Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Rainbow Fish Musical makes a splash at Otonga School

Aleyna Martinez
By Aleyna Martinez
Multimedia journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
28 Sep, 2024 03:04 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Carissa Billing as a silver scale (left), Ilo Hyde as the Rainbow Fish and Evie Muggeridge as a silver scale. Photo / Jasmin Boyce

Carissa Billing as a silver scale (left), Ilo Hyde as the Rainbow Fish and Evie Muggeridge as a silver scale. Photo / Jasmin Boyce

The curtain has closed on Otonga School’s rendition of The Rainbow Fish Musical presented in collaboration with Lakes Performing Arts Centre for 2024, leaving students with vivid memories of an experience focused on kindness, generosity, and the true meaning of beauty.

For production director and centre owner Natasha Benfell, it was her 7-year-old daughter’s attendance and the playful spirit of school principal Gareth Cunliffe that made her agree to the whole school production, for the first time.

“He’s so about play, like he’s not one of these principals that sit in his office and you never see him … on book day he’s dressed up as Tintin, he’s out and about with the kids all the time.

“[That] really resonates with me being in the performing arts sector, because that’s what we do, that’s what play is,” Benfell said.

Carissa Billing and Evie Muggeridge cast as silver scales during the Rainbow Fish Musical. Photo /  Jasmin Boyce
Carissa Billing and Evie Muggeridge cast as silver scales during the Rainbow Fish Musical. Photo / Jasmin Boyce
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

She said watching the young performers embody school values and learning on and off the stage was something she was very proud of.

“Seeing their confidence grow with each performance and how they supported one another behind the scenes was so heartwarming. The joy on their faces as they told this beautiful story — and the pride they felt when the audience cheered — made all the hard work worth it,” Cunliffe said.

Carissa Billing (left), Ilo Hyde, Evie Muggeridge, Paige Coxhead, Lockie Wade, Baylor Zhou and Neal Pardal. Photo / Mark Smith
Carissa Billing (left), Ilo Hyde, Evie Muggeridge, Paige Coxhead, Lockie Wade, Baylor Zhou and Neal Pardal. Photo / Mark Smith
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post

NZ Super Fund-backed Kaingaroa Timberlands expands with Waikato land purchase

01 Jul 05:43 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Zespri teams up with Dame Lisa Carrington

01 Jul 03:30 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Compliance concern: Growers oppose proposed geothermal water regulations

01 Jul 12:00 AM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

NZ Super Fund-backed Kaingaroa Timberlands expands with Waikato land purchase

NZ Super Fund-backed Kaingaroa Timberlands expands with Waikato land purchase

01 Jul 05:43 AM

Kaingaroa Timberlands has bought 9200ha of forestry land in South Waikato.

Zespri teams up with Dame Lisa Carrington

Zespri teams up with Dame Lisa Carrington

01 Jul 03:30 AM
Compliance concern: Growers oppose proposed geothermal water regulations

Compliance concern: Growers oppose proposed geothermal water regulations

01 Jul 12:00 AM
Fresh weather warnings issued for BoP

Fresh weather warnings issued for BoP

30 Jun 11:29 PM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP