Theatre In The Illawarra - Main Page

LIFE MEMBERS

It is with great respect and admiration that we welcome two new life members to the Roo Theatre family, Sandra Pearson and Ray Clegg. These two stalwarts of the theatre have, over the years, been seen by many as they provided services to our theatre above and beyond expectations.

Sandra is well known to most of Roo Theatre patrons as she is often seen as the smiling lady what takes your money for lollies and drinks at our canteen – she’s also the lady who you don’t say no to when asked if you want to buy a programme! Apart from that, Sandra has been a stalwart of Roo Theatre’s volunteer family for many years and is highly regarded in the business community – Sandra is a lady who truly deserves Roo Theatre’s recognition with life membership

Now Ray – well what can you say – he joined Roo Theatre’s Committee when it seemed that the Company was going to fold due to financial problems and since then has been a “back room” boy preferring to stay off the stage and save Roo’s patrons from agony. An electrical & electronic engineer by profession Ray has overseen most of the changes in Roo’s technical structure and we’re sure there’s more to come but rest assured he’ll never cross the stage-line to be in peril of a potential stage kiss or maybe worserer stuff!

---oooOOOooo---

ROO THEATRE CLASSIFIED ADVERTISMENTS


Theatre Directors
Musical Directors
Choreographers
2010 SEASON


Roo Theatre is seeking Production Teams. For the following:

• Cloudstreet - April/May
• Oliver the Musical - July/August
• Comedy - September
• Sweeney Todd the Musical - November

Please direct all Correspondence and CV's to:
The Chairperson
Roo Theatre Co Inc PO Box 4149
Shellharbour 2529

Ph: 4297 2891 Fax: 4297 5239
Email: roo_theatre@optusnet.com.au

---

Drama Tutor/Director
An opportunity exists for a Dynamic Tutor/Director


Duties Include: Teaching a Senior Drama Class,
And Directing a group (20) of High School Students,
for the Youth Theatre Performance Group.

Roo Theatre is looking for a qualified Drama Tutor with relevant extensive theatre experience.
Hours: Thursdays 4.00 - 7.45 pm
Commencing February 2010.

This position is subject to the Working with Children Check.

Please direct all enquiries to:
The Chairperson
Roo Theatre Co Inc PO Box 4149
Shellharbour 2529

Ph: 4297 2891 Fax: 4297 5239
Email: roo_theatre@optusnet.com.au

---oooOOOooo---

Roo Theatre’s 2010 DRAMA Classes


All Registrations Thursday 28th January 2010 5.00pm – 8.00 pm

ROO DRAMA STUDIO - DRAMA CLASSES TUESDAYS 4.00pm – 4:45pm DRAMA (Yrs 1-2) Fees - $65 per term 4:45pm – 5:45pm DRAMA (Yrs 3 & 4) Fees - $77 per term 6.00pm – 7.00pm DRAMA (yrs 5 & 6) Fees - $77 per term 7.00pm – 8.00pm MUSIC THEATRE (yrs 7 & 8) Fees - $77 per term

ROO DRAMA STUDIO - DRAMA CLASSES WEDNESDAYS 4.00 – 5.00 Song & Dance (Yrs 1-3) Fees - $77 per term 5.00 – 6.00 Song & Dance (yrs 4-6) Fees - $77 per term 6.15 – 7.45 Children's Performance Group (Yrs 3-6) Fees - $99 per term

ROO DRAMA STUDIO - DRAMA CLASSES THURSDAYS 4.00 – 5.30 JUNIORS (Yrs 7-8) Fees - $99 per term 5:45 – 7:45 Youth Theatre Performance Group (yrs 8 – 12) Fees - $120 per term

Adult Tap Dance with Dianne Blaas
A fun class for anyone who wants to learn tap dance.
Suits all levels as each step is taught first at beginner level with add-ons for intermediate and advanced students to ensure that everyone gets a thorough workout
Monday 10:00am – 11:30am Fee - $99 per term

---

Roo Theatre’s 2010 Programme


January 2010
Roo Theatre's Summer Pantomime. A "don't miss" production that promises to introduce newcomers to the Cat-In-The-Hat and also give those old (and not so old) timers a trip down memory lane of those halcyon days of Dr. Seuss.

February 2010
The first musical of the year from Roo which will be a major event in the Illawarra. A dynamic cast with an orchestra to match will ensure that you relive the high energy and theatrical prowess of Peter Allen.

April / May 2010
Cloudstreet is a drama based on the novel by Australian writer Tim Winton. It chronicles the lives of two working class Australian families who come to live together at One Cloud Street, over a period of twenty years, 1943 - 1963. It was the recipient of a Miles Franklin Award in 1992.

July / August 2010
Oliver! comes to Roo Theatre in a dazzling new production. This much-loved musical vividly brings to life Dickens’ timeless characters with its ever-popular story of the boy who asked for more.

September 2010
The History Boys is a multi-award winning play which follows an unruly bunch of bright and brash sixth-form boys from a northern grammar school in the Thatcherite eighties. The boys are - naturally - in pursuit of sex, sport, spirituality... and a coveted place at one of England's finest universities.

November 2010
Sweeney Todd - the musical
The infamous story of Benjamin Barker, a.k.a. Sweeney Todd, who sets up a barber shop down in London which is the basis for a sinister partnership with his fellow tenant, Mrs. Lovett. After fifteen years in exile, Benjamin returns to London under the new identity of Sweeney Todd, seeking revenge against Turpin. He meets the widow Mrs. Lovett who is the owner of a meat pie shop who tells him that Lucy committed suicide with arsenic many years ago, and Turpin assigned himself tutor of Johanna. He opens a barber shop above her store, initiating a crime rampage against those who made him suffer and lose his beloved family

Roo Theatre has for sale Gift Vouchers to our 2010 productions, Seussical the Musical and The Boy from Oz are on sale now – an ideal Christmas Gift or stocking stuffer – contact the Roo Theatre to purchase your gift vouchers

CONGRATULATIONS TO ROO THEATRE SCHOLARS!
It is with great pleasure that we acknowledge to the exceptional performance of Roo Theatre’s members in the recent NSW Higher School Certificate, in particular:-
Nathan Flint .................... Music
Bethany Levy.................. Music
Quentin Armstrong .........Drama

URINETOWN packed them in!
An extremely successful season saw the emergence of some new talent at Roo which when combined with some of our seasoned performers produced a musical that had audiences standing on their feet and calling for encores! Directed by Adam Fisher who, supported by his production team, brought off an amazing piece of work after many setbacks and hurdles. This was a challenging piece of work for all those involved it has surely cemented the “Roo Family” friendships. Look forward to seeing these people at future Roo Theatre Productions!

CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
They say never work with animals and children but our drama teacher, Lucy-Jane Armstrong, seems to thrive on it. Our Children’s Performance Group staged a highly successful season of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Roo Theatre this month. This is a culmination of a year’s work by Lucy-Jane and the results speak for themselves – Full houses every show and we were even given special permission to do an extra show to cater for the flood of enquiries for tickets. Our students performed with great style and accomplishment and are a credit to their efforts over the year. It would be remiss not to acknowledge the great support from the Mum’s, Dad’s and friends who worked to construct an amazing set. We look forward to seeing more superb efforts from this group over the coming years as they progress through our drama class programme. Why is this text in pink? Well you better ask Lucy-Jane that question!

AS YOU LIKE IT
Following their highly successful performance of “The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole”, our Youth production Group impressed everyone with their production of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” directed by our Senior Drama Teacher Juliet Scrine. Rehearsals went slowly as most of the students laboured to get their heads around the Shakespearean words and phrases. True to their form, our Youth Production Group pulled off a magnificent performance over the two nights and enjoyed a standing ovation on the last night. Needless to say as the curtain closed on the final show one of the performers was heard to say “Oh now I get it!” The standard has been set now and we look forward to next years productions

DIGGERS’ DARLING
During October, Roo Theatre staged the highly successful (and locally written) production of Diggers’ Darling – the Story of the Owen Gun. The story followed the development of the Owen Gun manufactured at Lysaght’s Port Kembla and portrayed the life and times of Evelyn Owen. Produced and Directed by Gordon Streek, the play followed the trials and tribulations of Evelyn from the early days of having to convince the Army to accept his weapon through to the personal realisation that even though he’d been successful, success did not bring the peace of mind he thought it would. Diggers’ Darling brought some old and some new faces to the Roo Theatre stage. Playwright Michael Smart graciously wrote the following words in a letter to Roo Theatre “I appreciated greatly seeing the play on the stage again and to see such a fine production. The added material, the extension of the number of actors and in particular the enthusiasm for their parts; the positive response of the audience has been a great lift to me.”

FAREWELL TO JULIET AND IAN

Roo Theatre's Lights
The recent open sale day by Illawarra production Services (IPS) enable Roo Theatreto purchase some "as new" equipment at a very competitive price. The Roo Theatre Company purchased 12 light fittings to replace some of the "aged" units that have been used for many years.

