| Hunter School of the Performing Arts | |
|---|---|
|
Each of us is responsible for our own destiny
|
|
| Location | |
| Broadmeadow, New South Wales, Australia | |
| Information | |
| Type | State school, Performing arts, K–12, Day school |
| Established | 1923 |
| Principal | Richard Jennings |
| Enrolment | c. 1,160[1] |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Colour(s) | Jade, purple, black |
| Website | http://www.hspa.nsw.edu.au |
Hunter School of the Performing Arts (HSPA) is a public, co-educational, selective primary and secondary school which offers a comprehensive curriculum with a performing arts specialty, located at Broadmeadow, New South Wales.
Although the Hunter School of the Performing Arts has a specialised curriculum based around drama, music and dance, students perform well with academic tasks. In 2007, Hunter School of the Performing Arts was listed among the top 200 schools for the HSC in New South Wales. In the same year, a team of students competed at the National Science and Engineering Challenge in Toowoomba, Queensland, with the school ranked 13th in Australia for Scientific and Engineering.
Contents |
The school has undergone many name changes and changes of direction since its first day in July, 1923.
A notable moment in this schools recent history was the 2007 June floods which struck the Hunter Valley. The Hunter School of the Performing Arts was one of the most severely affected schools in the area. A copious amount of damage was afflicted on the school, where the entire bottom level was washed away, and the school's library was severely affected.
The original motto was Advance, which changed after the school became a boys school in 1932 to Faber est suae quisque fortunae. The motto was changed in 1999 to its English form, Each of us is responsible for our own destiny.[2]
The original colours of the school were those of the 35th Battalion ("Newcastle's Own Regiment") of World War I, green and brown. In later years it changed to green and white. In 1999, students were given a survey in a bid for them to choose their own school colours; the students decided to choose jade, purple and black. To keep a link with the Newcastle colours, the new logo (of the mask, dancer and bass clef) has been incorporated into a shield which also has a ribbon of brown and a ribbon of green.
Following the change in the school colours, a new school uniform was introduced in 2000, with options ranging from formal to casual, including performance and sporting wear. In 2001, the school's Marching Band uniform changed to reflect this as well, formerly being green and gold, as opposed to the school colours of green and brown.
The Drama Faculty of the Hunter School of Performing Arts is a long standing and successful one. Drama students of the school have appeared in OnStage (showcasing the best of HSC Drama group and individual performances) and the regional, state and national Shakespeare festival.
The Hunter School of the Performing Arts holds bi-annual musical productions. Past productions include Guys and Dolls (1999), Little Shop of Horrors (2001), Bye Bye Birdie (2003), The Pirates of Penzance (2006, postponed due to the construction of the school's new theatre complex), West Side Story (2008), and Les Miserables (school edition) (2011)
In 2007, year ten presented their production of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, adapted from the screenplay of the famous comedy film. Their school theatre also performed A Little Night Music.
In 2009, a production of Macbeth was performed in late October, by students in year nine and ten. Other student productions include The Man With Five Children, The Crucible and Rope.
The school is home to a number of musical ensembles. Two concert bands, a number of choirs, string orchestra, two stage bands, a marching show band and student based ensembles (trombone quartet, percussion ensemble, guitar ensemble, brass quartet, vocal groups, brass ensemble) are well known within the school and community and frequently perform at festivals, parades, ceremonies and competitions.