Music and Performing Arts

All students are encouraged to participate in Performing Arts activities. The school offers many opportunities in Music, Dance and Drama for students to perform both within the school and the wider community.

In Music, students are offered instrumental or voice tuition and student bands regularly rehearse and perform throughout the year. Performance opportunities include school assemblies, dance and music show, and music competitions. Senior students also create a portfolio of their music compositions as part of their learning programme, while a selection of junior students engage in a "Can You be a Conductor?" programme. This is an opportunity brought about by our strong and close relationship with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra. 

Dance offers students a variety of practical experiences, including collaboration with the Royal New Zealand Ballet and other external dance professionals from the industry, this gives students the opportunity to experience dance in real-life contexts. Students also have opportunities to perform in school through Showcase performance evenings where they have the chance to collaborate with our music students. Each year we create an opportunity for dance students to have a performance opportunity outside of school too, in the past, this has meant taking groups to perform at local retirement villages, and primary schools as well as events such as YouDance and MOOVIT. 

In Drama we showcase student talent through theatre sports, and the annual senior dramatic production. Students have the opportunity throughout the year to work in collaboration with Massive Theatre Company as well as Masked Theatre Productions. In 2023 our senior drama students will have the privilege of performing at The Dolphin Theatre and will be directed by an experienced local director and actor, Zane Flemming. if students are passionate about musical theatre - we offer scholarship places for at least 10 students per year to take part in a National Youth Theatre production outside of school too. We take our junior students to see our scholarship students perform at the civic for NYTC. We also provide other opportunities for students to view professional live theatre productions as part of their studies. 

Onehunga High School takes pride in performing every second year at Polyfest. As well as Kapa Haka, our students represent cultural groups from the Cook Islands, India, Philippines, China, Niue, Samoa, Aotearoa and Tonga at this large spectacular event.