byron@byron
Try BYT
For information about using your Creative Kids Voucher for classes please visit the ABOUT page on this website by clicking below.
.https://www.byronyouththeatre.com/about/
Try A Little BYT originated at Woodford Folk Festival, when Director Lisa Apostolides assisted by 2 members of BYT led workshops for young people of all ages in 2014. They have been providing workshops since then every year at the festival.
With a Youth Activity Grant from Byron Council, more BYT members have been trained to facilitate workshops during school holidays.
In 2017 Lisa decided to create a regular class for 9-11 year olds in Byron Bay. Supported by Byron Community Centre, the group meet on a Tuesday at The Byron Community Cabin in Carlyle street, Byron Bay from 3.30pm-4.30pm.
This drama and theatre course develops essential skills through improvisation, characterisation, movement and voice work through 4 terms each year. Young people have the opportunity to collaboratively devise their own scenes which lead to the development of short plays. Young people in this class will experience a range of skill building games and exercises, improvisation activities, script work, storytelling and performance. In 2020 we will be devising a social action performance to take to local primary schools.
There are 9 sessions each term and cost is $150.
Please email Lisa for more details
byronyouththeatre2481@gmail.com
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Byron Youth Theatre classes for 9-11 year olds provides a safe and creative environment for young people:
- To have fun while acquiring new skills
- To develop basic improvisation, role playing, acting, movement, voice skills To develop stage and performance awareness
- To work cooperatively with other class members
- To devise role plays, improvisations and short scenes
- To develop language, communication, listening and concentration skills
- To develop self confidence and experience empowerment
- To develop social and leadership skills
- To develop physical development and emotional intelligence
- To recognise the importance of using your imagination creatively
- To understand the world around them
- To develop empathy and compassion for others, all living beings and our world
- To create a play or selection of scenes to present to other young people, family and friends.
These are life long learning skills which will benefit young people in all areas of LIFE. In our changing world we need more people to exercise these skills
STRUCTURE OUTLINE
Term 1:
Games, exercises and activities will be used in each session to meet the learning outcomes listed above. There will be specific themes/topics chosen by the class members which will provide a focus for sessions. These will be explored with improvised scene work. Key focus : Improvisation, mime, co-operation and storytelling
Term 2 :
Games, exercises and activities will be used in each session to meet the learning outcomes listed above. Introduction to short scripted scenes in groups. Key Focus: characerisation, stage awareness, performance skills
Term 3: Games, exercises and activities will be used in each session to meet the learning outcomes listed above. Exploring issues : nominated by class members deeper exploration through drama and theatre structures of poignant issues. Eg. bullying, siblings, parents, school, freedom Key Focus: use of imagination, use of personal experience and external stimulus to create dramatic presentations
Term 4
Games, exercises and activities will be used in each session to meet the learning outcomes listed above. Small group development of extended scene/play. Class members will be facilitated to develop a short play based on a chosen theme or external stimulus, eg/ poem, picture, article, in small groups. This will involve in depth characterisation, use of costumes, props and set items. Key Focus: characterisation, team building, roles of responsibilities, acting and performance skills
Variations of these will occur in the second year often with class members joining at 9 and remaining until 11. Larger productions will be undertaken if there is enough class members who have developed the basic skills during the first year.
Gone Tomorrow
Funded by Northern Rivers Community Foundation, a wonderful donation from Cunning Stunts and the support of the Drill Hall Theatre this incredibly powerful play focuses on pressures that young people often face which can lead to suicidal ideation.
Byron Youth Theatre cast members and Director Lisa Apostolides connected with headspace Lismore, Stand by response service, Run it Past Me, psychologist Peter Chown, Mindframe, Beyond Blue and Welfare Staff at each of our local high schools.
The video below is the full show, performed at the Drill Hall Theatre, Mullumbimby on 9th and 10th December 2017.
Poster Art work by kind permission of Pablo González-Trejo
https://www.pablogt.com/
Help us realize our vision
- We’re preparing to gear up and take our work to the wider world.
- Our goal is to film our productions in super high quality and make them videos available on-demand to schools across Australia.
- We need a range of business financial, technical, academic and creative skills for this to happen.
- We also plan to share our work more widely with adults and other organisations.
- We have been invited to conferences and are super keen to attend but there are costs and logistics.
- We’ve been invited to collaborate with Sydney based A.T.Y.P. ( the Australian Theatre for Young People).
- We have plans for a post-school, young adult cast who could tour professionally and take our shows further afield in Australia
- We need to build on and maintain our existing repertoire. Re-funding a production is difficult despite school requests for reruns to benefit the next year group.
- To establish new connections and strengthen existing relationships with major organisations such as:
- Headspace
- NSW Health
- SAE Institute
- Griffith University
- Southern Cross University
- NSW Department of Education and Training
- WayAhead
- Social Futures
- and others but are always keen to expand our reach.
- To continue our support of young artists in areas such as photography, graphic design, lighting technician, sound technician, costume making, make-up artists, film-makers, editors etc.
With donations
We are thrilled to share we have created an Australian Cultural Fund which means we can receive TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS.
Click on the link above to our specific current fundraiser for OUR HOME HOLIDAY TOWN, our NEW production in partnership with Centre for Children and Young People, Southern Cross University
Your donations will be put to great use for venue hire, set construction, lighting, costumes, props and transport. Basically the more we have the more creative we can get!! Your donations will elevate us to a new level of professionalism and allow us to continue and extend our support of other young creative people in this region who are emerging artists. For many we provide an opportunity to land their first paid job so you will be directly involved in promoting local employment in the arts.
