The students put on performances that blended art, music, dance, drama, culture and technology for Showquest Southland at the Civic Theatre in Invercargill.
A dozen school groups from across Otago and Southland took part in Aotearoa’s largest student performing arts competition.
Showquest producer Kelsey Moller said the standard of the performances lifted every year and she was impressed with the issues young people brought to the stage.
‘‘It was all really student-led. [A] really diverse expression of creativity.
‘‘Tonight, we’ve had performances about AI, about our wa¯hine toa and disconnecting from social media.
‘‘It’s a really strong nationwide theme that we’ve seen.’’
She had anticipated a great show because of the way the 600 students had supported each other throughout the day.
‘‘This was a really beautiful opportunity for adults and teachers and wha¯nau to come along and see the students take to the stage and show the adults in their lives what was important to them.’’
A group from Wa¯naka’s Mount Aspiring College were named the winner, taking out the open section for their ‘‘Wa¯hine Toa’’ dance piece celebrating significant women from across Aotearoa’s history.
James Hargest College snapped up the junior section for their performance themed, ‘‘Best First Day Ever!’’. Showquest Southland judge Travis Luke said the concepts felt very relevant — and clearly focused on where we were at in society.
Both colleges will go on to the Showquest digital national final, which will be livestreamed on July 30.
