SET DESIGN BASED ON A 3D TRIVIAL PURSUIT BOARD

1992 Rock n Roll Eisteddfod - School Magazine Article

Seaview High School is "Here to go"

Late in 1991, preparations for the 1992 Rock n Roll Eisteddfod were already underway. Moves for choosing a song and theme were happening and many decisions were being made. Student Committees were arranged so that students could put in their own ideas and opinions for the Eisteddfod.

The first major problem was that one hundred and seventy students had put their names down to participate in the Rock n Roll Eisteddfod and there were only sixty to sixty five places available. This problem was solved by means of auditions. Three sets of auditions were held and this confirmed the sixty five places and the reserve list.

Once the music, theme, props, set and characters were decided on, the task of putting together a visual impact began. Dance and Drama workshops were conducted by Mr. Weatherly and Mr. McVicar. These workshops helped performers to relax and perform to the best of their ability.

Choreography of the piece began and rehearsals became extremely important to attend and to take seriously. The choreography was done by the cast, Mr. Weatherly, Mr. McVicar and Melissa Jan directing to produce the best moves possible.

During rehearsals we all got to know each other and made many new friends which I think was important because we all had to work as a team and  produce an Eisteddfod.

As rehearsals proceeded, costumes, props and the set became finished. It was not long before we could do a full dress rehearsal run. After many dress rehearsals we finally had a show that we could perform. Our first chance to show our piece was at Noarlunga Theatre as a show case with other schools. We performed one night there and received lot of positive feedback which increased our chances and confidence level.

We were now practising harder than ever. We had a great performance, but we wanted to make it better. We brought in new ideas and erased some old ideas that didn't work.

The main performance that we had been working towards for so long was now here - The Heat at the Festival Theatre. Our night was on the 23rd July Heat 5, Act 3.

This is where all your hard work and effort begins to pay off. The feelings you have before you go on stage are something that can not be expressed. Everyone feels so hyperactive and confident but then again there are also feelings of nervousness and absolute terror. The group feeling at this time is unbelievable. Everyone is hugging everyone else and wishing each other luck. The atmosphere is so friendly that other schools write "Good luck"
notes and pin them to your change room door.

Before we went on to perform the performance that really counted we all sat together and went through the dance in our head. Mr. Weatherly and Mr. McVicar talked to us and wished us luck.

Once you're on stage and the curtains open you are no longer yourself, but the character you are while on stage. The seven minutes of performance goes extremely quickly and before you know it you're back in your change
rooms. By now, most People's emotions are being expressed in tears. You feel so good that you want to cry forever. Everyone's support and happiness is so strong that you feel so good about yourself and what you have just done you never want to stop crying.'

Then the time finally came. Were we shortlisted or not? Four schools were shortlisted on this night. When Seaview High School was announced we all went totally crazy. Tears of happiness again became ways of expressing feelings. The rest of this night was devoted to being with the cast and just feeling so relieved and happy.

A few days later, after the judges had a chance to watch videos of each shortlisted school, the twelve finalists were announced on SAFM. We had organised to all meet at school and be either ecstatic or extremely miserable together.

Again I went through terror of waiting for Seaview High to be called out and sure enough it was, I can't write in words how I felt now because I was so happy there aren't words to express it. Hugs were being given and received again. That morning we had pancakes. and "brekky" together and we were all looking forward to performing at the Entertainment Centre.

We still rehearsed our piece to make it everything that it possibly could be. We had a rehearsal at the Entertainment Centre on the day and this was extremely helpful because our lights, staging and music could be all set up. The group feeling on the bus was fantastic.

The night was actually here. We all met at Dover and went to the Entertainment Centre together. We arrived and began to get ready because we were the first act. We took about 2 hours. Everyone by this time was their usual nervous, excited self and again we received a talk from the teachers. This helped us because it calmed us down and prepared us for the performance in front of ten thousand people. Walking to the stage door was extremely scary, because behind the door were ten thousand people.

Before we knew it, we were in position on stage and Sean Murphy from SAFM was announcing us. The curtain went back and all of a sudden I was a cheer leader. I raised my head from my starting position only to be looked at by ten thousand pairs of eyes. Once I began performing I never wanted it to end because it felt so good to be performing something that was an incredible show.

When we had finished and the curtain was closing I felt as though this was the best moment in my life. The audience was going crazy and I felt relieved because I had done my best when it really counted. I'm sure that many other students felt this too.

Being a part of the Rock n Roll Eisteddfod when you have made finals is something that I will always remember. You get so much out of the end result that you don't care about all the hours that you spend on rehearsing.

Congratulations from other schools welcomed us as we returned to our change room. Mr. Weatherly and Mr. MeVicar told us it was the best performance we had ever done.

Rowena Woodley.
 

CAST AND CREW