Here are some amazing young people we have already worked with:
Harry O’Meara – Lighting Designer and Technician (20 yrs) Harry’s dream has exploded by working with Byron Youth Theatre
Myla Yeomans – Graphic Designer (19 yrs)
Myla is a talented emerging graphic designer – here’s her poster for our show, Broken in 2016
“Working with BYT on their promotional material gave me valuable experience and a wonderful insight into the inspiring work they do.
Kaitlyn Booth – Photograher (17 yrs)
“As a young and learning photographer my world has formed into one big camera lens by looking at some objects and thinking about the best way I could use the object in a photo. Photography for me isn’t just holding a camera in one hand but it’s also about upholding a passion, holding my camera in one hand and my passion in the other, Photography for photographers such as myself is like cooks and cooking… You do it cause you love it. As for my first paid photography job for Lisa and the youth theatre group it allowed me to use my passion for the good of them and me. Was awesome to help them out and hope to do more for them in the future.”
Yani Clarke – Photographer (23 yrs)
Whos photography you can see throughout our website
With materials
Fabrics, props, wood, nails, screws, paints, flags, poles, sequins, make-up, hairspray, tea, coffee, cakes??
So far we have kept our productions as simple as possible but if you can help us we can start having much more fun with sets, costumes and props. None have to be new and we are up for borrowing as well as creating. Have a beautiful space where we can hold a weekend (day) retreat? That’s one of our visions and we can always use a cake or three to sell at our community events
With time
Can you spare a couple of hours to drive a car load of cast members to a performance venue if parents are busy? Got a sewing machine and can donate a couple of hours to sew costumes? Help in the kitchen at a community event? Can you put up posters in and around the shire? We’d love to hear from you.
Mind Made Me
Mind Made Me is one of BYT’s longstanding productions created in 2013. Originally funded by Northern Rivers Community Foundation, the production was created by seven cast members most of whom had a lived experience of dealing with mental health issues. Mind Made Me schools tour in 2013 and again in 2014 with additional development funding from Country Arts Support program, Regional Arts NSW, as well as several community events and conferences.
The process facilitated by Director of BYT, Lisa Apostolides was particularly challenging but often therapeutic for Company members, many of whom have a lived experience of mental health issues, as they researched, interviewed peers, shared personal stories and consulted with health professionals. The result was an incredibly emotive piece of youth theatre that has sometimes shocks audiences but with positive effect.
The production exposes the challenges faced by young people dealing with anxiety, depression, negative body image, non suicidal self harm, sexual identity and bullying.
Since it’s development BYT have delivered this production to 6 schools, 5 community events and 3 conferences performing to over 3,000 people.
BYT members wish to thank the Mental Health Association of NSW, Wellways and Open Minds for funding their production Mind Made Me which they performed at Lismore City Hall and the Drill Hall Mullumbimby during Mental health month, October 2017. “The response was amazing” shares Lae, one of the cast members. “The audience were really moved and touched by each scene, I learnt a great deal doing this production and our company has become even closer”.
140 Ballina Coast High School students and staff were the recent recipients of 3 Mind Made Me performances from BYT at their Well Being Expo held in November 2017. Audience members commented on how they were moved by the production and grateful that a youth theatre Company exists in this region tackling these issues.
BYT wish to thank Harry O’Meara our wonderful lighting and sound technician who will also be joining us for Gone Tomorrow! You rock Harry!
2017 Cast of Mind Made Me
Video clip of The Drill Hall Theatre performance for Mental Health Month 2017 : funded by WayAhead Mental Health Association of NSW
Here are some clips filmed independently at Byron Theatre as well as an youth audience member comment at the Richmond Valley Mental health Expo in 2014.
Win a Ticket, Save a Life
Christmas is supposed to be a time of joy and happiness, but for many it’s the most difficult time of the year. Those experiencing mental illness can often find this time of year harder to bear.
BYT’s production about youth suicide prevention, Gone Tomorrow, highlights the importance of watching out for such signs in our family and friends and assisting them to get the help and support they may need.
We are offering ONE FREE TICKET TO EACH PERFORMANCE to the first people who contact Lisa by email : byronyouththeatre2481@gmail.com, subject: Win a ticket, Save a life.
Performances will be held at The Drill Hall Theatre, Mullumbimby, NSW on SATURDAY 9TH DECEMBER at 2pm and 6pm and SUNDAY 10TH DECEMBER 6pm.
Guest speakers Rose Hogan from StandBy support after suicide service (Saturday 2pm), Michelle Walter, trauma counsellor (Saturday 6pm) and local psychologist Peter Chown (Sunday 6pm) will give a brief talk and Q&A after each performance. Information about local services will be available.
We encourage all parents with teenage children aged 15+ to attend as well as community members as youth suicide prevention is a key concern for all. BYT are very grateful to Northern Rivers Community Foundation for funding this project as well as a Cunning Stunts donation. The production has been supported by Byron Youth Service, headspace, StandBy support after suicide, WayAhead, Mental Health Association of NSW and local school counsellors.
For more information checkout our Facebook Event page
Art work image: Pablo González-Trejo, Brent, 39 x 31 inches, 100 x 80 cm, 2008, Charcoal and Acrylic on Canvas
BYT go live on the internet!
This was our first public performance of the P.A.S.H show. (Positive Adolescent Sexual Health), at the Byron Community Centre Theatre.
