Caitlin Dufty

“Ko te manu e kai ana i te miro nōna te ngahere, ko te manu e kai ana i te mātauranga nōna te ao”  
 
The bird that eats of the miro tree, owns the forest. The bird that feasts on knowledge, owns the world.
 
Tena Koutou
Ko Kohatu Whakarakaraka o Tamatea Pōkai Whenua te māunga
Ko Ōtakaro te awa
Ko Waiharakeke toku kainga inaianei  
Ko Caitlin Dufty toku ingoa
 
Kia Ora, my name is Caitlin Dufty and I recently graduated from St Margarets College in Christchurch, where I was a School Prefect and Head of Arts.  My hometown is Waiharakeke, Blenheim, where I love spending my holidays with friends and family.
 
For as long as I can remember, I have been passionate about the arts and theatre. Over the years I have sat many singing and musical theatre exams, culminating in gaining ATCL, for musical theatre (with Distinction)  through Trinity School of London. I had worked hard towards this since I was 8 years old, and for me, this was like a dream come true. Through gaining ATCL, I was honoured to be nominated and to be awarded the Queen Elizabeth II music award, for my dedication and passion towards my music career in the Marlborough region. This stands as one of the greatest and proudest achievements so far.  
 
I proudly was selected as the Canterbury Regional direct entrant into SGCNZ NSSP (Shakespeare Globe Centre New Zealand National Schools Shakespeare Production).  This is a prestigious workshop in Dunedin, where only 40 students per year are selected to attend a nine day long workshop where we develop three of Shakespeare's plays to perform for the public.  
 
During my schooling I have been part of all the school productions.   I was cast as ‘Amy March’ in Louisa May Alcott’s ‘Little Women’ and ‘Vivienne Kensington' in Legally Blonde for my senior productions. These were a great honour for me, as I thrive and feel totally alive when  performing on the stage.  
 
Like many other kiwis, Covid-19 taught me a lot about resilience.  
 
As an eager year 9, excited to learn about the world around me, I very quickly discovered my passion for the Māori language and the beautiful culture. I joined our school kapa haka group and quickly became a junior leader. This opened up the opportunity to train with one of the nearby schools for ‘Polyfest’, a cultural festival created for secondary school students in Aotearoa. We trained for almost 10 months, 20 hours a week preparing for the competition. Unfortunately, the night before we were due to leave, the country went into a Nationwide lockdown. This led me to finding new ways to share my passion. Myself, along with the rest of our team, performed in front of our schools, sharing our joint love and passion for the beautiful pieces that we had created.  
 
I find fulfillment in sharing my passions with other students of all ages, and helping them to find the confidence that they need, to follow their passions.  

I am soon to begin my study at the University of Canterbury where I am enroll to start my Degree majoring in media and communications and minoring in marketing.  Once completed, I plan to attend the New Zealand Broadcasting School at ARA Polytechnic and become a journalist here and overseas, sharing my passions for the arts and the Maori culture  
 
I am so incredibly grateful and honoured to have been selected for the Pinnacle Programme, and I am super excited to start my journey with Stage 1!