Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 1995

The Arts

Hanging in won .out for "Hanging On"!

New face for an old facility

complex, anOld Girls' Art Showwas held with work from extremely tal ented past students. The various works, including sketches, paintings and sculptures, were all of the high est quality. One of the paintings, ' 'Bathers" by past studentLisa Iselin, was purchased to hang in the foyer of the new sports complex. To commemorate the event, and as a token of the acclaimed artist, KalhleenSbillam,lbeScboolwaspre· senled wilb a bronze bilby from a series which had been on display in the show. The laborious bronzing process lakes a great degree of skill and the bigbly prized artwork bas taken its place of honour in Mrs Hancock's office. Theoldauditoriwnhasbeencom pletely remodelled and refurbished and has been used as art gaUery, drama venue and theatre dance re hearsal space wilb great versalilily and success. It will also provide a wonderful venue for the Inter·house choral competition and the grade twelve fashion parade and a range of functions in the years to come. Bachman, acclaimedAustralian and EngUsb opera singers. In lbe past, Alexie has been involved in the children's choir in "Joseph's Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat". This was great experi ence for her latest role in "Tosca". "After 'Tosca', I would like to keep going with opera. I'm always meeting people who interest me and influence me. Everyday is a new ex perience.'' Alexie has received many prestigwus awards for her singing. Last year shewon first prize inoneof the solo singing sections in the Queensland Eistedfford. In 1993 she won the vocal solo in the Brisbane Eistedfford. Alexie is already planning ahead. There are up and Coming auditions for the Queensland Opera Company. There are two more op portunities for children's choir per· formances. Alexie sbonld be a favourite for selection, with her previous ex periences. We'U keep our rmgers crossed.

John Rowell A group of three 15-year old Girls' Grnrnmarstudents without any fonnal training in video techniques had their own video drama, "Hang ing on", aired on SBS national tel evision on Friday March 24, during the Festival of Television for Aus tralian Children. Their fully detailed shooting script was the Queensland winner in anational competitionpro moted by the Australian Teachers of Media (ATOM), an organisation dedicated to help students fully un derstand the processes and agendas of all media. The students, Rosemary Henzell, Rebecca Nissan and Lisa Clarke, are enthusiastic members of the School's Cinebuffs club, run by English teacherKay Kimber andMe dia Co-ordinator John RoweU. Their humorous and heart warming script teUs the story of a teenage girl who learns the value of her non-traditional family when she sneaks out to a drunken party only to realise that her best friends were at home all along . "We wanted to show a dif ferent family structure and the possi bility of them all coming together to accept each other," Rosemary HenzeII said. "Our script shows the conflict, and then uses the events at a party as a reason for the family members to link together." The students' $1,000 prize went towards the production of their script, drawing on the enthusiastic support ofSchool parent and profes sional producer Peter Wiltshire and his technical crew, as well as fellow students and friends and even a teacher or two! Problems with locations , weather and personnel meanl sched ule changes and the students realised thehugeamountoftime required for production, from initial discussions through to post-production using the excellent facilities at Videolab. Even so, the students agreed the production was a valuable learn ing opportunity. Because of their enthusiasm and acquired technical skills, they have received offers of work experience with Wiltshire Pro ductions. Klrsty Dodsworth As an integral part of the cur riculum, Grammar students elect ing to study Speech and Drama as a year ten Board subject are re· quired to produce (as a class group) a 2S minute dramatic work based on an idea or theme. This work is for performance in front of parents, friends and peers at the end of the School year. Responsibility for the scripting, editing, costuming, lighting, set conslruction and ·actual production of the work is taken by all members of each class - a situation which encourages not only co-operation, but also creativity and initiative among the students. In orchestrating their particu lar performance, students are pre sented with the challenge ofputting the various skills learned over the two year period of the course into action, and of scripting and pro ducing a dynamic, fluent piece of work which makes an impact upon, and imparts a message to, the audi ence. Despite the stress oflen in volved in co-ordinat~n.g .l~r?e grou~ .

BonnleShaw For those who can remember, cast yom· mind back to a time of despair and suffering, an age of ar Oiction when your fellow students were forced into the dungeons of the school to pound earth into demonic shapes and to paint misshapen fig· ores under flickering Ouros. But fear not, try to overcome that compul sivesbudderingandwlpelhosefear· ful images from your mind, for the time has passed. Art students now reign supreme in the new art and auditorium complex. The renovated complex now boasts two stories of refurbished art classrooms, a gallery in which su· perb examples of student art is al ways on display and a spectacular auditorium which recentlyhosted the lnlerbouseDramaCompetition.The bright and airy rooms were, allhe end of last year, completely gulled and remodelled. The melamorpho· sis is amazing, as many Art students would be more than happy to relate. To celebrate the opening of the cently selected to slar-in the Lyric Opera's presentation of Puccini's "Tosca". As one of the youngest in the performance, Alexie has been fortunate to be given such an won derful opportunity. Alexie bas already been in· volved wilb the Queensland Youlb Choir as a dedicated member ror three years. Alexie has also joined the ConservatoriwnofMusic School Choir and is completing her first year wilb this group. In her solo role as a shepherd boy in "Tosca", Alexie received a mention in the principal cast list, her own dressing room, and a showering of flowers on the open Ing night. Alexie says, "Tosca was to· Ially fantastic. I worked alongside professionals in the buisness. I feel at home in the theatre." As a 'performer in "Tosca", Alexie starred alongside bolb Marilyn Richards and Edmund Claire Valkhoff AleJde Jell, year 9, was re·

Our own ·opera star

Prize winners receiving cheque from Dina Browne While all the student programs

international and Australian programs

going 10 air on March 24 during the Festival were of high quality, "Hang- ing on" was exceptional for its vivid, economical script and high production

and feature films .

Festival organiser, Dina

Browne,SevenNetwork'schildrens' programming director said, "View ing skills are part of all-round lit eracy fortoday's children. Applying those skills in video production is the

values.

The festival,the first truly in-

temational festival of television for children, provided a broad range of

next step."

Year Ten dramatics

productions such as these, the feed back from students and teachers alike is almost totally positive. Many students, in designing the lighting for the productions, gain practical experience in manipulat ing the types of lights and levels of lighting to create mood and enhance the scene. Similarly, students in volved with the music, sound and movement solve the problems of integrating these effects with dia logue and plot. Thus working through the inevitable setbacks in putting ideas into practice and the production and design problems of such an ambitious enterprise are described as "invaluable" by many students. During November 1994, six year ten Speech and Drama classes per formed in the Gehrmann Theatre works based on such varied themes as A Day in the Life of a Shopping Trolley, the colour Red and Facets of the Mind. The six individual productions incorporated a wide range of dra matic skills, such as freeze fram ing, shadowing, movement and im provisation, all of which had been acquired thrOugh the theoretical and

practical learning experiences ofthe course. As one student commented, "We advanced enough in the sub ject to be able to run and perform in a whole production by ourselves, and I think everyone should be proud of that. We couldn't have done anything so complex at the beginning of year nine." Any one involved can attest to the panic, elation, and despair that combine to create the electric atmosphere that essentially constitutes "open ing night jitters". But the benefits of staging such performances are numerous. The works provide a creative opportu nity for lhose interested in explor ing all aspects in the production of dramatic works. Parents are able to witness the achievements of their daughters over the two years, as are the students themselves, who, in effect, come to realise the extent of their progress in drama through the success of their own production. The year ten drama productions are exciting and worthwhile way to conclude two years of practical and theoretical study. Don't miss the 1995 season!