The Circus is coming to town!

Roll up! Roll up! For the most amazing, the most incredible, awe inspiring, jaw droppingly cool event ever to grace the fine town of Morisset. On Friday 16^th December, from 4pm onwards at Morisset PCYC, the circus will hit town. Facilitated by art2264, Morisset PCYC’s resident youth arts program, Circus Avalon will present a dazzling circus skills workshop, suitable for ages seven and up.

This is your chance to hold savage lions at bay with a single chair (well, we’ll provide the chair anyway); juggle flaming red-hot brands (ok, so they’re plastic and not at all warm); and step into the rhinestone studded boots of ‘The Ringmaster’. Circus Avalon is a training circus for adults and youth, established in Tasmania over twenty years ago, and currently based in Newcastle. Circus Avalon trainers have worked in over 100 schools and participated in many high profile national events.

“I guess for many people, running away to join the circus is a childhood dream” noted art2264 spokesperson Margrete Erling. “But this December, there’s no need to go anywhere: the circus is coming to you!”

As well as the single Circus Avalon workshop, acclaimed actor Andrew McDonell will return for two more drama workshops, this time with a circus theme. “Andy presented two extremely popular drama workshops for last month’s art2264” explained Margrete, “we had over thirty kids taking part, so it’s a good idea to email or ring to reserve your place”.

A NIDA trained actor with over twenty years experience in the performing arts, Andrew McDonell has appeared in television shows such as A Country Practice, Murder Call, Naked (ABC), All Saints, Chasing Time (BBC &National Geographic) and Rescue Special Ops. His stage work includes the Bell Shakespeare Company, including productions of Macbeth and The Tempest, and numerous roles as an actor with Pork Chop Productions: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, The Players, WANK and Last Cab to Darwin.

art2264 @ Morisset PCYC will also have art and face painting all afternoon from 4pm onwards. And if you just want to come along and hang out, or have a kick around, we’d love to see you. All welcome!

Snacks will be served and parents and family are most welcome to accompany their children. art2264 runs on the third Friday of every month from 4-8pm and is facilitated by artists Margrete Erling and Helen Hopcroft.

4pm Circus Avalon workshop (ages seven and up)

5pm Introduction to Acting through theatre games (primary students)

6pm Introduction to Acting through mask (secondary students)

Celebrated actor to host free drama workshops!

art2264 @ Morisset PCYC is extremely proud to announce that Andrew McDonell will be hosting two free drama workhops on Friday 18^th November. The first workshop, Introduction to acting through theatre games, designed for primary school aged students, will begin at 5pm. And secondary students will get their chance to shine at 6pm with Introduction to acting through mask.

‘We’re really excited to have such a well known actor coming to Morisset!’ enthused art2264's resident artist Margrete Erling. ‘Not only is Andrew an amazingly skilled creative professional, but he’s great at building rapport with young people. I’ve had the privilege of watching him teach a few times: the shy kids get loud, while the loud kids learn how to channel it!’

A NIDA trained actor with over twenty years experience in the performing arts, Andrew McDonell has appeared in television shows such as A Country Practice, Murder Call, Naked (ABC), All Saints, Chasing Time (BBC &National Geographic) and Rescue Special Ops. His stage work includes the Bell Shakespeare Company, including productions of Macbeth and The Tempest, and numerous roles as an actor with Pork Chop Productions: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, The Players, WANK and Last Cab to Darwin.

Don’t miss out on your chance to be coached by a pro! Numbers are limited so come early or email art2264 to reserve a place. Email: art2264morisset(at)gmail.com or ring Margrete Erling on 0412324228

For more information about our program for Friday 18th November, check out the 'what's on' tab on this blog. 

Manificent Manga

It’s not everyday you see your ideas made into a large scale public artwork, but that’s exactly what’s happening at Morisset PCYC. Local girl Lillian Webb, 16, dropped into Morisset’s newly opened Art Experiment, a temporary cultural space next to Woolies, and showed resident artist Margrete Erling some of her sketches. Margrete was so blown away by the images that she asked Lillian if she could use them in a PCYC community art project.

The drawings are executed in the uber hip Japanese Manga style, a style which originates in hard core comic book action, with a dose of High School The Musical thrown in for good measure. They'll be used as the design for a mosaic mural to be installed at Morisset PCYC. Lillian has drawn a boy and a girl, so we’re going to use the funky girl outside the PCYC ladies toilet and the cute guy outside the gents. Going to the loo will never be so much fun!

Margrete is already hard at work preparing the mosaic mural for Friday’s  Morisset PCYC opening (3-6pm on Friday 21^st October: not to be missed!) and you’ll have your chance to add your pieces to the design on the day. Come along and help bring Lillian’s design to life. You don’t need any experience with mosaics or murals, or any particular skills, as Margrete will be on hand to help out. 

art2264 photo shoot at Morisset PCYC!

We’re looking forward to the launch of art2264 @ Morisset PCYC and today, to promote the event, we hosted a hip hop photo shoot. A great posse of local dancers turned up, led by Ashlee, a dance tutor from the Deborah Lee Dance Academy. As a photographer from The Lakes Mail and The Newcastle Herald snapped away, we’re pleased to announce that all of our crew were thoroughly professional, doing some amazing dance moves and striking poses that would make even a yoga Jedi weep with envy. 

Thanks to everyone who came along, particularly Deborah Lee and Ashlee and their students, many of whom arrived in costume and stage make up. This is doubly impressive given that they managed all this within half an hour of the end of school! We are officially in awe of the helicopter move and have been practicing it on the kitchen floor (works on linoleum, just plain dangerous on tile). 

Also great respect to those who came direct from school, wearing their uniforms, and still managed to have a good time.  

Finally, we’d like to thank the Mums, who delivered everyone to the venue and got everyone home again safe and sound. We’d like to celebrate your undervalued role as semi-professional taxi drivers: we know that if you guys ever stop doing what you’re doing, the whole world would stop!