Performing Arts

Music Matters

Chamber Concert:  

Congratulations to our Chamber Concert musicians on a fantastic evening of entertainment. The students performed a delightful and diverse range of repertoire to a packed house at the Sarto Centre. We'd like to extend special thanks to our ensemble directors, Mr Andrew Saar, Mrs Stella Talati, and Mr Shane Cranney, as well as our MCs, Max Lenton and Michael Krizan, for hosting the evening and to Mr Ronchetti and Mr Stearn for their support. A special shout-out to our talented Music 2 student, Darcy Forster, whose wonderful Alto Saxophone solo was a highlight of the evening. 

This Friday night sees our Big Bands Bonanza Concert in the College gym at 5:00 pm. All welcome. The following ensembles will be performing: 

• All Jazz Bands 
• All Concert Bands 
• All percussion ensembles but NOT drumline 
• Rock Band Ensemble 
• Bass Guitar Ensemble 

All performers will receive a sausage sizzle and drink supplied by our wonderful PAPA committee before this concert. Families are also able to purchase food before the commencement of the concert. Students are asked to assemble in the gym straight after school on Friday to receive important information about the concert and receive their tickets for a free sausage sizzle and drink. Students are to wear full winter uniform for the concert. 

We kindly request that when we near the conclusion of our concert our audience remains until the very end, approximately 6:30 pm. Your presence and applause will serve as a heartfelt tribute to our talented musicians, and will also inspire our younger performers, who will be watching. We truly appreciate your dedication to the art of music, and look forward to sharing this evening with you. 

Co-curricular Drama Showcase tonight, Sarto Centre, 5:30 pm – this will feature performances from our Intermediate and Senior Drama Ensemble students. We would love to see you there supporting our talented actors! 

Major Works Day – our talented Year 12 students were able to dedicate this day working on their composition and performances for their HSC Music 1, Music 2 and Music Extension courses. It is wonderful to see their work taking shape and they are privileged to work with some fine musicians, including Mr Stephen Cummins, Mr Matt Thomson, Mr Tim Bridgen, Miss Annabella Stephens, Mr Shane Cranney and Mr Brendan Jones.  

Rotary Scholarship Competition: Congratulations to our Performing Arts Captain, guitarist Max Lenton who performed at the recent Chatswood/Roseville Rotary competition at the Zenith. Max performed superbly and received a cash prize as a runner up.  

Sydney Eisteddfod Competition at The Concourse: Our performances begin next week, and our Ensemble Directors have emailed parents directly with details. Parents are welcome to come and watch! 

Upcoming Performing Arts Dates:

• Cocurricular Drama Showcase - Week 5, Thursday 30 May, 5:30 pm – Sarto Centre, Intermediate and Senior Drama Ensembles. 
• Big Bands Bonanza Concert – Week 5, Friday 31 May, 5:00 pm – School Gym 
• Sydney Eisteddfod Competition at The Concourse:
  • Senior Jazz Ensemble – Thursday 6 June 2:30 pm
  • Intermediate Jazz Ensemble – Thursday 6 June 12:30 pm
  • Junior Jazz Ensemble – Tuesday 4 June 2:00 pm
  • Senior Concert Band – Thursday 6 June 9:00 am
  • Intermediate Concert Band – Wednesday 5 June 11:00 am
  • Junior Concert Band – Tuesday 4 June 11:00 am
  • Junior Chorale – Wednesday 12 June 9:30 am
• Elective Music students Years 9 – 12 – Sydney Symphony Orchestra excursion, ‘Music of John Williams’ - Opera House Thursday 13 June. Information to come home soon.
• Intermediate Concert Band Workshop - Saturday 23 June 10:00 am - 2:00 pm.  Lunch will be provided by our wonderful PAPA parents.

Mrs Annabel Westhoff - Leader of Learning, Performing Arts

Drama Matters

We hope you can join us for an evening of fun and entertainment this Thursday in the Sarto 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm. Students from Years 7-12 will perform scenes from the following plays: The Proper Mechanicals, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead and The Accidental Death of an Anarchist. We also have students from the Entertainment Ensemble organising the lights for this event and thanks to Mr Brendan Jones for his help in this area.

The Ensemble groups are as follows: Intermediate Years 7-8, Senior Years 9-12. Being part of an ensemble is an excellent opportunity for students to rehearse and perform with their peers. 

Students will stay at school and have been asked to bring a snack to eat before they perform. 

Year 12 Major Project Day #2

Last Friday Year 12 students had the opportunity to collaborate and devise their Group Project. This is an invaluable opportunity to make key decisions and improvise the script for this original 8–12-minute performance. Working for many hours allows the students to delve deeper into their learning. We will show this work to the school community at the start of next term. 

Upcoming Drama Events for Term 2:

• 25 June: Drama Elective Groups Years 11 & 12 will go to Sydney Theatre Company to watch Jane Harrison’s seminal play, Stolen about the Stolen Generations. (This event has been kindly paid for by PAPA). This play is on the HSC NESA list of plays for our students to study and we are thrilled for students to be able to see a professional production of this play.

Ms Penny Lindley - Leader of Learning, Drama