Jelsha Eastes as Bottom and Keira Macdonald as Titania in Tauraroa Area School's award-winning performance of their scene from A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Regional Shakespeare Festival.
Jelsha Eastes as Bottom and Keira Macdonald as Titania in Tauraroa Area School's award-winning performance of their scene from A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Regional Shakespeare Festival.
Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.
It is one of Shakespeare’s most famous quotes from his comedy Twelfth Night, and there were plenty of great performances by Northland’s youth as the Te Tai Tokerau/Northland SGCNZ VUW Regional Shakespeare Festival celebrated a recordyear.
The 2026 festival was held at Whangārei Boys’ High School earlier this month, after being postponed a week because of the storm blasting Northland at that time, but the delay didn’t deter any of the youth from putting on outstanding work, festival regional convenor Debi Walters-Brown said.
There were a record 26 scene entries from eight Northland groups, with 113 students from Huanui College, Kaitāia College, Making a Scene, Ōtamatea High School, Pompallier College, Tauraroa Area School, the Waipapa Youth Theatre and Whangārei Boys’ High School (WBHS).
Walters-Brown said the festival brought together school and community theatre groups from Kaitāia to Ōtamatea, highlighting the strength and growing enthusiasm for Shakespeare throughout the region.
She said the power of Shakespeare’s works was as relevant to today’s youth as they were when written more than 400 years ago.
“These students find connection through their love of Shakespeare’s works, proving the enduring relevance and compelling themes for our young people as they navigate and make sense of a tumultuous world, over 400 years after Shakespeare’s death.
“The festival is always the second-to-last week of Term 1 and many schools find that difficult to manage at the beginning of the year, but as our young winners from Tauraroa Area School have proven, if you are determined and committed, you can achieve great success.”
The festival was adjudicated by Shakespeare specialists Jessica Rigold, from Auckland, and Jaden Lincoln, President of the Ōtamatea Repertory Society. They were joined by regional scholarship recipient M’Lago Morris, who helped in selecting the National Shakespeare Schools Production (NSSP) direct entry.
Anis Bahrinipour, from Whangārei Boys' High School, during his performance as Petrucio from The Taming of the Shrew at Te Tai Tokerau/Northland SGCNZ VUW Regional Shakespeare Festival.
A highlight of the festival was the announcement of WBHS/Making a Scene student Anis Bahrinipour as the winner of the Most Outstanding NSSP Direct Entry, recognising exceptional performance and promise.
As well, two WBHS ensemble performances – scenes from Timon of Athens and Othello – were selected to represent Te Tai Tokerau at the SGCNZ VUW National Shakespeare Festival in Wellington later this year.
Walters-Brown said the awards reflected the diversity and quality of performances across the region. The Waipapa Youth Theatre received the award for Most Tragic Moment in a Scene for their powerful portrayal of Desdemona’s death in Othello. Tauraroa Area School impressed adjudicators with humour and youthful energy, taking home the Comedic Trophy as well as Best Junior Performance by Jelsha Eastes, for their scene from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Pompallier College achieved a milestone this year, entering 32 students in a record number of scenes, demonstrating strong commitment to Shakespeare performance.
“The resilience shown by everyone involved – adapting to weather disruptions and still delivering performances of such creativity and courage – was inspiring. Shakespeare continues to thrive in Te Tai Tokerau because of the passion and collaboration of our young performers and their communities.”
