THE HARROVIAN Student Newspaper Issue 2
Leadership for a better world
Something Wicked* This Way Comes *Wickedly good, that is by Madeleine Duperouzel (Y12, Brooking)
“Is this a dagger which I see before me The handle toward my hand?” It is to these infamous lines that Macbeth’s grasping hand reaches out towards the audience. His gaze is fixating; many audience members turn around to see if there really is a dagger, perhaps floating behind their seats. For a moment, the audience is suspended in disbelief, almost at one with Macbeth, his chilling intensity silencing the room. The spell breaks as Macbeth tries to grab the dagger, only to swipe his hand through thin air. The audience heaves a collective breath. Rohaan Vaswani (Y10, Cale), actor of the titular role, is excellent throughout. It is at this point that the audience sees the beginning of Macbeth’s descent into madness, driven by a desire for success and glory. Macbeth’s intense spiral into insanity is arguably the most interesting part of the play – it raises questions about fate and destiny: did Macbeth truly have control over his actions, or was he driven to do it by a pre-ordained fate? No one yet has the answers, perhaps Shakespeare intended the audience to forever ponder over this conundrum; however Rohaan Vaswani does a wonderful job of showcasing the degeneration of Macbeth’s character – from the initial hallucination, to the paranoia following the murder of the good King Duncan, to the enraged and jealous killings of friends, and their family, and suspected foes alike. The dark and brooding character is brought off the page and onto the stage with a force and vigour seen usually in Globe Theatre Productions, not school performances.
January 2015
The wicked and sinful character is supplemented by a cast of talented young actors – while watching, one almost forgets that the majority of the cast are in Years 9 and 10. Cisy Ye, playing the leading lady, Lady Macbeth, is the perfect accompaniment to Vaswani’s King of Scotland. She plays the part with such conviction that the audience believes she actually wants to be Queen of Scotland. Her ambition and malice is so clearly highlighted, each line laced with equal mixes of hysteria and fury, that the audience trembles to hear her scream and yell. She perfectly embodies the domineering and ambitious queen. Her own descent into madness is chilling and lines so often rushed over – “Out, damned spot! Out I say!” – suddenly take on a new weight and tone, as they ring through the auditorium. All the while, three figures in white dresses dance across the stage, controlling actions of the characters, initiating freeze frames, and generally acting as focal points for the audience during the performance. These are the witches, and this particular interpretation follows a route not often followed – instead of hideous and deformed hags, the witches are angel-like creatures, showing their malicious intent instead through their words and actions. With a committed cast, an excellent and knowledgeable crew, and some brilliant directing, the play was the school’s first Shakespeare success. Carefully constructed scenes charted the leading character’s descent into insanity, while supporting actors and actresses highlighted the evil of Macbeth and brought new life and light into characters sometimes overlooked. Well done to everyone who brought the show to life!
24 Hour Charity Run by Jonathan Billow (Y12, Nightingale)
On the 15th and 16th November, seventeen brave members of Harrow International School proudly took part in a non-stop, round-the-clock and purely exhausting 24 hours of running. This run, however, was not simply for entertainment, nor was it just for personal achievement, this run symbolised a greater cause. Led by an organisation called Running To Stop The Traffik, the purpose of this event was clear and bold: to raise awareness and funds to fight modern-day slavery and human trafficking. On a freezing cold Saturday morning, with the winter winds stinging viciously, our team grouped together at the top of the Peak. Enthusiastic yet focused, tired but determined, tense but nevertheless, ready. Our girls’ team, who performed admirably, consisted of: Alexa Fung (Y10, Kingston),
Emily Chen (Y10, Kingston), Jasmine Chan (Y10, Kingston), Josephine Ellis (Y11, Kingston), Alexandra Bessmertnaia (Y12 Kingston),Sharon Tsang (Y10, Tutt), Magdalene Ho (Y11, Tutt), Miriam Fedi (Y12, Tutt) and notably Anabel Lee (Y12, Kingston) who organised and led the entire team. Along with the efforts of the warrior-like girls, were the equally impressive boys’ team. Despite being shorthanded with just seven runners, the boys more than made up for it with their lightning speed and thunderous noise throughout the event. Representing the boys’ team were: Jonathan Billow (Y12, Nightingale), Amandeep Alvis (Y13, Nightingale), Henry Luise (Y11, Waterman), Michael Harries (Y12, Cale), Ollie Otten (Y9, Lloyd), Frans Otten (Y11, Lloyd) and Oliver Duffy (Y11, Lloyd).
which left us with a real sense of triumph and accomplishment. Nonetheless, everyone in this event shared one characteristic towards the end: a sheer desire to jump into bed and do anything but move. However, it is important to remember the objective of this event, which is to promote local and global awareness on human slavery and trafficking. In fact, our School alone managed to collect up to $60,000 of donations in total – an outstanding feat. Although the 24-hour run only takes place once a year, it is a great step to aiding those in different countries. I would strongly encourage more people to take part in this event next year, whether to actually run the race or to donate money; after all, every little bit counts to making a difference.
