Performing Arts News

Semester 2 has been filled with many concerts, soirees, masses and recitals.

The VCE Music and Theatre Studies students have especially been very busy preparing for their performances and now for their Written Exam. We wish them all the best.

Semester 2 events

Public Speaking Recital: Monday August 5th

Congratulations to Ms Tara Vagg who presented her students to very proud parents in The Loyola Centre. I was amazed at the talent and commented to the parents that there were certainly some potential college captains in the room.

Joined by their parents and siblings, the one hour flew by. What you saw on stage from these young speakers, in that short 3 minutes of stage time, reflected their efforts and dedication to hours of preparation, discussions and practice.

Vocal night: Wednesday August 14th

The MacKillop Theatre was filled on August 14th when our vocal students performed to parents and friends of the college.

The concert featured The College Choir, Iggy’s Pop Voices, duets and solos. Many thanks to our vocal teachers,

Mrs Tania Grant, Ms Phillipa McQuinn, Ms Kim Cooper and Ms Tara Vagg who prepared the students. Many thanks to Mr Wilding who accompanied many students on the night. Thank you to our Arts Captain Zach Jackson for compering the evening and a big thankyou to our Head of Voice, Mrs Tania Grant for organising this wonderful concert.

Ensemble showcase: Thursday August 22nd

On August 22nd, our very talented music students performed in the Ensemble Showcase. The evening was held in the new Mackillop Theatre and it was a huge success.

The concert featured all the college ensembles: The Senior Band, Junior Band, Honours Band, Stage Band, College Choir, Iggy’s Pop Voices and the Junior Rock Bands.

This year we introduced trophies for the first time to the Year 12 students who have given of their time and talents to an ensemble or more during their years at Saint Ignatius College. The generosity of these students doesn’t go unnoticed. Giving up lunchtimes, recesses and after school to rehearse is not always easy and for the Senior Band, arriving at school an hour early every Friday is admirable.

We also invited the VCE music contemporary bands to perform a unit 2 and 4 work each. These performances were good practice for their upcoming VCE Music exams.

I sincerely thank the directors of these bands, Mr Michael Wilding, Mr Matthew Jennings, Mrs Janice Wilding, Mr Tim Neal and Mrs Tania Grant for their wonderful work with our students.

I also wish to thank our dedicated instrumental music staff who prepared many of these students for the evening and to Michael Wilding, our Bands Coordinator, who assisted me greatly.

South Street Choral Competition: Friday September 6th

The College Choir, accompanied by Mrs Grant and myself (Mrs Pape) enjoyed a trip to Ballarat where the students performed 3 works to a very appreciative audience. Many schools from around the state performed in the annual South Street Competition. We didn’t win but from many reports, the students sang beautifully and were a credit to our College. Many thanks to Deputy Principal, Mr Paul Lewis, for coming along to Ballarat to support us.

Combined Choirs Concert: MacKillop Theatre: September 12th.

St Ignatius, Clonard, Sacred Heart, St Joseph’s, Iona and Christian College all came together in our MacKillop Theatre to showcase their choirs to a very appreciative audience.

It was a huge success and a great opportunity for our students to meet students from other colleges.

VCE Soiree-Terindah Estate : Thursday October 10th

The VCE Music students recently performed their unit 2 and unit 4 works to staff, parents and friends at Terindah Estate. We do thank the Terindah staff for their care and also for a very delicious meal; it was such a beautiful setting for the students. We shall certainly miss all our year 12 musicians and I sincerely hope that they continue to make music whatever road they take in the future.

Assembly: Farewell to Year 12-October 17th.

Saying farewell to our Year 12 students is not always easy but it is also exciting to think that they have the world ahead of them.

Our two talented Contemporary Year 12 bands entertained the college as they graced the stage for the last time.

Valete Mass: October 17th

The Choir, directed by Mrs Grant, sang many parts of the mass. The confident male and on keyboard. female voices blended beautifully as they were accompanied by Mr Jennings on guitar and myself -Mrs Pape.

Yr 12 Graduation: October 17th

During this ceremony, Year 12 vocalist, Rosie Whelan, sang one of her VCE works, “Killing Me Softly.“

Our College Vice Captain, Zoe Walter, also entertained the many parents, friends and staff with her rendition of “Black Velvet.” Accompanied on guitar by Mr Jennings, Rosie and Zoe certainly gave the audience a treat.

Piano & Strings Recital: October 29th

It has been wonderful to have a grand piano in our MacKillop Theatre. Last Tuesday evening was the perfect concert for our piano students to perform on such a beautiful instrument. Under the direction of Mrs Rebecca Cowled, the string ensemble played

“The four seasons” by Vivaldi. Congratulations also to Ben Anderson who played “Austrian Hymn”. Ben is working towards his Grade 4 Violin exam so we wish him well. It is fantastic to see this ensemble growing in numbers. The String Ensemble welcomes all string players in the college. They rehearse every Wednesday at recess.

Congratulations to our students and to their teachers- Mrs Sally Turner, Mr Adrian Montagnese, Mr Tony Musella and Mrs Rebecca Cowled. A very special thank you to Sally for being an excellent compere.

