To be not to be

House competitions such as choral, debating, and drama attracted enthusiastic participation rates according to School magazine and annual reports.

1971 Miss Doreen Thomas, soon to become Mrs Yeates, on her wedding day.

The 1970s proved to be a tumultuous decade of fashion extremes (where School skirts rose to “minis”); the School magazines were predominately designed by the students seeking a strident voice; and student leadership underwent a dramatic shift where traditional forms of authority were discarded. In 1974, the House system was a casualty of the upheaval and replaced with the more individualistic Form system. This meant the age-old problem of fewer numbers for intramural competition presented itself and offerings were reduced. This reduction seems to have extended to the Interhouse Play Competition as there are no engraved results on the Yeates trophy from 1973 to 1986. In 1980, the House system was reintroduced, and a more traditional range of competitions returned. With a thirteen-year hiatus, the drama competition was revived in 1986 under Principal, Mrs Judith Hancock, and Drama teacher, Miss Suzanne Burrows. In her 1986 Annual Report, Mrs Hancock wrote about her vision for the House system as going beyond the sporting field to encourage girls to work as a team and “to provide opportunities for experience in a wide diversity of activities”. The 1986 winner was Hirschfield House with a play entitled “Maasi”, written and directed by Year 12 student, Josephine Clift (1986). Apparently, the standard was high with a range of styles from melodrama to serious plays and included students from all year levels. By 1987, it was stated in the Annual Report that the competition was so popular that over half the school’s population was involved.