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Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Local Focus: From opera to rugby sevens

Delilah Whaitiri
By Delilah Whaitiri
Video Journalist, Rotorua, NZH Local Focus ·NZ Herald·
29 Apr, 2022 04:13 AM3 mins to read

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Her soprano voice was discovered at the age of ten. Now she heads for the sports field

She is performing with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in a series of upcoming shows, but Te Pumanawa o Toku Ate Rogers has her eyes set on a rugby career instead of opera.

The Rotorua 15-year-old started singing opera to a live audience when she was just 10 years old.

"I'm doing something I love and it is also making other people happy, which is all-around just a great feeling to have," she said.

"It's like an adrenaline rush, you know when you sing.

"All these people watching you, you don't know what they're going to think, but then when you get a positive reaction, it just makes the experience a lot better."

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Being centre stage is not always easy for Rogers - she said performing kapa haka helped her feel part of a team and provided her with a sense of identity.

The teen has been on stage since the age of 6, performing with her previous school Te Kura o Te Koutu

"It is a Māori school so I did kapa haka.

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"It kind of started from there and has always just been a part of my life, having that cultural connection to my people, my iwi, my hapū, and my tūpuna," she said.

Her father Hunia Rogers said he couldn't be prouder and attributed much of her natural talent to her ancestral links.

"My brother is currently a singer and actor in Sydney.

"My dad was a singer and actor.

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"My wife's from Ngāti Porou, so they're a whānau of singers," he said.

While her performances capture public attention, her family is proudest of her private accomplishments

"Her believing in herself is a highlight because a lot of people in life don't believe in themselves," Hunia said

Despite her operatic and kapa haka accomplishments, she said sport was her true passion.

"I consider myself a very athletic person.

"I play a number of sports, and my favourites are basketball, rugby, and league.

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"I don't mind being tackled or like being in contact, because I do have older brothers, so I think that helped a lot with the contact part because they're very rough.

The next chapter of her life involves ambitious rugby goals.

"Watching my idols, like Portia Woodman and Michaela Blyde going onto Olympic levels and winning, it's always been a motivation for me.

"Seeing them do what they love to do and be good at it," she said.

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