Dayen Zheng Hi-5 House Interview

Dayen Zheng Hi-5 House Interview

Beloved children's entertainment group Hi-5 are returning to free-to-air television, with their latest series Hi-5 House premiering on Network Ten's ELEVEN on Monday, February 24, at 9am. With a new name, new set and new format, Hi-5 House is the 'home" in which all five cast members live with their loveable puppet friends, Chats and Jup Jup.

In the house they each have their own special pod, which comes to life with all the fun, singing and dancing that Hi-5 are renowned for.

The Hi-5 cast includes two favourites viewers are sure to recognise: Stevie and Lauren. Adding to the Hi-5 family are three new bright talents: Dayen, Ainsley and Mary.

Hi-5 House will also be available on tenplay Kids, a dedicated digital hub just for kids featuring on-demand video, extra content, and activity sheets that can be engaged with anytime, anywhere at tenplay.com.au/kids and via the tenplay app for iPhone and iPad.

Network Ten's Head of Children's Television, Cherrie Bottger, said: 'We are thrilled to bring back to free-to-air television a program so loved by children. Hi-5 House invites them to actively share in the excitement of exploring the world through movement, music and fun, bringing joy and laughter to every little person watching."

A global success story, Hi-5 has captivated children aged two to six across 13 series to date. Hi-5 House joins ELEVEN's dedicated programming block of innovative children's programs, which begins daily at 6am and includes proven favourites Toasted TV, Totally Wild, Scope, Mako – Island of Secrets, iCarly, Pokémon, Victorious, Care Bears, Strawberry Shortcake, Tree Fu Tom and Vic the Viking.

Hi-5 House premieres Monday, February 24, at 9am and continues weekdays on ELEVEN.

Interview with Dayen Zheng

A full-time ballerina for 6 years who's enjoyed singing and performing since she was a little girl, Dayen Zheng joined the cast of Hi-5 in January 2012.

Dayen was born in South Korea and moved to Australia with her family in 1996. She grew up in Cairns and left for the Gold Coast to study dance from 2005 to 2010, graduating with an Advanced Certificate in classical ballet from the Royal Academy of Dance.

Dayen also studied singing alongside dance and has performed on many occasions at yearly concerts.

In 2010, she joined the Williams Talent Agency on the Gold Coast and since then has appeared in TV commercials in Australia and New Zealand, the documentary 'Singapore 1942 End of Empire' and the TV series 'Lightning Point' as the support lead character Gina. She has also worked as an extra on Sea Patrol, Slide, the film Bad Karma and as a core extra on Terra

Star sign: Capricorn
Birthday: January 15th

Colour of hair: Medium brown with highlights
Colour of eyes: Brown
Hobbies: I love to travel and learn about new things, I also love cooking and love to sing.
Favourite Food: I enjoy eating all different types of food and trying new things but if I had to pick one I'd have to say my Dad's Korean home cooking!
Music: I like all music especially ones that I can dance and sing along to.
Colour: Blue
Question: How did you audition for Hi-5?

Dayen Zheng: I was a full time ballerina for 6 years, and always enjoyed singing and performing since I was a little girl. I auditioned for Hi-5 in October 2011 and I was lucky enough to land the role! I've been the new member as of January 2012, and I have loved every single minute of it!


Question: Favourite part about being in Hi-5?

Dayen Zheng: My favourite part about being in Hi-5 is being able to teach children all around the world through song, dance and interaction. I believe this is the best way to learn, not to mention a lot of fun as well! Also being a part of Hi-5 is very rewarding. We are proud ambassadors for World Vision and Starlight Foundation and have the privilege to visit some beautiful fans in hospitals, and it is such an honour to be able to make them smile.


Question: How would you describe an episode of Hi-5 House?
Dayen Zheng: An episode out of hi-5 house is so much fun because it's a fun house that all the hi-5 members get to hang out and play, cook, sing and dance and our house is where our imagination comes to life for everyone to enjoy and get involved! The members each have their own 'rooms' or 'pods' in the house where we can each engage the kids at home to join in the fun!


Question: Can you tell us about your own special Hi-5 House pod?

Dayen Zheng: I am lucky enough to be in the kitchen which is my favourite part of the house in everyday life! I cook and play in my kitchen but sometimes things go missing, so I have to find an alternative but it works out better than before each time!


Question: How do children learn from watching episodes of Hi-5 House?

Dayen Zheng: Hi-5 has always encouraged a fun way of learning for children, and hi-5 house demonstrates that by having our own individual segments that represent a certain skill and ability for example, my segment 'puzzles and patterns' teaches children about numbers, identifying patterns and problem solving in a fun game so the kids don't even realise they are learning all these skills!


Question: Which of your loveable puppet friends join you in Hi-5 House?

Dayen Zheng: Well people always tell me about some sort of mysterious friend that they see in my segment! I have never seen it before, but there are always things going missing in my kitchen...


Question: Which is your favourite Hi-5 song and why?

Dayen Zheng: I love 'so many animals' because I adore animals and it is such a fun song with a deeper meaning behind it!

Question: How did joining Hi-5 come about for you?

Dayen Zheng: I was a ballerina before I started to venture out into the acting world, and to be honest I never thought I would be doing what I'm doing now! I have always been a performer and this job covers everything that I've ever wanted to do dancing, singing, acting and I've always wanted to have my own performing arts school to teach kids so I could say that hi-5 is a dream come true.


Question: What's your favourite part about being a member of Hi-5?

Dayen Zheng: Apart from doing what I've always wanted to do, my favourite part about my job is that I get to experience things that I never thought I could experience in my lifetime. We are ambassadors for Starlight Foundation and World Vision and are lucky enough to go to hospitals and travel to places like Cambodia and the Philippines, and to be able to help and influence children in less fortunate situations is really empowering and I will cherish each visit for the rest of my life.


Question: What's a typically day like, for you, as a member of Hi-5?

Dayen Zheng: In Hi-5 there is no typical day! Which keeps it fun for us as performers as it never gets monotonous. Even through rehearsal periods for our live shows, and each day we are filming there is always something to laugh about together and that's what really special about this job.


Question: What do you do in your spare time?

Dayen Zheng: I try to spend as much time as I can with family and loved ones as we are always on the road. Each of us can say we spend more time living out of a suitcase and hotels than spending time at home so each second we get to be home is precious. I love cooking so I cook a lot when I'm home as most hotels don't have a kitchen.


Interview by Brooke Hunter