Flanker tries his hand at musical theatre role

Blindside flanker Rik Palatchie used to sing in the changing sheds after the game. Some of the lads used to join in. But that’s as far as it went.

So imagine the team’s reaction when he told them he was missing the first game of the season tomorrow for a trial makeup session.

Palatchie is about to make his musical theatre debut at the age of 38, in The Phantom of the Opera next month.

He felt he couldn’t do sport and theatre when he was younger, and peer pressure made him pick the former, he said.

However, late last year he decided to audition for the Blenheim Musical Theatre’s annual production, deciding it wasn’t too late to have a go.

To audition, Palatchie had to sing solo in front of a panel of judges.

‘‘I didn’t think I had a chance. It was very scary for me. I’d done singing with kapa haka, but never by myself,’’ he said.

Not only did Palatchie get selected for the ensemble, but he also landed the role of Don Attilio.

‘‘Everyone knows that I’m very much an amateur but they’ve been helping me out, taking me on board and showing me the ropes.

‘‘The people in the show are extremely talented. The show is going to be amazing.’’

Palatchie taught kapa haka in secondary schools around Blenheim. About three years ago, he took up singing lessons so he could teach his students. His voice teacher encouraged him to audition.

In 1996, he performed in a Ma¯ ori theatre production called Mai Te Timatanga Ki Te Ao Hou, which had some singing.

‘‘[Musical theatre] is definitely something I would have loved to have done when I was younger, but the way things panned out, it never happened.

‘‘But that’s one of the reasons why I wanted to do it, to really encourage my kids to challenge themselves.

‘‘One of the other reasons why I never got into things when I was younger was I always thought I was too late to get into stuff.

‘‘I’ve sort of realised it’s never too late, hence I’m doing this at 38 years old.’’ Director Duncan Whiting said he thought Marlborough audiences would be blown away. The production had been adapted for New Zealand but followed the very strict code of the original, Whiting said.

‘‘I think it’s one of those productions where the audience themselves become very involved with the two characters of Phantom and Christine.

‘‘It becomes very much a love hate relationship with the Phantom and at the end of the night, they take away the emotions and the drive of the characters and the music.’’ Havelock police officer Spencer Kingi plays the Phantom and Canadian wine worker Aria Bakkers plays Christine.