THIMUN Conference Singapore by Chloe Deng (Y12, Tutt) & Anastasia Groenestijn (Y13, Kingston)
Impressively, the girls’ team were 7th and the boys’ team ranked 6th out of the 27 highly competitive schools which took part. However, before we could hold our heads up high and announce that we’d placed so marvellously, we had to go through the gruelling 24 hours of sweating, panting and running… or for some, crawling may have been a better description. The race began at 9am with each and every one of our runners eager to impress. The atmosphere was inspiring: music roared from stereos, families and friends excitedly cheered on runners and adrenaline was inevitably at an all-time high! Not even the sudden emergence of the scorching hot weather, something Hong Kong is so famously known for, was able to hold back the enthusiasm of the runners. As night time approached, a rhythmic pattern began to unfold: tents clicked open, sleeping bags were laid out and wearied runners began to fall into a deep sleep. The members of Harrow Hong Kong, however, had different ideas. Strategically, we devised a plan to pace ourselves during the day in order to take full advantage of our extra energy as night time commenced. With generous support from our parents, who provided us with food and some more food after that, we got the needed boost of energy to keep us going. As the morning of the next day approached, and some of us had still not had a second’s worth of napping, we were both sad and relieved. Despite the brutal day and night’s worth of running, this was an unforgettable experience,
During the week beginning 17th November, Harrow Hong Kong was proud to lead two delegations to represent Brazil and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) at The Hague International Model United Nations (THIMUN). The conference, hosted in Singapore, was the second of its kind in which Harrow Hong Kong has participated since the founding of the MUN club, and the delegations were comprised of students from Years 11 to 13. Over the course of the week, students were required to debate resolutions with authority and a degree of intelligence with other international students, while defending the rights and interests of their country or organisation in the style of the United Nations. Amidst this noble work, delegates from Harrow Hong Kong found themselves forming lifelong bonds with fellow speakers and ambassadors, often finding ways to pass the long hours between voting procedures with drafting and practising speeches. Whether it was in the crossfire between Japan and China over the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, or amidstthe fiery debate over the gender-related killing of women,
Mr Nightingale and the MUN team enjoying an alfresco dinner in Singapore after a hard day’s debating
delegates were tirelessly professional, eloquent, and diplomatic. Model United Nations (MUN) is an extra-curricular activity whereby students take on the role of delegates, representinga certain country or organisation at a conference. The main task of the student is to research their country or organisation so that when they are in a committee session, they could have an input into the discussion revolving around the topics and simulate an actual United Nations conference. Throughout the school year, there are many opportunities for students to participate in various MUN conferences to allow them to gain first hand experience of what it is like in the United Nations, where controversial topics are debated amongst nations. It was at this year’s THIMUN conference that Harrow Hong Kong students proved their mettle. Despite debating time, which was a sizeable proportion of each delegate’s day (stretching from 9am to around 5pm with a break for lunch), it was impossible to miss the opportunity to deepen our understanding of Singapore itself, and the lifelong friends made at this conference are a true testament to the power of humanity, co-operation and Starbucks. This delegate would strongly recommend the THIMUN experience, or indeed, the invaluable experience of any Model United Nations conference, to any student wishing to expand their debating repertoire, think logically, or simply come into contact with students and places beyond the four walls of their daily lives.
Lamma Fun Day by Cici Zhang (Y12, Kingston)
On 1st November, several members of the community service club, including myself, visited Lamma Island for the 14th annual Lamma Fun Day Fair. The event was hosted by the Child Welfare Scheme. This is a locally registered charity that provides education, health care and social opportunities for under privileged children and families in Nepal. Harrow Hong Kong was kindly invited by the charity to gather materials and create game stalls for the fair at the beginning of term. Following weeks of organisation and communication with the charity’s representative, we were able to successfully set up stalls such as the entertaining Penalty Shoot Out and the mighty Can Knockdown on Tai Wan To Beach. We arrived on Lamma Island at 9am, and despite the scorching sun, were able to setup all of our game stall props within an hour. By eleven o’clock in the morning, we already had children varying in age from 4 to 12 years old coming over to buy coupons for the games. From giving out coupons and prizes, to playing with the children and setting up games for them, we were able to experience first hand what contributing back to the community really felt like. Our support to the
charity and our investment in time and effort gave us a real sense of accomplishment as we made a difference to the lives of the less fortunate in Nepal. All in all, Child Welfare Scheme was able to raise an impressive total of $250,000, which will go into supporting their latest project, designed to help support rescued children from corrupt orphanages within Nepal.
