Spotlight on Drama
The Drama Department at St Andrews has had a monumental start to Term 2. The focus of this term so far has been external competitions and preparation for our Production later this year. However, Junior CAPA night is also on the horizon! Here is the breakdown of the term so far:
Production - Auditions
On Thursday of Week 2 St Andrews held their auditions for the acting roles in our 2024 production of Macbeth. The afternoon was one of nerves, comradery, last-minute rehearsals, and, above all, talent. With over forty students auditioning for roles within the play, the auditions carried over into the early evening.
The quality of the student auditions this year is far beyond that of what we have seen in previous, and our Drama Department has quite a few difficult choices ahead of us before the announcement of roles early next week.
We would like to congratulate the efforts of all who came to the auditions. Performing in a high-stakes environment is never an easy feat and takes courage. If you have missed the boat on auditions, but would still like to participate, there will be opportunities to engage with Design and Backstage work shortly.
Sport for Jove - Shakespeare Carnival
Shakespeare’s works are considered a ‘canon’ and are a staple for both English and Drama studies across the contemporary world. They have a timelessness to them that makes them invaluable for student growth. The Shakespeare Carnival is an opportunity for students to express this understanding through a range of creative mediums. This competition is run by Sport For Jove, a theatre company founded in Sydney, and has a range of different phases.
On Thursday Week 1 of Term 2, our students had the opportunity to perform and create in the school phase of the competition. The afternoon went wonderfully with a range of staff and students being present to support as an audience. However, only one group of students from each category could move on to the next stage of the competition.
A big congratulations to our winners. For the SmartPhone Film category: Emily Burchmore, Dharshini Mahesh, Saumya Punj, Lauren Renouf, and Helli Vyas. For the Group Devised category: Kaitlin Cragg, Crissabella Magayaga, Georgia Nash, and Annabel Zaroutski. For the Duologue category: Mackenzie Jones and Arya Sawhney.
A big thank you to Ms Rujicica who has been directing the action in her organisation of this Carnival. We look forward to seeing the talents of these students on display in the upcoming Regionals.
TSC - TheatreSports Schools Challenge
The TheatreSports Schools Challenge is an improvisational competition run by Impro Australia. It involves students being given a prompt and having to create a performance on the spot, with no preparation time. They do this several times throughout the evening and get assessed based on their performance. In the TSC, they are directly competing against a range of public, private, and systemic schools throughout all of NSW.
On the Monday and Tuesday of Term 2 Week 2, a group of Stage 5 and 6 students had the opportunity to perform in this competition. The opposition was intense, with scores of single digits deciding who would move on to the Finals in the upcoming weeks. A big thank you to Mr Kolek who acted as support and the bus driver for both evenings.
Our Seniors competed on Monday at Sydney Grammar School and were able to achieve a placement in the next round. This team, consisting of Joy Legge, Joycie Bacolod, Jenille Calingao, and Jeda Osorio, will be competing for a coveted position in the Grand Final which will be taking place at the Enmore.
Our Juniors, although putting on an amazing show, were just shy of placing during their venture to Tara School Parramatta. It was amazing to see the students develop their confidence and performance skills throughout the night. The team, consisting of Keanna Guerrero, Kaitlin Cragg, Annabel Zaroutski, Georgia Nash, and Janvi Dallakoti, demonstrated amazing potential and we look forward to seeing their talent develop in the future.
Improvisation is not just a fundamental skill for performance, but one that is incredibly important for success in life. The students who have participated in this event have not just proven themselves capable of some amazing performances, but also have developed a vital life-long skill. We look forward to seeing the next endeavour in Theatre Sports.
Director and Drama Teacher
Mr Lewandowski