea’s highlands. This two-day event usually occurs on the weekend closest to PNG’s independence day, 16 September.

This year about 130 tribes performed. Interested tribes pay a deposit to secure a place, and are then paid if they appear. No prizes are awarded, which makes sense when you consider the fact that some of these tribes are enemies.

I heard that the organisers had hoped to limit participation this year, but too many tribes already know the show’s bank account details. So they just go ahead and pay their deposit, and are confirmed as being in.

Groups can have any number of people (most are large), and I’m guessing there were at least 2000 performers.

We were VIP guests—a $60 option available to foreigners and well-to-do PNGers. There weren’t more than 400 VIP tickets sold this year (compared to 360 last year). The big bonus in these tickets (general admission is about $2) is early admission. We were allowed in at 9am both days, while the general public can’t get in until noon.

Performers love the crowds and play their parts to the hilt. The great thing for us was being able to walk amongst all the performers. Every now and then, we found ourselves in the midst of a dance or facing a bow and arrow or a brandished spear. But it also meant we could closely examine the costumes and all those magnificent bodies, and even chat to the performers on the rare occasions that they actually took a break. You may have noticed that one of the back decorations is an animal pelt. It’s a cuscus or a PNG possum. Another performer is wearing cassowary feathers over his bum.

In addition to the still pics, I’ve added two short video clips of bums and bustles. I think you’ll agree that these bums, backs and bustles are impressive and expressive. The fellows in the top photos are part the Junife tribe from Henganofi. They were having a great time hamming it up and dancing cheek-to-cheek.