21 June 2019
On Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 June our Year 6 girls treated audiences to four entertaining performances of Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes in the TM Hall.
This version of Revolting Rhymes, adapted by Drama teacher, Ms Christine Best, takes place on a recycle tip. In an homage to Cats, the musical, the storytellers are rats who share dark tales with their younger siblings. The girls performed stories from Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Three Little Pigs, Cinderella and even included a clever rap sequence.
“The process of building this performance of Revolting Rhymes was a joyful series of investigations into physical theatre, rapping, dance puppetry, poetry and comedy within Year 6 Drama classes. The students have been at the centre of this process and have been inventive, playful and at times voiced the most sensible ideas in the room,” explained Ms Best.\
The Year 6 girls thoroughly enjoyed the experience and embodied their roles with great enthusiasm. Below are some thoughts from the girls:
“I loved that we were part of a team, all working towards a common goal. Putting the play together was extremely rewarding.” Mia Stoneman (Jack’s Mother)
“We began rehearsals in Term One and it’s been great fun. I really enjoyed learning my lines.” Evie Gray (The King and a Rapper)
“I loved performing alongside my friends – it was something we could all do together and we had each other’s backs during the times that we were nervous or needed some support.” Jessica Clark (Piggy 3 and a Rapper)
“The rehearsals were a lot of fun and we learnt so much along the way. If something went wrong or wasn’t what we expected, we had our friends there to laugh about it with.” Zoe Pitt (Bank Manager & Narrator)
“Performing was something I really enjoyed, especially being able to come up with scene ideas and choreography. We were able to share opinions on what worked and what didn’t.” Isis Young (Piggy, Rapper, Dwarf and Servant)
“One of the things I enjoyed most was performing in front of an audience alongside my friends. I was definitely nervous, but the more we performed the more confident I became.” Eliza Stoksik (Wolf, Dwarf and a Gate)
In the final weeks of rehearsal, the two classes came together and formed an effective performance ensemble. Theatre events, such as this one, involve a company of resourceful people. A huge congratulations goes to the students for their outstanding dedication to their roles and to Drama teacher, Ms Best, for her leadership, creativity and encouragement of the girls.
A thank you also goes to the professional creatives, Brendon Veronese and Melissa King, for their artistic input and also their excellent mentoring of the students. Bryony Geeves for the puppets, Angela Barnard for the moves, Max Best & Max Bladell for ‘the swagger’ and Gus Powers for a practical design. Thank you to the Maintenance team for their clever ideas and for building the set and Teresa O’Leary and the sewing mothers for the costumes. Finally, at the centre of this creative flow are the resilient, flexible and skilful classroom teachers Mrs Heather and Mrs Lumsden-Steel. Congratulations to everyone involved!
