We're off to Wellington.

In preparation for the big event, a support crew was recruited, costumes were repaired, props found and gathered together, and the set remade out of materials able to be packed down to fit in a travel case and then reassembled in minutes using only gaffer tape and faith.

The cast regrouped. Unfortunately, Alyxys Kigis was unable to make the trip and the search began for her replacement. Dominique Pope joined the ensemble with only three weeks to go, but proved to be more than equal to the challenge, adding the benefit of her broad range of skills and ability. Rigorous rehearsals followed to ensure that all actors were well equipped for the challenging four days of training, performing and competition.

Thursday, 6 June dawned… actually, we didn’t know how it dawned in Christchurch, as we were at the airport and in the sky well before sunrise. But in Wellington, we landed a couple of hours before the airport was closed for the day due to wild southerly winds. This was to be a feature of the Queen’s Birthday weekend weather. Fortunately, our focus was to be inside The Michael Fowler Centre and the facilities of Wellington East Girls’ School.

Across the four days of the Festival, fifty four schools rehearsed in various locations (ours was the YHA hostel lounge, where a number of tourists dropped in to watch the entertainment) and performed on the expansive stage of the Michael Fowler Centre. Pack in and break down time was tight and, fortunately, our modified set, packed flat and transported by plane, went together as planned and when Middleton was called to the stage it created a striking visual canopy for our actors to perform under. Thank you, Mrs Macfarlane for the creative hours that went into making it and to Mr Macfarlane and Mrs McCormack who reconstructed it on site. Truly it was something worthy of - “Padua, wah hey!!” (Cast joke)

And then we were on. The performance was a testament to the talent, energy and creativity that had gone into its creation. The ensemble was disciplined, focused and funny. The audience got the jokes, loved the characters and gave exuberant feedback - laughter and applause. It was only 15 minutes on stage, so was it worth it? Absolutely. The performing was only a part of the experience. Watching and appreciating the work of other skilled performers, taking part in challenging workshops and growing into a dynamic supportive community was what the weekend was really all about.

And did we win? There were no winners at the Festival, but a number of performances were recognised for their excellence in a variety of areas by the festival judges. Sadly, we were not one of those. But on our return to Christchurch, an email, from a teacher from another school performing at the festival, was waiting for us:

… I wanted to say how much I enjoyed your students' performance from The Shrew (sic). I loved the Commedia dell'arte aspects and the lovely tableaux work upstage. I thought the humour you derived from the text was wonderful. The stairs were comedy gold! Your Petruchio (Keenan Aubrey) and Grumio (Yannik Turner) were classic ‘Black Adder’. It was an exceptional piece of ensemble work, not reflected in the assessors’ awards. But what was clear was the joy your young players had in performing! Congratulations.

A huge thank you to all our sponsors and supporters. Mr McCormack, Mrs Macfarlane, Mr Macfarlane, Mrs McCormack, Wilson’s Parking – thanks Mr Aubrey, Oxford Terrace Baptist Church and the parents of the very talented cast: Ezra Beach, Caitlin Prince, Phoebe Kerr, Luka Malthus, James Caughley, Keenan Aubrey, Yannik Turner and Dominique Pope.