It’s Showtime!
At the end of term two we warmly invited whānua, kaiako and tauira to our Junior Arts showing in the school hall. This new event aimed to give our creative young people a chance to share their creative work with the school and wider community and to celebrate the work they have managed to achieve in this ever changing time!
Thanks to lots of behind the scenes preparation from many hard working kaiako, arts Leaders and year 12/13 PAT class the school hall was transformed for this sharing event. Special mention to Chloe Davison, Robert Pollock, Kayleigh Haworth and Daniel Barret for their many hours behind the scenes supporting this event and their performers.
These short works in development were presented by junior Dance, Drama, Music, Media, Ngā toi and Visual Arts. Each group contributed something really special to this event. The performers shared the space with the audience, watching and supporting the other acts. What a treat to be able to celebrated the learning and skills of our young artists. W.I.P works in progress showing! Let’s do this again.
This term the shows and presentations keep on coming! As usual, term three is a very busy time in the ARTS learning spaces. Check out below to see some of the exciting events and notices happening in each department.
Thanks to Arts leader Mattheus Elwood for the images in our banner.
Samantha Wood Rawnsley – Arts Coordinator
VISUAL ARTS
DANCE
Last term Dance students performed in two shows and learnt from amazing guest tutors (Hadleigh Pouesi – Street Dance – House and Locking, Sherrick Martin – Street Dance – Afro and Waaking and Otis Herring – African). A highlight was starting Matariki weekend with an evening trip to Māui by Freshman’s Crew at the packed out Aotea Centre.
The two student performances opportunities were YouDance Festival at Mangere Arts Centre, and a Junior Arts Showing in the WSCW Hall. YouDance Festival selected two excellent pieces of student choreography: Mairano Raukawa’s (Year 13) Stories of our Ancestors, and Hayley Cheung and Ada Li’s (Year 12)’s dance Splash. Our students loved meeting and performing with students from schools around Auckland.
Youdance photography thanks to Nina G Photography
In the Junior Arts Showing Year 10 Dance students shared the learning from their semester of dance. This committed, hard-working team performed four different dance styles – Jazz, African, Salsa and a Shakespearean Jig! This involved about 10 formation changes and different technique and expression for each dance. What a challenge!
A small group of brave and very creative year 9s stepped up for this opportunity to share. They worked both in class and out of class to develop their own Contemporary Hip Hop fusion piece which they performed beautifully on the day.
Junior showing photography thanks to Mattheus Elwood.
In Term 3 we have two important Dance Showcases:
Year 13 Choreography Showcase
Year 13 Dance students present their own NCEA / Scholarship choreography inspired by whakataukī or sayings
Monday 22 August 6pm
Tuesday 23 August 3.30pm and 6pm
The WSCW Senior Dance Showcase
Students from Years 11-13 present their NCEA work: Flamenco, Street Dance, African, their own excellent choreography, and more!!
Wednesday 7 September 3.30pm and 6.30pm
MUSIC
Live Performance excitement in the Music department!
It is wonderful to hear and see live performance underway again. Our practice rooms are fully booked and the department is buzzing. These four events are top of our current playlist.
WSC/NPoW choir yes, this is underway! Run by Ben Allen and Margaret Robertson we meet Thursdays after school in Puoro 3. If you or anyone you know is keen to join please email allenb@wsc.school.nz
On August 23rd we have a concert in the department by visiting group Ensemble6 who are members of the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra. This is part of an annual partnership with the Orchestra which we subscribe to each year.
Western Springs College Chamber Group is in great form this year and by the time you read this they will have performed as part of the KBB school Orchestra and Band Festival.
Trina Sellers has chosen, and arranged, challenging repertoire that features these talented students in turn, as soloists. Special mention must be made of Oliver Burton who is leading the group. Congratulations on your beautiful, musical playing to… Isabella Benson, Oliver Burton, Jaime Black, Ana Croucher, Maia D’Andrea, Veda Di Fulvio, Sara Jing, Lotta McNamara, Arthur O’Callahan, Charmagne Ocdao, Anya Skulic, Zylah Vivace.
800 bands from all over the country competed in this year’s Smokefreerockquest. 30 of these bands have been selected to compete in the National semi-finals and our very own This Machine Means Murder is one of them! Congratulations to Flynn Bowes, Callum Bowes, Toby Gracewood-Easther, Rufus Holmes and Gus Singleton Marsh.
The band now gets a professional filming/recording of a three song set which will be submitted for consideration to be one of the 10 bands in the National Finals.
DRAMA
“Generations to come will view this as the moment that the curse of ageing was removed and the world was able to look to tomorrow without the fear of a failing mind or body.”
This term kicked off with a bang, sparked by the Y12 Drama class production of Ageless by Ben Kuffuor.
In a not too distant future, Temples pharmaceutical corporation has quite literally changed the face of ageing. Their miracle drug keeps its users looking perpetually teenage. With an ever youthful population, how can society support those who are genuinely young? Commissioned by The National Theatre (UK) Ageless by Ben Kuffuor was part of an exciting array of new plays created specifically by young people for young people.
The students did a sterling job of navigating the various perils of winter ills, rehearsing and preparing in and out of class time to produce a vibrant and invigorating show. From here the senior Drama students will move into a devising assessment, poised to create their own work.
The year 11 students have completed a very successful run of “Macbeth the Comedy” The show was double cast and there were some outstanding performances, but most pleasing was the way the students worked together, supporting each other as an ensemble. Ensemble work is at the heart of all we do in drama. This was a highly technical show and an excellent training ground in the craft of theatre. “Macbeth the Comedy” was undoubtedly an ambitious production for students at year 11 and I commend them for their passion, enthusiasm and above all their humour! COVID times are tough for us all, but hopefully our students have learnt that whatever the adversity, we must rise above it, and make the most of what we have. It was our pleasure to bring a little laughter into your lives.
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