Children of the Black Skirt

By Nick Akhurst, Head of Co-curricular Drama, Dance and Technical Theatre

Children of the Black Skirt is a modern gothic fairy tale that tells the history of different groups of orphans from different periods of time.

The orphans try to make sense of their new lives under the stern gaze of their governess, The Black Skirt, and tell stories at night to help release the spirits of the orphans who came before them.

The production is performed by the Year 11 and 12 Curriculum Drama Class under the direction of Ms Sally Stenning. The students have been challenged to play a range of characters of different ages and in a variety of situations. In this ensemble performance every actor plays a vital part in the story.

The cast were supported by the Curriculum Technical Theatre class with the assistance of the technical crew, the media crew, Mr Tim Minehan’s vision skills and my stage advice.

This year we have experimented with performance styles and production techniques. We used digital mapping software in new ways to enhance the performance and also created a digital program using touch screens.

I encourage you to see this dynamic and technically challenging performance this week and support the students and staff in their risk taking and creation of new interpretations of Australian theatre.

Performances will take place this evening, tomorrow and Friday, 8 – 10 May, at 7.00 pm in the T.B. Millar Hall.

Get your tickets here.