Autumn Ensembles Concert by Agnes Fung (Y12, Kingston)
The Autumn Term Ensembles Concert was held on Wednesday, 19th November in the Assembly Hall. Opening with the grand brass chords of La Forza del Destino (Overture), the orchestra again demonstrated their ability to work collaboratively, spinning out the lyrical tale of an Italian tragedy. The audience gazed affectionately at the Prep and Years 3-5 choir, who sang their hearts out in a heart-warming rendition of Captain Noah and his Floating Zoo. The night continued with numerous performances by our talented performers, including Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 performed by our new Chamber Orchestra, the soulful guitar ballad Fix You, and the iconic opening chords of StarWars, played solely on saxophones. Towards the end of the concert, there was a spectacular display of Hamba Lulu by the Upper School Choir. Arguably the most challenging piece performed at Harrow Hong Kong so far, it featured a 7-part polyrhythmic texture to imitate the pulsing cacophony at an African tribal wedding.
Miss Wilby and the orchestra
Then, after the spirited drumming of Riverdance, those present that evening will remember Miss Wilby receiving flowers and a bottle of Ribena - a token of gratitude from the students. We have grown and matured as musicians during her tenure as Head of Music, and we are now taking the initiative to push our limits in search of musical excellence. We wish Miss Wilby the best of luck in her future endeavours. “What have you done today to make you feel proud?” That was the last line in our finale performance. The answer is heartfelt.
Harrow Hong Kong Sports Report By Jonathan Billow (Y12, Nightingale)
U20 Football
After securing first place in our division in the previous year, Harrow football team understandably has sky-high expectations for the coming season. Interestingly, this time around, our squad includes several first-year senior students who are looking to add to the impressive results seen in their U14 campaign. With a combination of youth and experience, our team has a natural sense of exuberance about this upcoming season; it is strikingly similar to the sudden optimism our coach, Mr Thomson, shares with regards to the outlook of Manchester United. Our football season has kicked off with a sequence of friendlies. The first was played against Island School: a close encounter resulting in a 3-2 loss. With the majority of the fixtures being played at home this year, our team will look to improve, starting off with a string of victories as we enter 2015.
U20 Basketball
Swish. An opening basket and our season gets under away. Led by two highly experienced and tactical coaches, our formidable U20 line-up began our first match in a rather remarkable fashion. Playing at home, we displayed high levels of talent and a desire to win, finishing the match with a 48-36 win against Canadian International School. The following match presented us with a new challenge, as we had to face a school whose team had played together for a number of years. Although we fell short, a 64-48 victory to Island School, we realised the potential that our team possessed. Since the defeat, we have been training hard as a unit to improve our defensive intensity and our movement off the ball when attacking. Furthermore, we have created one or two new tactical plays as we look to continue to improve our performances. Undoubtedly, we all have one goal in mind and that is a trophy at the end of the season.
Senior Boys’ and Girls’ Tennis
Following weeks of inter-school tennis practices and friendly matches, our Senior girls’ and boys’ teams were finally ready to impress. The tennis season begun in front of our home spectators, and despite the inevitable nerves and butterflies that come with these competitive matches, we produced an encouraging performance. With the ball going back and forth with speed, the girls’ team produced the narrowest of victories, 15-14 against Delia School, to start their campaign. The boys’ team proved to be just as exciting, but they were not as fortunate as they endured an awfully tough fixture, with a 24-7 defeat. Just a couple of days later, the girls’ team took the opportunity to continue their dominance as they cruised to a magnificent victory against Discovery College whereas the boys’ team bounced back in a remarkable manner, capturing their first victory of the season.
1st XV Rugby
As a collective unit, we built upon our promising start to the season and once again, delivered some inspiring performances. Despite losing several key members due to injuries, clashes in sporting events and other commitments, the team stayed strong and presented immense versatility. Rather impressively, some students represented the team for the very first time and quickly instilled youth, energy and passion into our 1st XV. Understandably, the new make-up of the team left something to be desired at times as we struggled against our opponents RCHK in a tough defeat, which ended 29-5. However, with the season winding down and the final game of the campaign to be played, we performed strongly and left the pitch knowing that we had given our all. The score line against CIS, a narrow 31-28 defeat, encourages our team to build upon this initial season and exhibit greater levels of play in forthcoming tournaments.
Badminton Team Interview By Isaac Yeung (Y12, Lloyd)
Mr John Leung is a retired professional badminton player with many victories and achievements. He was the 1994 and 1998 Welsh national badminton champion for men’s singles, a participant in the 1993, 1995, 1997 and 1999 Badminton World Championships and was also a representative for the Junior National Welsh team. Harrow Hong Kong is privileged to have Mr John Leung teach students from the Prep School all the way to the Senior School on how to achieve the highest level of play in badminton.
