MAITLAND All Saints College, St Peter's Campus (2012) - Catholic ...

Cultural Achievements
St Peter’s is a school that understands the importance of providing its students with various experiences and opportunities in the
Creative and Performing Arts. 2012 has been one of the most rewarding, exciting and challenging years to date.
Annual Events
St Peter’s Performs – This is truly an event where the entire school unites. A real sense of community is experienced, where over
200 students perform for parents, family and friends in St John’s Hall. Successful performers must first audition. This allows
students to understand the early process of becoming a performer. Other students are invited to perform within their class or
subject area, which provides a glimpse into everyday school lessons. Performance items include choirs, rock bands, Elective Music
ensembles, gymnastics, contemporary dance, drama skits and instrumental soloists. This year three Year 10’s certainly
entertained the audience as hosts for the entire evening. One element of St Peter’s Performs is that it always seems to be
improving each year. The decision was therefore made to change venues to accommodate such improvements. The Maitland
Town Hall and the hire of a professional sound engineer certainly increased the overall professionalism. The students’ personal
expectations and their intense work ethic in rehearsals are becoming more focussed and are of a higher standard. Students often
comment that it is a “privilege” to perform in this annual event and begin preparation months in advance.
St Peter’s Art Exhibition – the third annual art exhibition at St Peter’s has proven to be another success. Students from all years
have the opportunity to exhibit their art works in a professional showcase. Taking place in the third term of the year, students
develop an understanding of what is involved to organise and produce such an event. The exhibition was officially opened in the
upstairs area of the Marcellin Building. This new venue provided a more intimate and a more visually spectacular appearance truly
capturing the artistic talents of St Peter’s students. Various prizes were also awarded to individual students for their inspirational
artworks. This exhibition was then open to the school community for the duration of the week where friends and staff viewed works
during lunch and recess breaks.
DIO SOUNDS – This is a diocesan concert where all 11 secondary schools within the Maitland Newcastle Diocese come together
to showcase and promote the performing arts. Once again St Peter’s were praised for their creativity, skill and professionalism. An
ensemble of nearly 100 students represented St Peter’s on stage at the Civic Theatre. Three items were performed, presenting a
continual source of entertainment for the audience. Our all boys vocal ensemble “Mancellin” performed their stirring arrangement of
“Knights of Cydonia” by Muse. A piano solo connected the final performance by our Rock Eisteddfod Raw dance troupe and female
Vocal Group, and our Rock Ensemble singing “River Deep Mountain High”.
Rock Eisteddfod Raw – “The Diary of Jane”
Every year St. Peter’s takes part in a major production. This year St Peter’s entered a dance troupe into the well known “Rock
Eisteddfod Raw” competition open to all schools in NSW. Auditions and rehearsals began in Term 4, 2011. The cast and crew of
“The Diary of Jane” involved around 80 students from Years 7-10. Most rehearsals took place during lunch and recess breaks with
a weekly rehearsal during sport on Friday afternoons. The Diary of Jane was performed in the competition at the Sydney
Entertainment Centre and on another occasion at St Peter’s Performs. St Peter’s received 2 awards for their production:
“Achievement in Choreography” and “Excellence in Technical Assistant”. Every student displayed dedication and professionalism
whilst involved in this production and this was reflected in the high quality of the final product.
Our next major production will take place in 2013 and will follow in the footsteps of the Broadway Musical “Into the Woods JNR” by
Steven Sondheim. The production team will also look into the possibility of more public performances due to popular demand.
ASPIRE – a diocesan initiative to promote and provide expert skills to and experience for our elite performing arts students.
Students are encouraged to apply and St Peter’s saw 12 successful applicants take part in weekly workshops in Newcastle. A final
performance in August at “The Factory” Adamstown witnessed the skills and knowledge gained from the programme.
Excursions – various excursions are organised throughout the year, providing students with real life experiences and enhancing
their overall creative influence. Stage 5 Visual Art students travelled to Sydney to study the original works of Picasso. The
exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW “PICASSO- Masterpieces from the Musee National Picasso, Paris” was an opportunity that
only a few adults can say they have experienced. Students visited the Maitland Regional Art Gallery to view 3 separate exhibitions
- “Framing time, telling stories: the fascinating art of Michael Platt” an American photographer, “Tracey Moffat –
Fourth” an Australian photographer and “Cutting Through -The Art of Elisabetta Gut” an international artist specialising
in sculpture. “B’TUTTA”, a percussion ensemble from the Musica Viva In-Schools programme, performed for the entire
Year 7 body alongside elective music students from Stage 5. B’TUTTA performed live in our new theatrette with the
aim to inspire future musicians and develop a further appreciation for music as an artform. Concert pianist Tina Kim
performed an intimate recital late Term 3 for elective music students. This workshop allowed our students to witness
the skills of a fine musician performing repertoire from various 19 th Century composers.
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