WOLVERHAMPTON
AUTUMN 2024
CLASSES START 31ST AUGUST!
Get ready for a whirlwind of FUN over the next 12 months! We have 2 West End shows, our annual Film Festival, and a playful poppets show coming your way this term. Plus, as we hit nearly 20 years of unleashing the performing arts potential of our incredible students, we're sprucing up PQA's look and feel. Flip through the pages to discover all the fabulous plans we have in store for you. And for our adorable Poppets, weekly Poppets-only emails will be making a grand return on Tuesdays. Keep an eye out for the first one after the first week of term.
NEW MOBILE FRIENDLY FORMAT ACADEMIC YEAR 2024-5
It looks like the overwhelming majority of you read this newsletter on your mobile phones, based on feedback from many parents at the close of last term. To help facilitate this need, I've changed the format to be more compatible with mobile screens. Please be patient as I work to perfect this change as it will take some time to determine which information and pages are most appropriate. Hopefully, these changes will be beneficial.
We are proud to tell you that Jess has been promoted to a management role at her school.... Unfortunately for PQA this means that Jess will be moving on after the west end is complete for the afternoon academy... we congratulate her and wish her well for the future... We will be announcing her replacement in a week or so.
Also be moving on is Poppets teacher Sophia as she enters the 3rd year of her degree. She leaves with our warm wishes for what we know will be a successful future in her chosen sphere of work.
And the Oscar goes to... tada! Shannon, our fabulous assistant at Poppets! will be taking over as teacher... Shannon has been rocking it as Poppets' assistant for over a year now and let us tell you, not only do the little ones adore her, but she's also a total rockstar at leading the class. Prepare for an unforgettable year of learning and laughter with this amazing leader!
NEWS! In the last few days Shannon has broken her arm but she will still be with us on Saturday!
SCRIPTS ETC
The RESOURSES folder has been renamed
DOWNLOADS
It is in the same place and has the same contents so if you have it bookmarked then it should still work for you.
Material is available in colour groups and also there are some themed folders too, a link is on the last page of this newsletter (it will always be included there).
I will try to link individual documents where mentioned.
IMPORTANT DATES 2025 DATES
KNOWN DATES FOR 2025 SO FAR
JAN 4TH - SPRING TERM BEGINS
APR 4TH - SPRING TERM ENDS
APR 26TH - SUMMER TERM BEGINS
MAY 11TH - AM WEST END
JUL 26TH - SUMMER TERM ENDS
MID-TERM BREAKS - TBC
WEST END SEASON
Get ready to be dazzled, folks! Our West End extravaganza is back, and our sensational students are ready to steal the show!
Kicking off the festivities on September 29th, our afternoon academy will set the stage ablaze. Then, brace yourself for a time-bending twist—our morning academy will transport you to an unforgettable night in May 2025.
And here's the icing on the cake: this year's production is a mesmerizing adventure through three extraordinary worlds. Our very own academies will embark on quests in Shallowlands, a vibrant realm where happiness is as elusive as a rainbow's end. Are our heroes truly content, or is there something sinister lurking beneath the surface?
There is so much to say about these that it is impossible to fit into the weekly news so look out for West End specific newsletters where they are relevant to you.
THIS WEEK
Our afternoon performers will be hitting the stage very soon!!! Attendance is vital! All shows come together massively in the last few weeks and this will be no different! There is still much to do!
MUSICAL THEATRE
Calling all musical theater fanatics! Dive into the dazzling world of your favorite musicals with this epic series of mini-projects. We'll dig deep into the context and backstory of these beloved shows, and then belt out a piece of one of the iconic songs to truly experience the magic. Get ready to unleash your inner star and explore the vibrant tapestry of musical theatre!
Inevitably our West End production is going to be central to a lot of MT this year, first with our afternoon group leading the way and then the morning group into early 2025. As we go through the year there will be more exciting projects to look forward to to build on the skills gained preparing for and performing in the West End. I will be liaising with the new Musical Theatre teacher after he/she has had an opportunity to work with the students to ascertain what skills need to be worked on.
FILM & TV
Kicking off 2024/5 in Film and TV is the return of an old favourite. Over the coming weeks our AM academy students will be shooting an all academy Spooktacular film for our national film compatition. We were runner up in this last year so the challenge is there to take the next step and win! The competition involves us receiving certain elements such as props, costume and dialogue that we MUST include in a film and then we have just 5 weeks to create, shoot edit and submit!
Each week the students will face a new challenge, it could be to make an advert, a music video to a set song or a technical challenge. All are designed to be primarily fun but offering the students new or refreshed skills along the way.
COMEDY & DRAMA
Building on the work begun by AM reds last term the students will continue to create their own Shakespeare plays. They have split into 2 groups with one working on Macbeth and the other on Much Ado... We have seen some fabulously creative and fun ideas already and cannot wait to expnd on these and begin putting the shows 'on their feet'.
BLUE: With a view to building on the work of the last few terms, we’ll be exploring scene work and the importance of making confident acting choices to make our scenes more compelling. Ultimately, this will build towards blue group workshopping and presenting pieces of modern text, written for young people.
GREEN: This term we’ll be taking green group on a fun journey through the fundamentals of the acting discipline. Together, we’ll focus on voice, movement and storytelling, as well as exploring improvisation skills to build our confidence devising theatre together.
POPPETS
Shannon will be taking over Poppets permanently from the start of term. We know that the Poppets love her and she will be bringing loads of new ideas to Poppets over the coming months!
This term project will be planning, rehearsing and performing Mary and the Poppets! This will be a hugely fun project allowing the Poppets to stretch and learn lots of new skills!
TUESDAY EMAIL
After chats with Shannon we have decided to bring back the Tuesday Poppets Email... Most things you need to know will be in this new weekly format - BUT please also check the main newslertter too, things change as the week goes on and so we may need to pop the odd message in here. Also as poppets approach 6yrs old then knowing what is going on in the main academy is useful.
OUR MAGICAL TEAM
Calling all wizards and witches! The town of Bridgnorth transformed into a magical wonderland this summer to celebrate the birthday of the boy who lived – Harry Potter (and coincidentally Jake's too!). PQA were invited to join the enchanting festivities, offering spell-binding workshops for eager young sorcerers.
Poppets' very own spellmaster, Shannon, was joined by the dashing George in leading these magical workshops, with Jake and Amber on hand to keep the crowds under control and ensure everything ran smoother than a freshly polished broomstick. Despite the scorching summer heat, the event was a resounding success, with a spellbinding turnout throughout the day.
BBC Midlands Today even graced us with their presence, capturing Shannon and George's enchanting performance on camera with one of the spellbound groups! A colossal congratulations to the team for conjuring up such a magical event!
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