Private 60th Birthday party

For his 60th birthday party John Chapman, a New Zealander from Auckland wanted to celebrate with friends and family in Dorset, England. John and his wife Caroline were looking for something authentically New Zealand that would make their family and friends from New Zealand feel at home and give an opportunity to impress their English friends with a slice of New Zealand’s Maori culture.

John and Caroline approached Manaia as they wanted a small team of strong performers who could provide a traditional performance and include a couple of favourites. Following the performance, John and Caroline were impressed enough to send a letter to the Editor of the New Zealand Herald:

Dear Sir, I wish to publicly acknowledge and thank Manaia who are based in London and recently entertained my husband and our 84 guests for his 60th birthday.

This Maori group were most professional, and 6 fine dancers and singers performed a 30 minute concert which had our guests crying out for more! They were a credit to New Zealand, and marvellous ambassadors for this country.

They absolutely made our party the success it was and as two thirds of our guests were English, we were able to share in some of our wonderful culture in a positive way.

Caroline Chapman, Parnell, Auckland