From the Head of Music's Desk

House Performing Arts Competition

Thank you to all the students who participated in the House Performing Arts Competition on Thursday, 30 July. It was wonderful to see students use their God-given talents and gifts in the performing arts, taking to the stage to shine and giving our school community the opportunity to celebrate the unique talents of so many of our students.

Each set of House Captains worked hard to organise their House and put together a performance based around a chosen song, showcasing the talents of many of our students.

As well as our Secondary students, who put in so much hard work, we were delighted to have our Grade 6 students participate this year. They choreographed a song and did a fabulous job performing on the day.

We were also thrilled to welcome our fabulous guest adjudicator, Hailey J. Hailey is a past Christway student who is now working in the music industry, performing and recording music. It was wonderful to have her perform for our students and share her experience with them. Many students recognised Hailey from The Voice in 2025, and it was inspiring to see an example of what can be achieved in the performing arts beyond high school.

A huge thank you to Hailey for giving her time and sharing her talent to help make this event so special.

Congratulations to Zion for taking out the win on the day, followed closely by Carmel, Tabor and Bethel. Well done to all four Houses for their fantastic performances!

Alongside celebrating talent through events such as this, we also want to celebrate the students who work hard every day to develop their craft - whether that is singing, acting, playing an instrument or creating in the visual arts. Your dedication to your craft, including the many hours of practice and preparation, is seen and valued at Christway. We are so pleased to have opportunities such as this to celebrate and encourage you. Keep up the hard work, and continue using your God-given gifts to shine!

Silver Shield at the VSMF!

On Thursday 13 August, our Year 8 students travelled to Hawthorn Arts Centre to participate in the Victorian School Music Festival (VSMF).

VSMF brings together school bands, orchestras, jazz ensembles and choirs to perform in some of Victoria’s premier performing spaces. Participating in VSMF is a wonderful full-sensory experience for our young musicians. Students perform on stage as an ensemble, receive immediate feedback from a highly skilled adjudicator and have the opportunity to listen to other ensembles performing at a similar level.

I was so impressed by our group of Year 8 students this year, led by Mr John Oppy, as they performed some challenging pieces. It is truly impressive to see how much our students develop as musicians through their participation in the Year 7/8 Band Program. They were awarded a Silver Shield for their performance. (A Silver Shield at the VSMF recognises a very good standard of performance by a school music ensemble, assessed on tone, intonation, balance and expression.) Well done, students! 

I would encourage all students to consider continuing to play their instruments into Year 9 in 2027 and, where possible, investing in private lessons to further develop their skills and continue their journey of learning an instrument.

Well done to our Year 8 Junior Band on their performance, and all the best to our Senior Band, who will perform in the Intermediate Band section on Monday, 17 August. We look forward to cheering them on!

School Musical – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

A busy performance term will come to an exciting end with our school musical in Week 9. We are looking forward to seeing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory come to life on stage!

Our students have been rehearsing every week throughout the year in preparation for this big moment. Over the past few weeks, there has been a real buzz in rehearsals as students have started trying on their costumes and taking part in make-up trials in preparation for their performances.

We now have almost all of our props organised, and the sets are looking amazing! It is exciting to see all the different elements coming together and to watch the production take shape.

We can’t wait to see our talented students bring this much-loved story to life. It promises to be a fantastic celebration of their hard work, creativity and talent!

For the first time, Christway will have the opportunity to perform a school musical in a professional theatre, and we are incredibly excited to be using the wonderful facilities at the Shirley Burke Theatre.

Performing on a professional stage will provide our students with an authentic theatre experience and allow them to experience what it is like to be part of a professional production. We are looking forward to presenting five shows across the week and giving our students the opportunity to work alongside a professional team of technicians and experience the many elements that go into bringing a production to life.

Tickets are on sale now, and selling fast, please follow the link to purchase your tickets: https://tickets.kingstonarts.com.au/tiny/CHARLIE 

The performances are:  

• Wednesday 9 September: 7.00 pm
• Thursday 10 September: 11.00 am
• Thursday 10 September: 7.00 pm (please note: the Grade 6s will perform the opening number on this night – be mindful of the Grade 6s when purchasing Thursday night tickets).
• Friday 11 September: 7.00 pm

• Saturday 12 September: 11.00 am (Final performance)

   

Theatre Address: Shirley Burke Theatre, 64 Parkers Road, Parkdale VIC 

With only approximately 140 seats available for each performance, we encourage you to secure your 'golden tickets' early so you don’t miss out on the excitement of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory! If you need an accessibility ticket, you are required to contact the Box Office directly on 9556 4440.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Ruth Barry

Head of Music 

Upcoming Music Dates

Term 3

• VSMF – Senior Band: Monday 17 August (Week 6)

• Musical Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: 9 – 12 September (Week 9)

   

Term 4

• Spring Concert (Week 4): Date TBC
• Term 4 Instrumental Music Soirees: Dates TBC
• Presentation Assemblies: Monday 30 November (Week 9)
• Presentation Night: Friday 4 December (Week 9)