Roo Theatre’s Sound Desk Addition
The recent musical "URINETOWN" highlighted an issue that has long been known concerning the use of personal microphones or "body Mikes" and the ability to mix the additional channels. Roo's sound mixer is a 12 channel unit with 8 inputs for the stage "drop mikes", 2 channels for the DVD players plus a channel for the theatre announcement microphone. This effectively left only 1 spare channel. In the past the production budget has included the use of an additional sound desk for the input of "body mikes" when required. In order to address this issue, the Roo Theatre has purchased an additional sound mixer that has 16 inputs. The intention is to use the new mixer exclusively for the additional channels required for musicals etc which utilise "body mikes" etc.

Roo Theatre adds more "drop mikes"
One of the issues that Roo Theatre has had is how to monitor the orchestra when productions require live music. Many shows have used individual microphones for individual instruments that are mixed and the amplified through Roo's speaker system. This sometimes results in comments of "it's too loud" requiring the sound technician to try and appease the patrons. Another more simple, but effective, method is to install "drop mikes" in the orchestra pit (away from the drummer) and take the overall sound into the Roo Sound Mixer. Roo Theatre purchased two drop mikes to add to its tally of 6 so that when an orchestra is used, the sound can be monitored and controlled through Roo's sound system. This method was used successfully during the recent production of "URINETOWN" although we still did get the comment "It's too loud" on some fleeting occasions!

Roo Theatre's Closed Circuit TV
A welcome addition to Roo Theatre is the installation of a closed circuit TV system that is focused on the stage. The camera has infra-red capability which means that during a "blackout", the movements on stage can be monitored. TV Monitors have been installed in the Bio Box, Stage Manager prompt, Stage Manager off-prompt and the orchestra area. The installation occurred mid-way through the production of "URINETOWN" with immediate results - the stage managers, orchestra and bio box personnel could monitor the production both with lights up and in blackouts. Only one problem presented itself and that was observed by several cast members of "URINETOWN" - every now and then something or somebody walked in front of the camera when there was obviously no-one in front of the lens!

So says the mischievous Cat in the Hat at the onset of this fantastical, magical, musical extravaganza! Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (Lucky Stiff, My Favorite Year, Once On This Island, and Ragtime) have lovingly brought to life all of our favourite Dr Seuss characters, including Horton the Elephant, Gertrude McFuzz, Lazy Mayzie and all of the Whos of Whoville!

Book your seats now to experience the fun and laughter that only a Roo Theatre Pantomime can bring!.

• Fri, Jan 8th 2010................ ........ 7.30pm
• Sat Jan 9th 2010.... 2.00pm........ 7.30pm
• Tue Jan 12th 2010.... 2.00pm........
• Wed, Jan 13th 2010.... 2.00pm........ 7.30pm
• Thu, Jan 14th 2010.... 2.00pm........ 7.30pm
• Fri Jan 15th 2010.... 2.00pm........ 7.30pm
• Sat Jan 16th 2010.... 2.00pm........ 7.30pm

SUMMER SCHOOL HOLIDAY WORKSHOPS

The perfect way for kids who can’t sit still these holidays is to learn new skills, make friends and discover talents! Quality, affordable workshops with a qualified and experienced tutor.

All classes include a parent showcase at the conclusion of the workshop

The Boy From Oz is a class above all other ‘jukebox’ musical. The late Nick Enright. skillfully weaved his plot around the life and complexities of Peter Allen. The songs and lyrics sit easily with the rhythm of the piece and with the characters as they enter and re-enter his life, be they dead or alive. It leaps, as does Peter himself, from past to present and back to past all within the familiar context of one of his energy packed concerts. The Roo Theatre is excited to bring this production to our stage in February 2010.

• Friday 12th February 8.00 pm
• Saturday 13th February 2.00 & 8.00 pm
• Wednesday 17th February 8.00 pm
• Thursday 18th February 8.00 pm
• Friday 19th February 8.00 pm
• Saturday 20th February 2.00 & 8.00 pm
• Wednesday 24th February 8.00 pm
• Thursday 25th February 8.00 pm
• Friday 26th February 8.00 pm
• Saturday 27th February 2.00 & 8.00 pm

TICKET PRICES
Opening Night Champagne Special
Friday 12th February 8.00 pm
Champagne & Canapés Included
All Tickets $35

Remainder of Shows
Adults: $30 Concessions: $25