Performing Arts
What a busy and exciting start to the school year we've had here in the Performing Arts. Our team has been working hard to deliver both curriculum and extra-curriular opportunties for our students at RVSSC. Let's take a look at what's been happening over Dance, Drama, Music and Instrumental Music!
Dance Academy
We have officially launched our Dance Academy class! This class is made up of students from years 7 and 8 who have trialled and auditioned to gain a place in our Dance Excellence Academy. This program focuses on the performance side of dance and will challenge the students technical skills. Our program is aligned with the Australian Curriculum for years 7 and 8 Dance meaning that we also study theory. Our Academy students have kicked off this year with a theory unit where they have been analysing and evaluating Dance. From the end of this week our students will move into prac and commence with some technique, flexibility and strength lessons before commencing their Jazz routine. This group will become their own representative team who will compete at local competitions. The students are also very excited to be receiving their Academy uniforms very soon!
7 Dance
Grade 7 Dance are coming to the conclusion of their theory unit. Students now have a wealth of knowledge on the elements and dance ready for their exam in which they will analyse and evaluate an unseen dance routine. From week 7 they will begin their practical unit with some very nervous but excited students ready to get moving! Some have been lucky enough to start with their performance task first and have been busy learning technical and expressive skills for their upcoming performance task! They have shown perseverance in the dance room to continue improving their performance, as well as building confidence to perform in front of their peers.
9 Dance
Year 9 Dance students have been studying the style of musical theatre! They have been learning a routine to "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" and have been doing an excellent job of applying their facial expressions to the routine to entertain the audience. Students will be assessed on this routine in week 8 when they perform in small groups for their classmates.
10 Dance
Year 10 Dance have been thoroughly enjoying their prac unit developing technical skills in the genre of Hip Hop. Students have learnt a teacher devised performance task and have been confidently performing in front of their peers using technical and expressive skills successfully to entertain. In the following week students will be finishing up this unit and moving towards completing their theory unit.
11 Dance
Year 11 Dance and Dance In Practice students have begun a deep dive into the history of Jazz dance and it's evolution over time. Students have explored iconic movements such as the 16th century Cakewalk, 18th century Vaudeville and more commonly known techniques such as the Charleston, Lindy Hop and Black Bottom from the Harlem Renaissance. Students are now learning a teacher devised performance task inspired by world renowned choreographer Bob Fosse. This stylistic routine includes the development of skills in alignment, flexibility and coordination, along with the refinement of expressive skills to entertain an audience.
8 Drama
This term year 8 students are exploring Australian Indigenous Theatre while developing their acting skills in vocal expression and physical manipulation in order to believably portray a role. Understanding the elements of drama and transforming this knowledge into a practical performance, assists students in their ability to create dramatic meaning while engaging an audience. Students are enjoying the play text 'Honey Spot' as it follows the story of two teenage students who strike up a friendship that is void of any judgement. It explores themes of racism and reconciliation, providing moments where students can connect to the characters experiences. Students are working towards a performance task which will showcase their acting skills and ability to engage an audience.
11 Drama
Year 11 Drama and Drama in Practice students have started this term delving into the true stories, real people and exact words of Verbatim Theatre. One highlight of our workshops involved students bringing in a childhood photo, sharing the story of that moment and then watching their peers create a short piece of Verbatim Theatre, bringing their story to life. The class demonstrated the creativity, empathy and problem-solving skills that Drama develops within this activity, just as they have with many other tasks they have engaged with during the term so far. With this term culminating in a production of a published Verbatim Theatre play, it will be amazing to see how their acting skills and creativity develop over the coming weeks!
7 Music
In 7A Music, students have been busy working on their analysis and evaluation of pop music. We have worked on this through a range of practical activities, including laying out the structure of a pop song, and organising our analysis in poster format. Students are enjoying learning about how to break down popular music in order to study it! In 7B Music, students have been eagerly learning how to play guitar and sing together, whilst also learning several popular songs. Students have learnt six chords, and have begun to form groups for their performances in the coming weeks. On Friday last week, a small group from the class shows amazing confidence by showcasing their learning through a short performance to a 8F Science - a massive thank you to Ms Constable and her class for being our amazing audience!
9 Music
Grade 9 students have been learning the visual and aural techniques of understanding music from score and audio. This will enhance the learning of music from grade 9 all the way through grade 12 allowing students to engage in music more holistically and provides a visual medium for analysis. Next week the grade 9 students will begin their practical unit and examining the influence digital technologies has on 21st Century performances.
