MOVES: Masafumi Nakajima shows off his skills during the dance battle at the Wai2Go Community Hip-Hop festival on Saturday. PHOTO/BEN FRASER
MOVES: Masafumi Nakajima shows off his skills during the dance battle at the Wai2Go Community Hip-Hop festival on Saturday. PHOTO/BEN FRASER
While the weather may not have come to the party, the Wai2Go Community Hip-Hop festival had something for everyone, says co-ordinator Veena Kameta.
Ms Kameta said there were mixed emotions at having to change the venue from Lake Tikitapu (Blue Lake) to the Rotorua Youth Centre due to predicted rain.
"The vision was to capture the dance with the lake in the background. However, the day was entertaining and awesome."
She said the purpose of the festival, run for the fourth time, was to collaborate and leverage networks, and provide educational services.
'We want our youth to have options and choices. While youth need to chill and relax over summer some will be asking where to next and looking at their career choices."
Groups such as Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, the NZ Welding School and Te Waiariki Purea Trust had stalls at the festival providing study information and encouraging youth to register.
Image 1 of 9: Moana Te Whau and Amelia Paul, 6,
"We also wanted to utilise youth groups in our community. We had stalls from organisations such as the Rotorua Children's Art House," Ms Kameta said.
The community got behind the event "big time", especially the support from the hip-hop communities, she said.
There were 32 participants and six judges for the dance competitions. These were split into two hip-hop elements - B-boy and All Styles.
Ms Kameta said the feature DJ for the event was DJ Jamez Chai with support from DJ Ballistic and DJ Eight80.
She said while she wasn't able to see the entire dance competition what she did see were quality entries, with many people entering for the first time.
The festival is delivered by the Rotorua Youth Council and hosted by the Rotorua Youth Centre.
Visual artist Ally Rogers ran a Rotorua Children's Art House workshop at the festival, making magical mud creatures for the Glo Party to be held at the Rotorua Lakefront on New Year's Eve.
She said she had to leave the festival an hour earlier than anticipated as there were so many participants she ran out of paper clay materials.
"It was really fantastic. The whole event was well-organised. So many different community groups came together."
Ms Rogers said there were several musicians recording their Glo Spot Online Buskers Competition entries in the same room as the workshop.
"I was blown away by their talent."
She said the change of venue from Lake Tikitapu to the Rotorua Youth Centre was seamless.
