While the last week of term may have been a short one, there was plenty packed into it! On Monday night I had the privilege of going to watch our Lumenus pathway perform at the Oldham Coliseum as part of the theatre’s ‘Changing Places, Shifting Spaces’ series of performances (more details are available here). The energy and enthusiasm of the group were an inspiration, particularly given they had been rehearsing most of the day and had just come off a run of performances of ‘The Jungle Book’ in school the week before..
Mrs Chappell has more news of the work our Performing Arts pathway have been doing this year..
Well, it’s been an extremelyyyyyyyyy busy term for Lumenus with performances both to participate in and to watch, as well as completing accreditation and taking part in workshops. I’m sure the students and staff are enjoying a well deserved rest before the start of the Summer term.
Lumenus have prepared diligently for their starring roles in the Jungle Book, learning lines, dances and solo singing performances..
They have produced ideas and designs for both the set and costumes as part of their WJEC Entry Unit accreditation..
..as well as creating the beautiful flowers that formed part of the jungle canopy. The students performed back to back shows the week of the 19th March and really brought the jungle to life, their hard work and commitment to their roles was obvious to see and the audience loved it. Our Digit4ll students filmed one of the performances and are producing a DVD of the show – if you would like to order your own copy, please click here.
This year Lumenus students in both Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5 have taken part in the Oldham Coliseum devised performance project. In an earlier blog post I mentioned they had begun the creative process with a workshop led by Carly from Learning and Engagement. Carly came back this term to check up on how they were getting on and to suggest ways in which they could develop the piece they were creating. The students explored improvisation techniques and created dialogue to add into their performance..
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The students then went to the Oldham Coliseum to see a performance of ‘The Kitchen Sink’ and thoroughly enjoyed the humour and gritty quality of the drama. They were especially impressed with the actors’ ability to project in such a large theatre without microphones.
In addition, Company Chameleon came and delivered a workshop exploring the concept of ‘the boundary’ through contemporary dance. The students learnt a small piece of repertory and then had the opportunity to develop their own solo to be included in their performance. The students’ confidence was clear to see and even those who had not danced before were captivated and threw themselves into the class. We are excited to be looking at opportunities to work with Company Chameleon in the future..
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On Monday 26th March the students made their way to the Coliseum to take part in the dress rehearsal and then perform on stage to an excited audience of parents, students and staff from four schools as part of the Coliseum’s Secondary Education Partnership Scheme, ‘Changing Places, Shifting Spaces’. The experience was exhilarating and the students shone, showing their confidence, enthusiasm and professionalism. The Coliseum is becoming a very familiar place and they really enjoyed taking to the stage.
And finally …… next term! The Lumenus students have been selected to perform in the first ever Royal Exchange SEND devised project and they will begin creating a performance based on a theme in April ready to perform at the theatre in July representing the Oldham area. Within this project there will be opportunities for student training and staff CPD, as well as for two students to be involved in both producing and contributing to the whole project. Everyone is just a little excited about this and we feel very lucky to have been selected!!
Lumenus will also be touring this performance with an associated workshop during Culture Week on the 16th July – if you would like more information on this, please contact me via email to echappell@newbridgegroup.org or on 0161 883 2401.
Tuesday was this term’s popular coffee morning when we invited parents and family members into school and the Learning Centre for a relaxed opportunity to chat informally about how their children are doing. It was great to meet so many parents and hear your positive feedback..
Tuesday night saw four students from our Digit4ll IT pathway compete in the Oldham Young Enterprise Showcase and win the highly coveted ‘Company of the Year’ Award for their enterprise ‘UnITe’! This is a fantastic achievement and the result of their continuing hard work and dedication to running a successful business – you can read all about the evening here and watch the polished presentation they gave.
Finally, on Wednesday we held our ‘City of Tomorrow’ day alongside all our schools across the Trust. The event was a celebration of imagination and creativity with some amazing buildings and cities designed by our young people. Thank you for all the construction materials sent in – as you can see, they were put to good use..
Some of our young people also used ICT as a tool for exploring the possibilities of building virtual cities using a range of apps such as Sim City, City Island 3: Building Sim, City Mania – Town Building Game, City Island 3 – Building Sim and Designer City (if you would like to try your hand at home!).
Meanwhile our intrepid Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s groups braved the weather to successfully complete their first ever expedition in the Peak District, camping overnight – Mr Taylor has a report for us which we will bring you soon!
So, a thoroughly busy few days to round off a thoroughly busy term! We hope you enjoy the Easter break and look forward to seeing you all again in the Summer term,
Gavin and Dawn
For news on our Key Stage 5 pathway groups at Medtia Square please click here
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