“I believe every time you step on a badminton court, you should come off as a better player”
The Harrow badminton team participates in various age-matched groups hosted by the English Schools Foundation (ESF). They set up friendly matches, which eventually lead up to a tournament. In the first year of the Harrow Hong Kong badminton team’s life, Mr John Leung was able to help the team achieve a bronze medal in the Under 16s International School Sports Federation Competition. Currently, he is preparing the team to compete in January.
Waterpolo First
by Ralph Summers (Y11, Nightingale)
On 15th and 16th November, Harrow Hong Kong participated in its first ever water polo tournament, organised by the Hong Kong Amateur Swimming Association. The tournament posed an extreme challenge for everyone in the Harrow Hong Kong team.
Mr John Leung’s ten year long career as a professional badminton player earned him a lot of experience and familiarity with the sport. He aims to pass on his expertise and mastery to future generations of badminton players. He teaches beginners who have an interest in the sport all the way to aspiring professionals.
John Leung (coach) aims to turn his students into top quality players
With his time, dedication and lots of patience, he transforms our students who want to take badminton seriously into top quality players. Coach John’s mindset is what enables the players to gradually achieve a high level. Hard work, determination and team spirit are the core of what he believes make a successful badminton team.
“I try to simplify it to a role. Each player has a role and there are specific mind sets that I want them to adopt. I want them to improve their position and their techniques so I make them strive to better themselves.”
Firstly, the pool was completely different to the one we were used to, being over two metres deep so none of us were able to stand; instead we had to tread water and swim for over 30 minutes each game. Secondly, many of the other schools had been training for years. However, game after game, it was clear that we were improving steadily. In our first match, we tried a man marking defence, which proved to not work at all. Since our team only had one substitute in the morning, the opposing team could easily tire us out and then swim right past us, giving them quick and easy shots and points. On the attack, the opposition would try to hold us under the water without the referee seeing, making it almost impossible to move around. Before starting game two, the team discussed, planned, watched, and with the help of Mr Green, devised some new tactics. In defence, all of our players would swim back as fast as we could and adopt an area to defend. The players would form an arc around the goal and raise their hands; this tactic proved extremely useful as it forced the opposition to make poor and reckless shots. In attack we used the football approach and pretended to be drowning whenever the opposition touched us (they quickly learned that we were a team not to be held down). At the end of the day, we were all exhausted but very
pleased with our rate of improvement. The games would not have been remotely possible without the support of Mr Nightingale and Mr Green, who helped and coached us to where we are now. We hope that we will make them proud in future competitions. The team comprised of Ralph Summers (Y11, Nightingale), Charles King-Tenison (Y9, Cale), Jasmine Coleman-Allan (Y9, Kingston), Andrew Crossan (Y10, Lloyd), Raphael Lajeunesse (Y9, Cale), Frances King-Tenison (Y8, Matthews), Bart Venhoek (Y11, Nightingale), Monty Franks (Y6, Fox), and Chinat Yu (Y9, Nightingale).
Humans of Harrow Hong Kong
By Sophie Yau (Y12, Tutt House)
A photographic census of the Harrow Hong Kong community, one story at a time. Inspired by Humans of New York.
“We are the opposite of giants.”
{
Ask the Scholar
}
This month’s topic:
IGCSE Drama
by Benjamin Wang (Y10, Nightingale)
What is Drama? Drama can be considered a reflection, or even an extension of daily life. Styles vary, and these include: comedy, satire, tragedy and abstract forms. In iGCSE Drama, students find methods to express themselves through both words and movement. What do students do in Drama? We respond to a stimulus, for example: pictures, objects, a piece of text and film. Furthermore, we discuss scenes that we produce and give each other detailed feedback on how we can improve our performance. These critiques may be about technique (facial expressions) or may involve elements of drama (layers of meaning). How can you do well in Drama? You certainly do not have to be a natural actor to excel in drama, but commitment is the key to success. “The best students commit fully to every part of the lesson, including collaborative and creative work. When performing in role, they focus entirely. They also think about performances and see how they can improve.” said Mr James, Head of Drama.
Drama students at the ISTA festival
Why study Drama?
Drama helps to improve your skills of working collaboratively and creatively. Moreover, it teaches you to present yourself in original and interesting ways. These skills are transferable to other subjects in the curriculum. Mr James added, “In each lesson we make use of the leadership attributes. You have to be very determined to succeed. You have to make fair and just choices.” Upcoming school events: Harrow’s Got Talent on the 8th February Harrow Senior School Sports Day on the 13th February The Long Ducker on the 14th March
Boost your self-confidence by joining our school productions!
Have a burning question? Got a great idea for an article? Interested in joining? E-mail us at harrovian@harrowschool.hk