Zach Jackson-Geelong West Brass Band

Our Arts Captain, Zach Jackson, recently performed with the Geelong West Brass Band at their annual cabaret which was themed Pub Rock. Earlier in the year this band won state championships at the Hawthorn Arts Centre.

Zach is our College trombonist who is currently working towards Grade 8. We are so proud of Zach’s achievements and of his dedication to the Senior and Stage bands.

Kiarna Grieve-Sweethearts

Kiarna Grieve has just completed year 12 and has been a member of the Year 12 music class.

We congratulate her on her outstanding achievements in The Sweethearts.

The following is an excerpt from an email sent by the Director of The Sweethearts -Michael Fitzgerald.

Kiarna has been part of our Sweethearts community for 3 years now. As you’re probably aware her abilities on bass guitar are outstanding.

This year at our music camp, Kiarna was voted and awarded Band Captain by her peers. Our band captains are recognised not only for their musical leadership but also for the personal characteristics and values that band members consider necessary for their representative. Some of these qualities include being kind, knowledgeable, reliable, driven, supportive, committed and passionate.

In July, Sweethearts returned to Europe for our ninth international tour and our first tour in five years. The tour was a huge success and the band members had a fantastic experience. As well as the performances/collaborations, band members were able to draw inspiration from artist performances including Lenny Kravitz, Sting, Raye, Janelle Monae, Billy Vera, Andrew Strong (from the Commitments) and The Memphis Music Hall of Fame band.

Kiarna, as band captain, led one of the most successful Sweethearts Europe tours that we have ever undertaken (which is pretty incredible considering previous Sweethearts Europe tours have included members such as Annika Schmarsel (Alice Ivy), Bec Goring (Gordi), Jess Ellwood (Alex Lahey/Angie McMahon) and Janeva Burrill to name but a few). Kiarna has life long memories and experiences that many people would dream of.

Kiarna is part of an incredibly supportive group and their professionalism to meeting the expectations of touring/collaborating with other artists was exemplary. We are incredibly proud of her and the culture she has created and driven. Kiarna has represented the Sweethearts and St Ignatius extremely well.

Declan Parisi-CentreStage

The following has been written by College Choir member -Declan Parisi.

I was lucky enough to travel to London in August to attend the West End Stage school with local Geelong theatre company CenterStage. Only 20 students went from the Geelong area, so I felt very privileged to attend. While there for three weeks, we enjoyed sight-seeing, eating London food and watching multiple West End Shows including “Mrs Doubtfire”, “Sister Act” and “Hello Dolly”! The West End Stage School we attended had us singing, dancing and acting with London industry professionals, to then perform at the end of the week onstage at His Majesty’s Theatre.

Declan Parisi

Zoe Walter - Victorian 0pera Youth Chorus.

Zoe, our Deputy College Captain, has just completed Year 12 and we congratulate her on being chosen to join the Victorian 0pera Youth Chorus. Zoe has been a member of the College Choir since Year 7 and she has also performed at numerous events including starring in our College productions.

The following has been written by College Choir member -Zoe Walter.

This year I was lucky to be a part of the Victorian Opera Youth Chorus Ensemble (VOYCE). The VOYCE Youth Opera Program re-imagines the potential of opera and music theatre for young, aspiring singers through regular training and a range of performance opportunities. Run by music director Angus Grant, VOYCE provides regular training for secondary school and tertiary students focusing on dramatic works and singing, with heavy emphasis applied to the delivery of text and expression of dramatic intent and movement. I was fortunate to work with many incredible directors such as Stuart Maunder, Elizabeth Hill-Cooper and Kate Millett who have provided me with incredible insight and guidance into the professional industry. I was very grateful to perform in OPERABOX, which ran at the beautiful Melba Hall at Melbourne University, where I was able to expand my performance abilities in a diverse range of skills whilst working with a very talented ensemble and production team.

Zoe Walter

Private Instrumental Music & Public Speaking Lessons.

An Operoo letter will be sent very shortly in regards to re-enrolment for 2025.

It is very important for parents to please fill this out as timetables and teacher loads for 2025 are currently been prepared.

New students interested in private lessons for 2025 will need to fill out the enrolment form which will be also sent out in the next two weeks.

This busy year is not over yet and the Performing Arts students are still rehearsing for upcoming events. Please see below.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any queries re private lessons or performances.

Regards,

Linda Pape.

Coming Events

Leaders Assembly: MPC, 11.00am, November 8th

Years 9 & 10 Concert: MacKillop Theatre, 6.30pm, November 11th

Year 10 Theatre Studies Performance: Potato Shed, Periods 1 & 2, November 14th

Mosaic: 6pm (foyer display) 7pm start, Costa Hall, November 21st

Year 7 Showcase: MacKillop Theatre, 7pm, November 25th

Public Speaking Recital: MacKillop Theatre, 1.30pm, November 26th

Contemporary Bands Concert: MacKillop Theatre, 6.30pm, November 27th