Performing Arts

Communicating with the Specialist Team

We look forward to partnering with you in 2023, and welcome your input:

Penelope Lang (Performing Arts) penelope.lang@education.vic.gov.au 

Wominjeka!

Upwey South's Got Talent

We have now set up the Google Classrooms for those of you who would like to submit your acts for USGT 2023. To upload your entry you will need to log in to your google account and click on 'google classroom'. In the top right corner of the page you will see the + symbol which will enable you to join a 'new class'. You then type in one of these codes:

USGT Junior (prep to 2) - classroom code: mn4aklt

USGT Senior (3 to 6) - classroom code: ww6ghvk

I have added 'Upwey South's Got Talent' as an Assignment and this is where you need to upload your entry. You will need to know your google login details (all classroom teachers have a list of these) to enter.

Remember, you can only enter one act and you can only enter in one category (junior or senior). Please be mindful of where you film your act and take care not to 'accidently' include someone in your filming. The entries will only be viewed by Upwey South teachers and students and will not be publicly shared. I look forward to seeing all of your TALENT and hopefully a variety of weird and wonderful things such as tricks with your pets, magic tricks, trampolining or show off your skills on a bike, skateboard or roller skates. Of course I also look forward to seeing acts from all of our talented singers, dancers, actors and musicians. Entries will close at the end of week 2 of term 4. This will give you plenty of time to get creative during the school holidays. The winners will be announced at the end of term 4.

Victorian State Schools Spectacular

A very BIG congratulations to our 16 dancers and 26 singers who performed on Saturday 9th September at the Victorian State Schools Spectacular. After two very long rehearsal days at John Cain arena the students joined over 2000 other students to perform in a matinee and a sold out evening show. Ms Oliver worked out that we had all done over 30,000 steps across the three days. What a super effort. You should all feel incredibly proud of your achievements and I am looking forward to doing it all again next year.....if we get in it will be our 11th year! Of course, we couldn't do it without the wonderful support of our families and the dedication of our teachers Ms Oliver, Ms Humphries and Mr Kitch. Thank you to Mel Hutchings, Kim Van Hoorn and Chelsea Harris for being my parent helpers and for keeping me organised and fed. What would I do without you?

A BIG thank you to Lucy H for taking time to write this recount about her VSSS journey. Some very happy travels.

VSSS Recount - By Lucy H

Saturday, 9th of September, was a spectacular day!  After months of rehearsals, it was finally time for ‘Happy Travels’ – this year’s theme for the Victorian State Schools Spectacular.

I felt excited to be part of the show with my friends from USPS.  Running into the amazing atmosphere of John Cain arena as one of the mass dancers, I waved to the audience, knowing my family was amongst the crowd. The energy was high as we danced to ‘The World is Ours’. Everyone looked great, the mass dancers had many costumes changes to match the songs through the show.  Wearing light up glasses and armbands was especially fun.  The digital displays and lighting added to the spectacle. One of my favourite songs to dance to was ‘Dance Like Yo Daddy’.

Thankyou to our fabulous teachers and parents for the opportunity to be part of VSSS – it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had and something I will never forget.  I wish we could do it all again!  I encourage all students who love to dance, sing and have a great time, to sign up for next year - I can’t wait to be in the audience to watch!

PIC Workshop

All Level 3/4 students recently participated in a Performing Arts incursion entitled, ‘Play, Imagine, Create’. Our school was lucky enough to be chosen for this wonderful opportunity and was given access to four professional performers (dance, drama and circus skills). Each class (supported by me and their classroom teacher) rotated between three different activities under the guidance of facilitator, Mikhaela Ebony Bourke. The PIC workshop series is proudly funded and supported by the Yarra Ranges Council and Burrinja Theatre. The feedback from the students was so incredibly positive and I think the smile on their faces says it all. We really hope to have PIC back at our school next year so more students can experience the positive power of the arts.

Professional Development

Last week I was very fortunate to attend some Professional Development entitled, 'Teaching First Nations Content and Concepts in the Drama Classroom'. This whole day course was run by Drama Victoria and involved lots of improvisation, characterisation, script writing and conversations with other Performing Arts teachers. I look forward to bringing these ideas alive in our drama sessions together.

In the Performing Arts room:

Foundation:

The Foundation students have continued to expand their understanding of acting tools. We used the nursery rhyme 'This Little Piggy' to explore and ignite our creative imaginations. We used character voices, gestures, movement and facial expressions to bring the rhyme alive. We used our wondering minds to imagine what else the little piggies could say to each other. The students were given the opportunity to perform for the rest of the class. We have continued to learn the choreography for the iconic dance the 'Nutbush' and have also been working on the African welcome song, 'Funge Alafia' in preparation for our whole school Christmas concert.

Year 1/2:

The students in Year 1 and 2 have been continuing to learn the choreography to the iconic dance the 'Nutbush' and were very excited to dance in front of our awesome mirrors in the brand new Performing Arts room. We are still in the process of moving and sorting things between my two rooms....but feel free to have a look through the window when you are next up at school. Our ukuleles have been packed away for now but will be coming back out soon. We have been using our acting skills to creatively expand nursery rhymes including, 'Jack and Jill' and 'Little Miss Muffet'. The students collaborated in small groups to plan, rehearse and perform their own version of the rhymes. The Year 2 students spent some time learning about the Bangarra Dance Theatre and then went on an exciting excursion to the city see, 'Waru - journey of the small turtle'. The students learnt about the life cycle of the green turtle from the Torres Strait Islands and the things that are threatening it's habitat. During the relaxed performance the students were able to join in with a traditional dance and speak in Creole,  a language from the Torres Strait Islands. 

Year 3/4:

The students in Year 3/4 enjoyed participating in the PIC workshop (see above) which included activities in dance, drama and circus skills. They continued to rehearse their small group drama piece 'Chips' and performed these for the rest of the class. We definitely have some budding actors who are excited about trying out for a speaking part in our 2024 school production. They have been recapping the melody for the African welcome song, 'Funge Alafia' and have been learning the lyrics and choreography for the 'Xmas YMCA' which we look forward to performing for you in Term 4 at our whole school Christmas concert.

Year 5/6:

The students in Year 5/6 have been continuing to rehearse the choreography for the 'Nutbush'. We used the opportunity of having a whole class dressed up for book week to play the improvisation game, 'Thank God you're here'. We had some fascinating scenarios such as The Incredible Hulk meeting Harry Potter and Sam Kerr having a chat with Spiderman. It was amazing to watch the student's fast thinking skills in action and encounter a display of super stagecraft skills. I am always amazed how a dress up costume can transform people's performances. We have also spent some time working on writing a new song for our end of year Christmas concert. We can't wait to sing it for you.