11 Music
Year 11 music have now begun their first performance task! Students demonstrating how music can communicate ideas through the manipulation of the Music Elements. This task focuses on the student’s ability to learn music proficiently and communicate effectively with audiences. To help visualise this our grade 11s communicated ideas and concepts through the manipulation of building blocks to represent the elements of music.
Instrumental Music
Instrumental music is back in full swing with all ensembles receiving their first pieces and settling into routines. The difficulty and quantity of pieces are increasing each year and students have been enthusiastically practicing and rehearsing before school. Many of our beginners will be entering rehearsals in week 8 so please keep an eye on emails to see if your child may have some extra commitments. With the increase in repertoire and challenge all instrumental students will need to begin practicing at home within a regular schedule. Please continuing to support our developing musicians and their outstanding dedication.
Instrumental music is back in full swing with all ensembles receiving their first pieces and settling into routines. The difficulty and quantity of pieces are increasing each year and students have been enthusiastically practicing and rehearsing before school. Many of our beginners will be entering rehearsals in week 8 so please keep an eye on emails to see if your child may have some extra commitments. With the increase in repertoire and challenge all instrumental students will need to begin practicing at home within a regular schedule. Please continuing to support our developing musicians and their outstanding dedication.
This year our college is fortunate enough to welcome a new instrumental teacher Mr Johnstone. Mr Johnstone will be taking the colleges Drumline and percussion lessons on Tuesday mornings with his enthusiastic students.
Instrumental notices, rehearsal details, repertoire audio and timetable are all available to students via their SharePoint homepage.
EXTRA - CURRICULAR
We offer many extra-curricular groups in the Performing Arts, and want to extend a massive congratulations to those students who presented successful auditions, and made it into one of our representative teams across Dance, Drama and Music. For those students who may have an interested in the Performing Arts but aren't quite ready to trial for a team we will be offering fun "come and try" activities across the term at lunch times. Keep an eye on notices for these events.
Below is a copy of our extra-curricular training schedule.
Showcase
Please save the date! Friday October 13th 2023 for our annual Showcase event. We have moved the event early in the term this year so that we can align ourselves with our year 11 and 12 assessment schedule. More info to come.
Dance Squad
Junior and Senior Dance squad kick started the year off with an extension Saturday rehearsal, where both Squad teams started and completed one whole routine each! This was a mammoth effort from everyone involved, and we are so proud of the effort from all students at what was a very long day. We have since jumped straight into weekly rehearsals, with students deep diving into exciting new routines for the year. Junior Squad have been learning a new musical theatre and contemporary routine. Senior Squad have been learning a new Jazz and contemporary routine. We can't wait to see these routines completed and on the stage at our first eisteddfod for the year early next term.
Drama Troupe
Ripley Valley State Secondary College’s Drama Troupe is up and running for 2023 with gusto! It has been great to see the creativity and collaboration in our rehearsal room already and it looks as though we are gearing up for a fantastic year ahead. Students have started the term working on focus, stagecraft and ensemble skills before delving into the wild world of improvisation. Quick thinking, flexibility and collaboration are cornerstones of this style of Drama where students develop roles, relationships and situations in an instant. Ms O’Neill and Ms McLeod are enjoying getting to know the students in Drama Troupe and we can’t wait to see where their ingenuity takes us!
Vocal Ensemble
In week 3, students auditioned for the Ripley Valley State Secondary College Vocal Ensemble. The turn out for auditions was great and the talent was very strong. Ultimately, 20 students were selected for the group and In week 4 the ensemble had their first official rehearsal. They were sorted into their vocal range parts and given their two main group pieces for the year. This term, the group will focus on learning and perfecting these two pieces for future performances. Well done to all successful members of the 2023 RVSSC Vocal Ensemble!
Creative Generation
Creative Generations - State Schools Onstage (CGEN) gives students, teachers and school communities the opportunity to be involved in a professionally produced, award-winning arena spectacular. This year, we have 16 students participating across Dance, Musical Theatre, Featured Choir, and Backstage Crew, which is fantastic for our school. As our second year of participating in CGEN, it is very exciting to have a number of students involved, and we look forward to seeing the awesome performances in July.
Over the next few weeks, students will be auditioning for featured dance (very technical choreography) and massed dance routines, as well as Musical Theatre auditions for vocals and dance combined. These auditions are quite demanding, both physically and mentally, and generally go for 6-8 hours a day, so we wish them luck. As well as this, our two vocalist Keira Hikairo and Jorgia Osborne have been successful in their auditions for Featured Choir, which provides backing vocals for soloist singers and performers. Congratulations to them both. Once auditions are done, rehearsals begin in early Term 2, and continue on weekends until ‘Show Week’ in July.
Jessica Starkey
Head of Department - Performing Arts
Head of Year 7E to 7H