Pacific students thrive on stage

A Pacific Story by Rangikura School won both the Wellington and National ShowQuest junior competition for 2022.

Winning the National ShowQuest is “the icing on the cake of a lot of hard work”, says Rangikura School deputy principal Sarah Nui.

Eight weeks of hard work led the school from Ascot Park, Porirua, to triumph in five categories out of nine in the regional finals – live music, video wall, props, theme, and soundtrack. Nationally, the school also won the award for Best Cultural Story, Best Live Music, and a shared award for Best Use of Props.

During the live show at the Michael Fowler Centre in Wellington, students and teachers embraced the stories of their grandparents, aunties, and larger family, telling and unpacking their histories in Aotearoa New Zealand.

A Pacific Story narrates the migration of Pacific Islanders to Aotearoa, the Dawn Raids in the 1970s and the contribution Pasifika have brought to society.

Rangikura School teacher Michael Nui oversaw the performance on stage and coordinated the work behind the scenes.

Community involvement

A Pacific Story is one of two successful projects by Rangikura School, funded by the Ministry of Education’s Pacific Education Innovation Fund. The project helps reach one of the fund’s outcomes – Pacific engagement with the community.

During the past years, the school has involved the Pacific community with the design of the curriculum, but this time they went further.

“A lot of parents came out of the woodwork; a lot of the community came out and actually talked about it. The stories were open wounds,” says Michael.

“We spend a lot of time looking forward, but it’s important to look at the past.”

The school double-checked with the families before putting the stories on stage, and after the show, when the lights went on, they found parents were crying for joy, singing, and dancing.

“Through music you allow the students who aren’t always seen as academically successful, to shine.”

Student-led

A celebration of the past and at the same time a collection of “hard to hear” memories, the collective story was woven together by students sharing their own experiences.

Year 8 students Persia-Bentley and Neihana were the captains of the team.

They were both nervous at first, but then they realised they had the support of other people – and excitement drove them to a moving performance.

“Getting to sing on a live stage has been my dream since I was a little girl,” says Persia-Bentley. She was one of the lead singers and played many roles on stage.

“We were honouring our ancestors and what they did, and what they had to go through. It was sad and cool to perform.”

She says putting the story into perspective and representing her ancestors was a feat. She felt comfortable having the assistance of other people and managed to defeat her own fear of being on stage.

“There are people out there, they are there and could pick you up.”

Neihana is glad he had a chance to tell the story of his nana and got to develop a bond with the teachers who taught him to play the drums and be part of a band.

“If you have an opportunity to tell a story, you should push through and take it.”

The show is a story of both difficult and celebratory memories of the Pacific community in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Teachers at the heart

All the students recognised the huge input of teachers Michael Nui and Teokoitu Obeda.

A music teacher at Rangikura School, Teokoitu’s dream was to support every student to experience music. In pursuit of his dream, he was the director of music for the live show and made sure the band was coordinated with the video wall behind them.

“More schools need Pasifika. Because Pasifika children thrive on arts and music. That’s a second nature for them,” he says.

Teaching primary school children to execute a coordinated act on stage wasn’t as hard as some might think, he adds.

“They were learning, but they had it already in the back of their minds,” says Teokoitu.

After the show, he says the students became such great music enthusiasts that the school now has three bands.

In the future, Rangikura School is planning to organise a summer festival in Porirua – a celebration of Pasifika music and culture.

“We have never had anything like that in Porirua and we are inviting other schools to participate,” says Teokoitu.

Student performance leaders Persia-Bentley, Gloria, Neihana and Matthew.

A vital step forward

Principal Eddie Uluilelata says having the opportunity of telling stories from the past was vital for the community and whānau.

A Pacific Story wasn’t only about learning and sharing a story, but also celebrating whānau and a long journey of healing, he says.

Year 8 student Matthew was part of the band and played the piano on stage.

He says it is important for people to know what happened in the past and his advice for Pasifika who might have a talent but were scared to showcase it was: “You should be confident in what you like.”

A singer and an actress in A Pacific Story, Year 8 student Gloria says the performance was a moving moment for her.

“Don’t let anyone put you down,” she says to other students who would like to compete and represent Pasifika.

Watch A Pacific Story and all other finalists in the 2022 ShowQuest National Final(external link) online.