Tea party and concert at Ballroom Cave
Tea-party organisers, from left, Hera Livingston, Selena Serra and Pamela Nelson. Photo: Ina Holst.
A tea party held at the Aorere Goldfields on Sunday afternoon was a pleasant, though hot, affair. An eclectic mix of people, young and old, feasted on cake and tea before climbing the winding path to the Ballroom Cave for the evening’s entertainment.
The cave, reputed to have been used by miners as a venue for dances during the Aorere’s golden years, shone with new glory after being decorated for the occasion and lit with candles. Its large cavern resonated with glorious sounds as the Zing Choir opened the evening of music, dance and storytelling.
Event organiser and choir member Hera Livingston said that the positive response had prompted her to consider making the cave party an annual event.
“I had a fair idea from the feedback I had and from the many phone calls I received the week before, that there would be quite a few people turning up on the day. It was great to have over 100 people in the cave and to create all these magical things that were going on,” Hera said.
Hera had visited the Ballroom Cave last year. “I have always gone to caves to sing; caves are like natural cathedrals.” She said it had felt natural to have a concert in the cave and everything “just happened”. Musicians were easily convinced to give it a go and DOC ranger Nigel Mountfort gave a talk on the colourful history of the goldfields.
After a small amount of gold was found in 1856 the Aorere Valley developed into country’s first major goldfield. Sluicing was used here for the first time and the diggers got together to develop their own set of rules. By September of the following year, over 1000 men were searching for gold in the area. The gold rush lasted for three years, during which Collingwood was touted to become the capital of New Zealand. More spectacular finds in Otago and the West Coast eventually drew the miners away.
Ina Holst
