Workshops & Performances

P E R F O R M I N G & C R E A T I V E A R T S

On Tuesday 12th October all of our PCA scholars were treated to a TV and Film workshop from an acting agency called

Scarlett and Co.

Students were given tips and expertise around auditioning for acting work in TV and film. The agents were really impressed with the monologues and duologues that our scholars performed, many of who had learnt them off by heart for the occasion.

The agents then led two improvisation workshops with a Year 7 and Year 8 class. Students were highly engaged and loved the activities. Both classes asked when the next workshop was going to be!!

Santana Sessions delivered some fantastic Brazilian Drumming Workshops to two music classes for the entirety of the autumn term.

8P and 9N enjoyed 6 weeks of drumming on genuine Brazilian drums that Marcos and Edgar kindly brought to KAA every week. These included the tambourine, Surdo and GoGo bells. Students learned Samba Reggae and Samba Rio De Janeiro patterns. Their hard work culminated in a performance at the Tabernacle theatre on Saturday 11th December in celebration of the Brazilian On Friday 12th musician Carlinhos Brown who was also November Year 10 GCSE Marcos’ teacher.Drama students took part in a 2 hour

workshop with the theatre company Frantic Assembly.

Frantic Assembly are a physical theatre company who devise their own work, working with contemporary playwrights to bring their ideas to the stage. Students explored a range of devising techniques and had to devise their own piece of work to a stimulus. Students thoroughly enjoyed the experience, particularly learning how to perform lifts safely. This workshop will aid them with crucial devising skills they will need during the GCSE and into A level.

P E R F O R M I N G & C R E A T I VMusicians at KAA enjoyed several weeks of rehearsals with professionals from Youth Action Alliance in the autumn term. Students worked on solos, band pieces, and some musical theatre numbers. They performed brilliantly at the Chelsea Theatre on Saturday 4th December alongside students from St Thomas Moore. Their hard work across the term paid off with an extremely pleased and proud audience of parents and other professional musicians. On the 8th December the GCSE Year 10 dancers were treated to an intensive workshop run by Boy Blue Entertainment. This is a dance company that the students will study in depth theoretically, so it was brilliant for them to explore it practically. Yolanda, who stars E A R T S in the GCSE set work ‘Emancipation of Expressionism’, put the dancers through their paces throughout the two hours. The dancers worked incredibly hard and were challenged in the session. All of them came away tired but inspired! 20

P E R F O R M I N G & C R E A T I V E A R T S

On Wednesday 10th November, our entire Year 8 cohort took part in KAA’s first ever Performing & Creative Arts (PCA) “drop down” day. Students spent a full day in performing arts workshops instead of their usual timetabled lessons.

The theme for the day was ‘KAA’s Winter Carnival’. Students took part in a variety of externally lead performing and creative art workshops based around this theme. The workshops included learning to play the steel pans, salsa dancing, carnival make up application, and creating carnival costumes!

It was great to see the whole year group really immerse themselves in the experience and we hope their passion and creativity for the arts continues throughout their time here at KAA.

We look forward now to the Year 9 drop down day on Friday 25th February 2022.