Performing Arts

DRAMA MATTERS

'Great Expectations'  Week 10, 2-4 April in the Sarto Centre

Have You Purchased Your Tickets?

Don’t miss out on seeing our fantastic cast of Mercy Catholic College and St Pius X College actors in this year’s major production of Great Expectations.  Ms Penny Lindley and all members of the crew have been working tirelessly and are now adding the final magic to their work.  With only five sleeps to go, we encourage everyone to purchase their tickets and arrive on time to reap the rewards of their success.

In interviewing Ms Lindley she beamed, “I could not be more proud of the team work and initiative shown by all students.  They are such an earnest, talented and thoughtful cast of young people.  I have loved witnessing their confidence and risk taking as actors.  This is an incredibly challenging play, with many concurrent themes. They deserve credit for their critical thinking and creative storytelling. I will actually be sad when it is over as they have been so lovely to work with.”

TICKETS are just $20 and the show will beat anything you see in London’s West End!  

Book via  trybooking:   https://www.trybooking.com/482280

Please click on the flyer below for details. 

Ms Penny Lindley - Drama Teacher/Director

MUSIC MATTERS

Twilight Around the World, Thursday May 9 – Please Save the Date

Our Ensemble directors and performers are heads down preparing for our first Twilight Concert. In our latest planning meeting Mrs Talati declared, “Let’s think of this evening as multicultural smorgasboard, where the audience get to taste a little bit of everything!”  Our PAPA parents have some new items planned for the menu and our Drama students are working on their International accents.  We ask that every Performing Arts student be in full attendance on the evening. Everyone is welcome to watch.

St Pius X Hottest 100 Song Writing Competition

Just as Triple J hosts the Hottest 100 Bands each year, St Pius X College is seeing some fantastic song writers emerge from our Stage 4 Music program.  The first assessment of the year was a challenging song writing task. Boys had to compose, rehearse and perform their own original songs. With themes about Pigeons, Mine Coins, Mum’s PayPal Account, Parties, Trees, Australian Fauna and even an Ode to Mr. Ticli, we have been highly entertained by their creative outpourings.

For extension, some students notated their scores in MuseScore and Logic, others included additional instrumentation and even recorded their songs using digital music software. This activity developed boys’ skills in team work, creative writing, guitar technique, singing, rhythmic coordination and confidence in performing in front of others. Keep up the vibrant music-making Year 7 and 8.

'Meet the Music' Tonight at the Sydney Opera House - Concert Pianist, Barry Douglas Performs Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra delivers Sibelius’s emotional Symphony No.7

This evening, Wednesday March 27 at 6pm our Elective Music students Years 9-12 will attend their second Meet the Music concert at the Sydney Opera House. 

Concert 2 will showcase internationally acclaimed Irish concert pianist, Barry Douglas, performing Brahm’s Second Piano Concerto.  Boys will also hear the remarkable Symphony No. 7 by Sibelius and will experience the colourful Aeolian Caprices by Australian composer, Richard Mills. For more details please see the program notes below. 

Attending Meet the Music concerts is one of the most educational steps a student can make.  In seeing and hearing these massive orchestral works boys gain deep levels of musical understanding. Experiencing live music of the highest calibre enhances a child’s musicology, aural, performance and composition skills. We are truly blessed to live in a city with access to some of the world’s best composers, conductors and musicians.  We can’t wait to share to share the boys’ experiences in our next Woodchatta.

HIGHLIGHTS of the week:

• Australian Tenor, Andrew Goodwin Rehearses with Year 6 Vocalist, Eugene Kim

“Smooth vowels, no choppy, choppy words. Oh, there, you just did it. You are now singing like an angel. Do that again! As you sing, create that sound again.”

Andrew is one of Australia’s finest tenors and just happens to be our College Vocal Coach. Please learn more about Andrew’s professional work here:   www.andrewgoodwintenor.com

• Mr Cranney Brings his Lap Guitar to our Wednesday Lunchtime Jam Session

Most Wednesdays we pretend we are in Honolulu or Vegas. This week, with the dulcet tones of Mr Cranney’s crooning lap guitar, we really were swaying under palm trees playing without a worry in the world.  It did help that Mr Cummins and Mrs Rawle had tuned the ukuleles and made sure all our guitars were pointing the same way.  Even St Pius Rugby specialist, Mr Benn McBrearty, came in to learn the ukulele.  We have so many generous teachers at St Pius all working together to make learning fun.

• Clarinet teacher Tom Andrews and College Accompanist, Stella Waddington, help Daniel to Refine Danza by Richard Pervical

Our collective approach to teaching and learning means that we all work together to support each child.  Just this week Tom Andrews was walking along the hallway to take his lunch break. Hearing Daniel rehearsing with Stella Waddington he stopped and said, “Hang on, just let me grab my clarinet and I will play with him.” Tom promptly gave up his lunch break to help Daniel improve.

• St Pius Boys Take a Self-directed Approach to Learning

Just as everyone was hopping onto buses to head home, last Monday afternoon our Year 12 Music 2 class took advantage of a quieter College to perform their first practical assessment examinations. From start to finish each student displayed grit and concentration, working hard to exhibit the expressive and stylistic elements of their works. We hope that this talented class continues to work hard and take a self-reflective approach to learning. Congratulations to all involved. 

• Don’t Practise Until You Get It Right, Practise Until You Can’t Get it Wrong

Last Friday afternoon at 3.30pm Year 10 students Angelo and Manav came running into our Performing Arts office, with a cheeky grin Angelo asked, “Mr. Primrose-Heaney, can I please have photocopies of our Orchestra pieces?  I want to practise my cello over the weekend!”  Aww, music to our ears.

Thanks to great students, the world is a wonderful place and teaching, a rewarding profession.

Kind regards,

Ms Pip Waters - Acting Performing Arts Coordinator