Read about our recent showcase extravaganza featuring our talented students!

Showcase 2024 was a fantastic opportunity for the students of Ōtūmoetai Intermediate School to perform for their friends and family. There were various Music Academy Bands, a Dance Group, Dumline, Marimba Group, Wearable Arts, Performing Arts Academy, Kapa Haka and our International Students. 

A massive thank you to all our supporters who have encouraged us throughout the journey leading up to Showcase this year. A shout out to all the backstage crew, parent helpers, light and sound crew who voluntarily gave their time to pull it all together. We appreciate and value your support. We look forward to the next performance.

Kapa Haka

Tēnā tātou katoa.  

Ko Ōtūmoe-tai timu, tai pari, taiaha-ha!

Kapa haka was again honoured to open Showcase 2024 through karakia, karanga and pohiri, as a way of upholding tikanga and bringing our manuhiri (visitors) into the realm of the Showcase.

Showcase not only allows us to perform, but also shows who we are, and the connection we have and are growing with our culture.

With the songs chosen, and a bracket put together for our time on stage, our practises began. We practised everything from making our way on to the stage, to performing our items, to exiting, and putting our gear away correctly. We rehearsed many times to put out a bracket that would challenge and welcome our audience, and celebrate who we are and what we do as the kapa haka of Ōtūmoetai Intermediate.

As Showcase loomed closer we began to ramp up our practises and fine tune our performance. Our group became stronger as we began to see the fruits of our hard work.  

The putātara (conch shell) sounded and signified that we would begin our performance. For the next 15 minutes we put what we had  practised and rehearsed into action. The performance went by so quick and before we knew it, we had challenged, sung, smiled, done pukana, poi, haka, and  karakia, to open the Showcase. As nerve racking as it was at the beginning, the end result felt good and positive as we exited the stage each of the 4 performances.

We would like to thank the Otūmoetai College for allowing us to use the Okohanga wharenui. We would also like to thank those who came in to help with make-up, moko, quick alterations and preparations, as well as the awesome feedback we received from whanau and friends.

Ko tēnei ko Otūmoetai!                                                                   

Ko tēnei o tū mō ou tai e!                                                                                                Tahia te marae!  Tahia te marae!                                                                                                           

Pasifika Group

This year marked the first return of an OIS Pasifika Group performance to the Showcase stage in many years, and they certainly were a joy to watch! With a group of 18 students, they performed a beautiful Tongan dance called Funga Faua wearing traditional Tongan ta'ovala and tekiteki adornments. The girls spent many hours practising and perfecting their dance, which included graceful hand movements depicting the Tongan lyrics about the natural beauty of the island.  One of the group's mums, Marien Taufa, was a competitive dancer in Tonga before moving to New Zealand and visited us many times over the rehearsal period to teach them the dance moves, share her knowledge of Pasifika performance, and help create the costumes. We are incredibly thankful to Marien and our other parent helpers who also supported the girls backstage getting into costumes and ready to perform. Brimming with confidence, our Pasifika Group students had a wonderful experience learning and performing this item and they can't wait to get out on stage performing again soon.

Music Academy

Taking part this year we had our schools Drumline, Marimba group and 3 bands from our Music Academy.

The Music Academy bands performed a range of music from a variety of artists. From Rock band guitar solos to dance moves, students said it’s been the highlight of the year so far being able to show what they have been working towards over the last term. To see everyone come together, grow as musicians and perform on stage was amazing to see. Our Bands performed songs from a range of musicians such as Ozzy Osborne, Ocean Alley to Green Day, Bryan Adams, Jackson 5 and Aretha Franklin.

“I loved being on stage, having fun and growing in confidence” – Carys McGill

“I loved watching many people perform and share what we love doing ” – Ngakumama Te Mete

Marimba Group

Introducing our schools Marimba Group for the second year running. A group of passionate and excited musicians that love creating music together. As part of our school Showcase they performed three songs “Fu Xio, Mr Sun and April Sun in Cuba” and are excited to perform for you more in the near future at the Marimba Festival in term 4.

“It was great to perform as part of the schools Marimba group. We have some new Marimbas too so it was extra special” – Jenna Walker

Drumline

The schools Drumline Group loudly finished off the Music section. They performed an original song that was written by past and present students. It is great to see first time performers and experienced musicians come together to rhythmically write and share their music.

“It was great to be part of drumline this year, we have so much fun, everyone did so well”- Dylan T

Wearable Arts

The “Wearable Arts Extravaganza 2024” was a dazzling celebration of creativity and craftsmanship. The show featured a stunning array of garments that transformed cultural festivals into art, blending intricate designs with imaginative materials.

From pieces based on Divali to meticulously handcrafted accessories from Mexican Day of the Dead each creation demonstrated a unique expression through vibrant colours, textures, and innovative techniques.

While the visual impact was undeniably stunning, the “Wearable Arts Extravaganza” was a captivating display of artistic vision by over 100 students and 70 costumes.

Mr Williams and Mrs Thompson

Korean Fan Dance

Since the beginning of the year, we have been meeting Mrs Shin every Friday to learn and practice a traditional Korean fan dance called ‘buchaechum’. 

The fan dance group is a mixture of local and international students. For some students like Spring and I, it was our second year performing the fan dance at Showcase. We shared the solo dance role and helped to teach the other students too. 

Jinyou was inspired to join the group after she watched the fan dance being performed as a Year 6 student at Otumoetai Primary in 2023. This year she liked sharing her culture with others and wearing the traditional Korean dress called a hanbok. Jinyou had a lot of fun practicing the fan dance with her friends making it a great experience.

The Showcase performances were a highlight as we could perform to our families and show them what we had learnt. We were able to show the next generation of intermediate students from the local primary schools what they can get involved in when they come to our school. 

We would like to thank Mrs Shin as she has been helping us learn this special dance for the past two terms and she has made this a fun experience too. 

Being involved in the fan dance group has inspired me to travel and learn more things about Korean culture and I can’t wait. 

Written by Julz Beauchamp and Jinyou Kim

Performing Arts

This year we had some exciting acts perform in our school’s Showcase.

The Fresh Moves Dance group performed an amazing group number with 45 students working together to make a stunning dance based on the theme “Tipping Point”.

The Dance NZ Made troupe performed their contemporary dance “Secrets” which was very technical and impressive to watch.

The Performing Arts Academy (PAA) students performed their National Award-winning piece titled “Wounded Hearts”. We had the PAA students being accompanied by some of our Music Academy students on guitar, keyboard and vocals to create this moving number. A fantastic collaboration between the Arts brought this story to life for our audiences to experience.

The performance was based on a story of connection, courage and loss, as a family navigates the struggles and hardships that war can present.  This emotional journey shows how easily life can be uprooted and disintegrate without any personal control.  This student driven piece shows how easily war can affect and damage even the strongest of people.  Watch as this family fights for their freedom and ultimately, their survival.