The Kūki Tenor: Ridge Ponini takes the Cook Islands to London stage

From the hallways of Tereora College in Rarotonga comes an unlikely story of a voice now heading to the world stage.

Ridge Ponini is the first Cook Islands-born and raised professional tenor.

His journey started with a smartphone video, a casual singing session outside a Year 13 classroom, and a “leap of faith”.

Behind the discovery of this boy from Nikao by his teacher, Mrs Brenda Rudolph, is a story of quiet persistence.

In a nation where opera is “unheard of”, Ponini says choosing it came with early resistance.

“When I started opera, everybody was laughing about it,” Ponini tells PMN Cook Islands. “It's not normal to have an opera singer come from the islands.

Watch Ridge Ponini's full interview below.

“So it was hard for me because people weren't supporting it at the time, only because it's unheard of. We don’t do opera in Raro.”

But, instead of stepping back, Ponini used that doubt as motivation.

He realised he had to push his voice further and prove it belonged on any stage.

Ponini went on to train with music professors from the University of Otago | Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka before moving to Aotearoa New Zealand, where he completed a Master’s programme at the University of Waikato.

A major turning point came during 18 months at Te Pae Kōkako | The Aotearoa New Zealand Opera Studio (TANZOS), where his raw talent was turned into professional performance.

“Because it comes with its challenges, you're in the eye of the community, this program is sponsored, and you're watched by everybody, so you have to perform at a certain standard,” Ponini says.

“I felt my voice change during that time, that period. I was working under pressure…but I’m glad because I got a taste of what it is like to work in the opera field professionally.”

Now that experience has taken him to the next level.

Ponini is preparing to head to the National Opera Studio in London. He has been selected as one of only eight singers worldwide for a nine-month programme.

For Ponini, this is a chance to move into the global opera industry.

"I’ve done enough here in New Zealand," he says. "Now the next step is to go overseas and see how life is professionally...it’s going to be a different pressure, but I’m so excited for it."

Despite the international path ahead, Ponini remains connected to his Kūki ‘Āirani heritage. He sees opera as another platform to amplify his culture and showcase his “island flair”.

“When I go on and take our music onto the opera platforms,” he says. “It brings me so much joy when we sing our own language on the opera stage. It's a huge privilege all the time to represent us on that stage.”

Ridge Ponini with his fiancé at a screening of 'Tenor: My Name is Pati'. Photo/Facebook

Ponini’s message to young Cook Islands artists is to not to let the expectations define what is possible.

“I've come this far to go further. I want to carry on going, and I encourage you all to just follow your dreams and to just take it.”

From a Rarotonga classroom hallway to London’s professional opera world, Ridge Ponini’s journey is a testament to what Pacific talent can look like on the global stage.