We believe education forms a very important part of the Sirius Ensemble’s work. The essence of the Arts in looking at real life helps build and colour each individual’s personality; it is the aim of our work to provide the opportunity for the Arts to affect all those who work with us in the same way that it has us, as practitioners. As a creative company, we strive to find new and exciting ways of challenging our participants and ourselves so that the work we produce is always fresh, vibrant and fun for all involved.
We have always offered a broad range of education projects ranging from a participatory improvisation session to repertoire-based workshops, which make extensive use of both original works and Schoenberg’s Verein arrangements. These workshops have included works specific to the GCSE and A level syllabi and have also taken the form of open rehearsals, without any actual public performance, in order that people might be given the opportunity to become thoroughly acquainted with the artistic construction of a composition – exactly in the manner of Schoenberg’s original society.
Our work in preparing The Black Monk for performance in October has given us the chance to form a new and innovative education programme. In designing this programme, we have created opportunities to ensure that the skills and interests of a whole host of participants are catered for, where other theatre-based work may be more exclusively for performers. We have developed a broad range of interconnected experiences, including opportunities to see a performance of The Black Monk as part of our Introduction to Opera. This package, prepared by our fully trained education team, includes extensive introductory and follow-up material carefully constructed with flexibility in mind, in order that each establishment is able to select those activities that complement their own programmes of study.
Having introduced people to the art form of opera, we then offer them the chance to create a full-scale operatic work of their own. Based on American Indian tales of ‘How the Earth Began’, this sequel project The First Light is a community-crafted piece of musical theatre. With the company leading the work, every aspect of a theatrical production is explored before presenting a final public performance.
The First Light project was designed as an interactive learning experience, conceived with flexibility in mind. Consequently the programme can be customised by individual establishments depending on their number of students, academic level and special interests. A ‘theatre experience’ package is also available, where as well as rehearsing their work on stage, groups will be able to tour the venue. This will be complemented with appropriate workshops and talks on a variety of the theatre’s activities. Experimental workshops exploring the technical elements of performance and talks about theatre management and front of house areas will ensure a holistic theatrical experience is enjoyed by all.
Our Education Consultant, Jo Sheppard, is a former advanced skills teacher, fully aware of the constraints of both the curriculum and educational timetable. She heads our education team and has worked closely with us to ensure our education programmes are as exciting and comprehensive as possible.
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