Ensemble hosts The Smith Family
From Monday 18th July to Thursday 21st July, Kirribilli’s Ensemble Theatre hosted a new program in partnership with charity The Smith Family.
The program offered disadvantaged young people the opportunity to experience the full scope of the dramatic arts, as part of The Smith Family’s SmArts program.
SmArts connects high school children in Years 9 to 12 with art organisations to raise their educational aspirations in the creative arts.
It was a hugely successful and enjoyable week, where over four days students experienced numerous workshops covering acting, design, production elements, programming and behind the scenes rehearsals, all culminating in a live performance of Joanna Murray-Smith’s A DOLL’s HOUSE.
For most of the 24 students enrolled in the program, this was their first experience of live theatre and they absolutely loved it.
Highlights from the week included exploring character development and intention with Frankie Savige and Claudia Ware in the acting workshop; creating exciting and imaginative stories for the stage with playwright Sam O’Sullivan and director Damien Ryan; and observing director Darren Yap and the cast of Vanessa Bates’ play THE ONE in rehearsal.
The students are all looking forward to coming back to Ensemble to see THE ONE is onstage, with the theatre inspiring some truly die-hard theatre fans and youth ambassadors through this program.
One of the student participants, Serena, said:
“My favourite thing was watching actors, stage managers and production managers at work. I always thought actors just got on stage and performed their lines, but there is much more to it behind the scenes.”
Acting workshop presenters, Frankie Savige and Claudia Ware, said ‘watching the kids was wonderful’.
“Initially, many were shy, uncomfortable, and resistant, however, over two hours, almost all of the kids were willingly participating, developing friendships, and making bold, creative decisions,” they said.
“Some initially refused to participate in the activities, however, by the end of the session, we managed to coax them through an acting exercise on stage and had them laughing along with their peers.”