Welcome to The Northland Age

Fiery rehearsals ... - Tuesday July 27, 2010

POWERFUL: Kaitaia College and Te Rangi Aniwaniwa performers set the room alight with their stirring dress rehearsal.

... then off to nationals
The Kaitaia College hall was "bursting at the seams" during a dress rehearsal by two local groups competing in the Kapa Tuarua national secondary schools kapa haka competition in Rotorua this week.
Enthusiastic supporters unable to find room inside the packed hall were watching through the windows as Kaitaia College and  Te Rangi Aniwaniwa groups performed on Thursday evening to polish their routines before leaving for Rotorua early yesterday.
The college group's tutor, Mihi Henare, said the hall had been "bursting at the seams" with some among the audience of about 350 people standing to applaud and issue Maori challenges to the students.
A supporting group from Kaitaia Intermediate School opened the evening of outstanding kapa haka entertainment, which was a fundraiser for the senior students with takeaway roast dinners, raffles and other activities understood to have collected about $1500 for each group.
A combined group from the Whangarei Boys and Whangarei Girls high schools will also reprepresent Northland at the five-day national competition, which is featuring performances  by 41 school groups from around New Zealand.
It is the fourth time students from the Te Rangi Aniwaniwa wharekura at Awanui have been competing in the biennial national competition _ they finished in 16th place in 2008 _ and the first time in 10 years Kaitaia College has qualified.
Te Rangi Aniwaniwa won the regional selection contest for Kapa Tuarua 2010 at Whangarei in September last year, with the Whangarei GHS-BHS group runner-up and Kaitaia College third.
Te Rangi Aniwaniwa tutor Chris Henare said some students in the group had been performing since primary or intermediate level.
The 35-40 members of each of the Far North kapa haka groups will have to stay in Rotorua until Kapa Tuarua ends on Friday because they have to receive the mauri to prepare for the next national competition which will be held in Northland in 2012.