Our mission is to foster in our students a love and appreciation of performing arts through direct experience. In turn, students will foster a love and appreciation of themselves and others.
Performing Arts at Grammar provides students with an opportunity to explore different aspects of themselves, to learn how to work with others to achieve a larger goal, to overcome personal obstacles and confront the fear of the unknown, to expand their compassion and conviction, and to make their dreams real. Excellence is encouraged in all endeavours.
In the Prep and Middle School, all students take art and music classes and are involved in co-curricular drama productions. In the Senior School, S1 students may take a Drama course and all have an opportunity to participate in the annual musical production.
The beanstalk is gone, the giants have left, and the woods are now silent, but Into the Woods continues to live on in the hearts and minds of the participants and, by all reports, of the audience too. Into the Woods brought together some of the best talent at the school, and revealed some hitherto unknown talents as well.
Much Ado About Nothing was performed with resounding success on April 24, 25, and 26 in the Meinertzhagen Theatre. The actors brought a high level of professionalism and youthful energy to the stage. Some audience members commented that the story was brought alive for them more in this production than in professional productions of Shakespeare they had seen in the past. The brilliant acting of the students was complimented with bright and sunny Italian scenery created by the art department, beautiful costumes painstakingly made by a crew of parents from the finest cloth, and lively piano and orchestral music to usher in each scene. If you missed this year's show, be sure to catch next year's production, to be announced in September.
The Prep School performed the Mad Adventures of Mr Toad in March 2008. The incorrigible Mr. Toad, who was Born to be Wild, wreaked havoc on the roadways of the Wild Wood. His animal friends gave him wise council, while the mischievous weasels tried to take over Toad Hall banging their sticks to “It’s a Good Life Boys”. From the disgruntled neighbours, to the rap singing housekeeper and the high browed gentry, all of the characters delighted their audience and made their directors very proud. The long standing tradition of including Prep One always brings a certain magic to the Prep Four musicals and this year was no exception. All thirty Prep Ones were adorable and convincing as they danced and acted out their roles of the cunning weasels and rabbits who pronounced Toad guilty from the jury box.