2023 School Magazine

DEBATING

Debating is a cornerstone of the Co-curricular Program for so many at BGGS. With nearly 300 students across the School participating each year and over 50 teams across Year 7 to Senior A, there is something for everyone in the Girls Grammar debating scene. The Brisbane Girls Debating Association (BGDA) and Queensland Debating Union (QDU) competitions each offer their own benefits and allow students to choose how they would like to participate in debating. With short-preparation and long preparation debates offering different challenges to surmount, everyone has the invaluable opportunity to compete with like minded individuals to develop their skills.

Our students' dedication and efforts truly show in the competition results, with four of our BGDA teams competing in the Grand Final where the Senior A and 8.5 teams took the title of first place for their respective divisions. Following their success, 13 of our 17 QDU teams progressed to the Finals Series, our 11.1, 10.2 and 8.2 teams making it all the way to the Semi-Final round. We are so proud of all debaters this year for their achievements and we're sure that BGGS debating will continue to thrive in years to come. This year saw the re-entry of six teams into the QUT Law Society Schools Mooting Competition where our Year 12 team won the Grand Final, an exciting outcome for everyone involved. We would like to extend a huge thank you to Debating Coordinator Ms Byrne, Debating Manager, Mr Cupitt, and Mooting Manager, Mrs Johnston, for their unwavering support of all competitions, teams, and participants throughout the year. Their dedication to debating is truly unmatched, and their encouragement does not go unnoticed—without them, none of our teams' achievements would be possible, and we are all truly grateful. Naomi Dooley (12E) and Sophia Kondos (12W) We safely concluded that AI will never take over our creativity— plus it’s way more fun (and funny) to devise with our own thinking! In Term 2, we recontextualised old fairytales into a new theme and context—borrowing from Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella, and Alice in Wonderland (just to name a few!). The performance was showcased to our family and fellow students on a night that can only be described as a rewarding and fantastic experience for all. With the responsibility on us in our groups to write the script, devise the action and create the set—we certainly felt ownership and a sense of pride after this performance! In Terms 3 and 4, we took on our greatest challenge yet by staging a play with all participants titled The Grimmuss . Directed by our Drama Studio tutors, Ms Folland, Bella and Kyla, and performing in the Gehrmann Theatre—it was an exciting experience being a part of a mainstage production! We hope you didn’t let your guard down on October 26 because the belligerent beast that appeared from the shadows to terrorise the village of Halycon came to town. The Grimmuss ruled the skies, controlled the rivers, and hid in the trees—but no one could ever seem to find this beast. With an emphasis on honouring young people’s voices, The Grimmuss left audiences wondering why we listen to wise old elders when the young amongst us can be just as wise. Visit the Drama Studio page on Minerva, under ‘Co-Curricular’, to see some images and videos of our drama-filled adventures. Charlotte Royle (7R) and Felicity Le (7B)

THE DRAMA STUDIO

Welcome to Drama Studio! This year, every Thursday afternoon, students from every year level have gathered to stage ideas and perform together. With a focus on strong acting and stagecraft, we honed our skills in the wonderful artform that is Drama! The room was always filled with friendliness and enthusiasm, but what did we do in this exciting club this year? In Term 1, we examined the controversial topic of Artificial Intelligence. Working as Dramatist-Scientists, we spent the term experimenting by asking the focus question, ‘Is AI more creative than human thinking?’ In a series of experiments, we pit ChatGPT and our creative students against each other to compete for the most creative, complex, coherent, and entertaining ideas.

108 | BRISBANE GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL 2023