The Drama and Dance programme at St Mark’s School is developed from the IB Primary Years Programme and the New Zealand Curriculum. The programme is adapted to meet the needs of our students and the special character that makes St Mark’s unique.

Students at St Mark’s learn Drama and Dance from Preschool through to Year 8.  Inquiries, lessons and units of learning are focused around students responding to and creating Drama and Dance work as outlined in the IB Primary Years Programme.

Throughout the year many aspects of Drama and Dance are covered. This includes imaginative play, mime and performance-based work. Movement and Dance can stand alone or be integrated through physical theatre into Drama.

Trinity College Exams

A major component of the Performing Arts at St Mark’s School is our bi-annual entry to the Trinity College London Group Drama Examinations. These are the focus of a term and a half of learning every other year. Students take examinations in Acting and Speaking, Communication Skills, Musical Theatre and/or Performance Arts, or Young Performers Certificates, determined by their year group. This performance work explores the Unit of Inquiry: ‘How We Express Ourselves’. In this work, we explore characterization, and different modes of expression through acting, singing, dancing, movement and performance.

Student groups at St Mark’s regularly receive Distinctions in these group examinations. Most importantly, they enjoy working in a fun and collaborative learning environment.

St Mark’s Arts Festival

In 2018 we held our inaugural Arts Festival Week. The festival was launched alongside an artist in residence working with the students in the Art Class. There were performances from our school Dance group, Rock and Jazz bands.  We also hosted a variety of visiting performers and practitioners who entertained and ran workshops for the students. The week concluded with every class from Preschool to Year 8 presenting an item (which had been rehearsed in Drama classes that term) in a wonderful concert. This is now  a biennial event and will feature again in 2022.

School Productions

Every second year, the senior school stages a major production involving all students in Years 7 and 8. Our 2020 production of The Lion King Jr was a great success. In previous years our productions have included Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Shrek the Musical, Grease: Young Performers Edition and Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

Classroom teachers integrate the Arts into their classroom programmes that term to collaborate on these events.

Opportunities are integrated into the Drama and Dance programme to develop the IB Learner Profiles.  Our students become Inquirers, Knowledgeable, Thinkers, Communicators, Principled, Open-minded, Caring, Risk-takers, Balanced and Reflective.

Our performing arts programme is lead by Susan Hayworth, BTchg, Dip SD, RT.

Mrs Susan Hayworth

Director of Performing Arts

Drama and Dance Programme Overview:

Term 1 Term 2

Art’s Festival Year (even years) Trinity Term (odd years)

Term 3

Dance/Physical Theatre

Term 4
Year 1 Introducing Drama through imaginative play Trinity Drama: Young Performer’s Certificate (Bronze)

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song

Creative Dance Connecting with older students through traditional Pantomime
Year 2 Extending imaginative play Trinity Drama: Young Performer’s Certificate (Silver)

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song

Creative Dance Connecting with older students through traditional Pantomime
Year 3 Introducing mime and movement Trinity Drama: Initial, Pre-Grade

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song or dance

Musical Theatre

Choreography

Working with puppets
Year 4 Mime,  movement and building stories Trinity Drama: Devised Grade 1

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song or dance

Movement and dance Working with puppets
Year 5 Introduction to Performing Arts and how to take devised and scripted work and create performance. Trinity Drama: Devised Grade 2

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song or dance

Physical Theatre and movement Theatre involving Christmas stories particularly the Nativity for the Carol services
Year 6 Consolidating how to take devised and scripted work and create performance. Trinity Drama: Devised Grade 3

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song or dance

Physical Theatre and movement Theatre involving Christmas stories
Year 7 Musical Theatre Performance(even years)

Introduction to Shakespeare (odd years)

Trinity Drama: Scripts or Performance Arts Grade 4

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song or dance or Theatresports

Dance as a form of expression:

Contemporary

Connecting with younger students through traditional Pantomime
Year 8 Musical Theatre Performance(even years)

Introduction to Shakespeare (odd years)

Trinity Drama: Scripts or Performance Arts Grade 4

Art’s Festival: Poetic recitation/song or dance  or Theatresports

Dance as a form of expression:

Contemporary

Connecting with younger students through traditional Pantomime
This structure is subject to change and will always respond to the Programme of Inquiry that the students work with in class.