Schools on Stage

Mount Scopus College 2010 production of The Outsiders.

 

Choosing a play for young actors is never easy. The challenge is to find a text that is powerful, relevant, contemporary and appropriate for young performers to tackle. When I read  the stage adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s famous novel, The Outsiders, I felt I had found a play that ticked all the appropriate boxes. It’s a coming of age story, about young people discovering themselves and their place in a complex world.

To Kill A Mockingbird

Scotch College Melbourne in conjunction with PLC Burwood chose, To Kill A Mockingbird as one of its Year 11 and 12 productions this year. Directed by Stephen Ritchie, the play utilised the resources of the McComas Theatre with its giant proscenium stage and large auditorium. This is an excellent adaptation of the novel by Harper Lee so often studied as a Middle school English text. This show is extremely accessible to audiences of all ages and can occupy a varied cast of about 20 or more.

Peter Pan

Ivanhoe Grammar School Plenty Campus Ivanhoe Grammar School Plenty Campus Primary students shone in two magnificent performances of Peter Pan on the 12 and 13 August at Plenty Ranges Arts & Convention Centre. The classic novel by J.M. Barrie with music and lyrics by Piers Chater-Robinson brought back childhood memories for many in the audience.

Jesus Christ Superstar

Emmaus College, Rockhampton, Queensland - July 17 – 19th 2009

Rent

Christ’s College and St Margaret’s College, Christchurch With their principals’ blessing, Christ’s College and St Margaret’s College, Christchurch rose to the challenge of staging the uplifting yet controversial musical Rent.

Smithy

Rose Bay High School, Hobart - November 12 and 13, 2009.

The Hypochondriac - PLC, Sydney.

Senior Drama students from PLC Sydney tackled Moliere’s biting comedy The Hypochondriac with flair and an acute sense of comic timing. The all female cast of twelve bonded closely over the ten-week rehearsal period.

Peter Pan - The British Musical

Assumption Catholic Primary School - Mandurah, W.A.

Zombie Prom - Grant High School (SA)

Sir Robert Helpmann Theatre September 24 – 26, 2009 Grant High School has a well-deserved reputation for producing high quality musicals, and rock musical Zombie Prom, the school’s 27th offering since 1976, was no exception.

Rockin Robin - James Nash High School Gympie Qld

Writer Judith Prior comments on the production. From the moment the curtains opened, Robin really Rocked! The up tempo rendition of the opening number Horror Movie set the pace as the enthusiasm and energy of the cast exploded over the edge of the stage and swept us all into the fantasy story. The High School Rock Eisteddfod team were accidentally swept back in time to medieval Sherwood Forest where Robin and Little John welcomed them with a "Thank God you're here!" and so it began.