This workshop commences with the 45 minute Icebreaker show followed by a 1–2 hour drum and dance workshop. The students are briefed and divided into three groups each lead by a facilitator. At the conclusion of the workshop the three groups reunite to perform their magnificent creation of Drum, Dance and Percussion.
Our team John Boone — Director Born in The Netherlands John immigrated along with his family at the age of 11 to New Zealand. It was in New Zealand attending High School where he discovered his passion for both music and acting. During his university days John fueled his desire to play music by joining various cover bands that performed around the Canterbury pub and club circuit. After graduating from Canterbury University in 1993 with a BSC in Chemistry he set sail for a trip to Europe, where he worked in various fields including the events industry which taught him the ropes to corporate team building. A trip to South Africa in 2002 and an invitation to an inspiring African drum show introduced the idea of group drumming and sparked the creation of Rhythm Interactive and its shows aimed at the corporate entertainment market. John’s passion for the stage is evident through his shows, and since his first corporate show in 2003 Rhythm Interactive has seen him perform throughout Australasia.
Anton Ritani — Production manager for our school shows Born in NZ, I grew up in Christchurch and at an early age discovered a keen interest in both the arts and music. During my late teens music became a big attraction for me and I was involved in several garage bands experimenting with song writing and composing. I formed and joined a number of original and covers bands during the 80’s and 90’s and during this period I met John Boone through an audition for "The Black Velvet Band", an Irish contemporary rock band based in Christchurch. I became involved in several different projects and also lived in Sydney Australia for close to 10 years. 2007 saw the return for me to my home town of Christchurch where John and I reconnected and I was offered the opportunity to join the Rhythm Interactive team. Joining Rhythm Interactive was one of those beautiful situations where I was in the right place at the right time. My passion for the stage, performing and engaging an audience is immense and Rhythm Interactive gave me the opportunity to fulfill this. Exceeding people’s expectation is part of my everyday plan, before the start of each show I tell myself "This is going to be my best show yet!" I love delivering these shows, the fact that they are performed entirely through mime as part of our theme "Actions speaks louder than words" is awesome, this is such a powerful tool to engage an audience and giving each member in the audience an African styled hand drum along with the no words spoken is a fantastic way to connect people. One of the biggest rewards for me is the feedback we receive, its wonderful being involved with a show where people are constantly telling us how much they enjoy and love what we do, its great to be part of an amazing team that actively works at leaving a very positive and memorable experience upon so many.