Opinion: Kapa haka performers Rotorua's pride and joy

Te Pikikotuku o Ngati Rongomai gave Te Matarae I Orehu a run for their money, coming in second place. Photo/Ben Fraser

There's nothing more beautiful and breathtaking than watching kapa haka performers.

Every time I witness a rousing haka or am encapsulated by a moving action song, I well up with pride at being a Kiwi.

Take that intensity up a notch when you watch a kapa haka performer push every inch of effort out during a competition performance.

For these performers, taking the stage at an event such as the one at the weekend, Te Arawa Kapa Haka Regional Festival, is not just putting on any show.

They wear their group's pride on their sleeves and it's high stakes to get picked by the judges as one of the groups to go to Te Matatini (the national competition) to represent their iwi.

In Rotorua, our performers are naturals. Some do this for a living to entertain our tourists.

Their skill, poise, musicality, writing, composition, choreography, singing and delivery is nothing short of outstanding. I watch in awe.

When you look around the sell-out crowd of about 4000 spectators they too are beaming with pride, watching hands clasped as their whanau leave nothing in the tank.

The amount of hours these performers spend, all in their own time, to perfect their performances is humbling. Who else can say they give something this much dedication to reach such a high standard?

Friday and Saturday's judges watched 21 teams perform on the Rotorua Energy Events Centre stage and had the unenviable job of whittling it down to the top six.

It's been said the standard of kapa haka has never been so high, so watch out Te Matatini, Te Arawa means business next year.