Spotlight on: Opoutere School

One of the greatest pleasures of writing for Hī Hā is the amazing connections it builds with kura from all over Aotearoa. Sometimes, these are unexpected.

One stunningly sunny day in early autumn, I was on an author visit at Whangamatā Library in the Coromandel. My audience was an enthusiastic group of local daycares and new entrant classes, nestled cosily in between the bookshelves. It just happened to be my birthday. Little did I know, I was about to receive a very special gift.

It's common on author visits for teachers to tell me that they know my books, but never realised I was a New Zealander. But on this occasion, a teacher from Opoutere School excitedly asked if I was the scriptwriter for Hī Hā. 'Yes!' I replied, and was thrilled to learn that her school had recently performed Matariki and the Space Pirates. 'Oh!' cried the librarian in charge of my visit: 'My kids were in that too! It was amazing!' The teacher whipped out her phone and I was promptly shown some truly beautiful photos of kids in glittering costumes and, later, a video of the whole show. The highlight for me: our choreographer Lleu's dance to 'Tahi, Rua, Toru, Whā' by Anika Moa. The delighted young performers were clearly having the time of their lives, and as the dance sped up faster and faster, their wiggling, jiggling, giggling hilarity had the audience in stitches!

A school production is an amazing way for tamariki to shine on stage - at Opoutere School, quite literally! Thank you for sharing your energy and your joy with us - your show was out of this world!