Hunter School of the Performing Arts


The Hunter School of the Performing Arts is a government-funded co-educational selective and specialist primary and secondary day school which offers a comprehensive curriculum with a performing arts specialty, located in, in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia.
Established in 1923, the school enrolled 1,150 students in 2018, from Year 3 to Year 12, of whom four percent identified as Indigenous Australians and eight percent were from a language background other than English. The school is operated by the NSW Department of Education; the principal is Joanne Gray. The school is unique in terms of public selective schools to cater to both primary and secondary school students. Enrolment is by audition only.

History

The school has undergone many name changes since its establishment in July 1923.
As a technical school
As a general high school
As a performing arts school
A notable moment in this school's recent history was the June 2007 Hunter Region and Central Coast storms. The Hunter School of the Performing Arts was one of the most severely affected schools in the area. The school suffered a large amount of damage; the entire bottom level was washed away and the school's library was severely affected.

Motto and colours

The original motto was "Advance", which changed after the school became a boys' school in 1932 to Faber est suae quisque fortunae. The motto was changed in 1999 to its English form, "Each of us is responsible for our own destiny". "Performing at Our Best" is the motto most commonly used today, taken from the school's vision statement.
The original colours of the school were those of the 35th Battalion of World War I, green and brown. In later years it changed to green and white. In 1999, students were given a survey in a bid for them to choose their own school colours; they chose jade, purple and black. To keep a link with the Newcastle colours, the new logo has been incorporated into a shield which also has a ribbon of brown and a ribbon of green.
Following the change in the school colours, a new school uniform was introduced in 2000, with options ranging from formal to casual, including performance and sporting wear. In 2001, the school's marching band uniform changed to reflect this as well, formerly being green and gold, and now has a uniform consisting of black, purple and jade.

Music

The school is home to a number of musical ensembles. Two concert bands, three choirs and a "senior vocal ensemble", string orchestra, two stage bands, a marching show band and percussion ensemble are well known within the school and community and frequently perform at festivals, parades, ceremonies and competitions.
Additionally, the school holds a musical every year, alternating leads between the primary and secondary sections of the school. This musical is performed in the theatre built on school grounds in 2007, the Hunter Theatre.

Dance

There are many dance opportunities within the school. Groups participate in a wide range of activities, including 'Star Struck', Schools Spectacular, Hunter Schools Dance Festival and State Dance Festival. There is also a range of dance ensembles, such as hip hop and ballet, and these are audition only.
The dance production class gives students an opportunity to do project based learning along with designing projects that the students want.

Notable alumni