Performing Arts
Wow what a mammoth term we have had so far and we are only halfway there! It has been so exciting to celebrate our students and watch their growth as they continue to strive for excellence in the Performing Arts. Dance, Drama and Music offer our students a wide range of skills that they can transfer to all of their other subject areas including: critical and creative thinking, communication, confidence and leadership skills. Essentially, Performing Arts teaches Life.
SHOWCASE
Congratulations to all of our performers who took to the stage in our annual Showcase! It was a night to celebrate the hard work of our Dance Drama and Music students. We also featured work from Japanese and Media and who could forget our amazing teacher performances! A massive shout out to the P&C for providing food and drinks on the night. Thank you to our friends at Ripley Central State School and Deebing Heights School for your fabulous performances. And one final thank you to our community for continuing to support our students in the Performing Arts.
DANCE
Dance Academy
Year 7 and 8 Dance Academy are currently working on their choreography task. This task is where students can get creative with their dance technique as they work with their group to come up with their own contemporary routine. Students are required to demonstrated the emotion of either love or hate through their complex contemporary phrases, the use of a prop, a relationship between the dancers and the incorporation of a motif.
7 Dance
Year 7 Dance Students have recently completed their performance task. Students gained confidence in their performance skills and took the stage with great technical and expressive skills! They have now started their final task for the year, choreography. Students will take on the challenge of creating their own dance performance as they "dance through the ages". They will apply their knowledge of the Elements of Dance and cleverly use choreographic devices as they work in groups to finish their master piece.
9 Dance
Year 9 Dance students have finished their performance task and are working on their musical theatre choreography task. The students have been given a musical medley to create their own routines to. From this task students are also developing and utilising their communication, organisation and collaboration skills.
10 Dance
After success with their performances at showcase the year 10 Dance students have powered on recently submitted their choreography task. Students were required to portray their chosen social issue in their piece. Most students were brave and opted to do this task as a solo! The creativity behind their ideas and communication of their social issue were both innovate and thought provoking. The year 10's are now moving onto their final task for the year. The students will be revising all of their knowledge of dance theory so that they can prepare to respond to an unseen dance works in exam conditions. This task is preparing students for Senior Dance in year 11 and 12.
11 Dance
Year 11 Dance have been working hard studying for their final exam for the year.
Students have been viewing Contemporary dance performances and interpreting and analysing them, applying their knowledge of dance concepts and skills to decipher meaning communicated by the dancers. For the last few weeks of term, students will move into year 12 content by learning a performance routine for their Internal Assessment #1. During this task, students will refine their technical and expressive skill sin a complex Contemporary dance performance.
DRAMA
8 Drama
Exploring the world of exaggeration, characterisation and story-telling, Year 8 Drama students have written their own Children's Theatre script based on children's stories or folktales. Shortly, their written creativity will come to life as the student-devised scripts are transformed into live productions. Including humour, slapstick and high-energy performance, the Drama team are hopeful that these performances may be showcased as Children's Theatre pieces for younger students.
9 Drama
This term, year 9 Drama will be delving into the fascinating world of Realism Theatre, a genre that aims to capture life as it is, exploring authentic human experiences and emotions. As part of our exploration of Realism Theatre, we have selected the play text "Juice" by Stephen Davis as a central piece of our curriculum.
This is a powerful play specifically aimed at teenagers. It delves into the various pressures and challenges that teenagers face as they navigate the final years of high school. "Juice" offers our students a unique opportunity to explore complex human emotions and experiences through theatre. It will assist in developing their acting skills, empathy, and understanding of the world around them. I am confident that our class will have a meaningful and enriching experience as we dive into this text.
11 Drama
Year 11 Drama students have been examining shared human experience and how this is presented in dramatic works to bring people together. With their final exam for the year early this term, students have been examining work by renowned Indigenous playwright and director, Wesley Enoch. Analysing performance and examining the underpinning meaning, students will be flexing their critical thinking skills in this final assessment that mirrors the external exam they will face in Year 12. To celebrate the end of exam block, Year 11 students visited Queensland Performing Arts Centre in Brisbane to see a modern adaptation of Frankenstein. Performed by the highly energetic Shake and Stir Theatre Company, the performance included visceral movement sequences, powerful acting and engaging sound and lighting design that leapt Mary Shelley's characters from the book to the stage.
MUSIC
7 Music
Year 7 students are continuing to work on developing their skills in Soundtrap and exploring ideas for their own compositions. Lately, students have worked on developing their skills in writing lyrics, as well as sampling and looping existing songs to create new tracks. Students are building their skills towards their assessment time, where they write their very own composition.
EXTRA CURRICULAR
Dance Squad
Dance Squad will finish off the year with a team breakfast on Wednesday Week 7! With a fabulous year coming to an end, the fabulous teachers take on the mission of cleaning costumes, planning new dances, cutting music and ordering new costumes all in preparation for 2024! We are signing off for the year and can't wait to see you all back for auditions Term 1 Week 2.
Cheer
Following The Arts’ Annual End of Year Showcase, Ripley Central’s Cheer Squad returned for a workshop with Ripley Valley State Secondary College Cheerleaders, The Raptors. The workshop kicked off with a whole group warmup before each team performed their Showcase routines. The excitement peaked when the athletes made their way down the dead mats: tumbling, flipping, rolling, and jumping. Finishing off the session, the athletes defied gravity, and their comfort zones, with some Level 1 stunting. The workshop successfully integrated the two schools, connecting our Ripley community. The Raptors hope to have Ripley Central return in 2024.
Drama Troupe
Our Drama Troupe has triumphed in their recent showcase performances. Showcasing their dedication and improvisational skills, they performed four Commedia dell'Arte pieces. Their success has paved the way for an exciting transition, as they turn their focus to realism acting and scripted works.
In their exploration of realism acting, the troupe will delve into more intricate character portrayals and explore the depths of human emotions. This shift promises a wider range of acting techniques and the opportunity to engage with deeper characters and emotions.
Vocal Ensemble
Amidst the purple blooms and festive spirit of the Goodna Jacaranda Festival, the RVSSC Vocal Ensemble stole the spotlight. This talented group recently secured the impressive Gold Award in the competition, showing great improvement from their highly commended award in term 1. We're truly fortunate to have this group of singers as part of our college community, and we couldn't be prouder of their achievements.
Participating in the Vocal Ensemble is beneficial for students as it helps develop musical skills, encourages teamwork and discipline, boosts confidence, fosters emotional expression, promotes cultural appreciation, enhances academic performance, improves social skills, nurtures creativity, sharpens memory and cognitive abilities, facilitates community involvement, opens up career opportunities, encourages cultural understanding, imparts valuable life skills, brings joy and well-being through the power of music.
Creative Generation
Earlier in the year, 9 our students participated in Creative Generations 2023: State Schools On Stage. On Saturday, 28th October, the spectacular production was aired on Network 10 for everyone to watch. The broadcast wase a 90-minute edited version of the production, and featured a number of our students in the limelight for dance and vocal.
Nominations for Creative Generations 2024 will open over the coming weeks, and we look forward to celebrating the 20th anniversary of Creative Generations with State Schools from all across Queensland. Stay tuned to our social media and school notices.
Jessica Starkey
Head of Department - Performing Arts
Head of Year 7E to 7H
