NAPA News - Week 7, Term 3, 2025
FROM THE DIRECTOR
Week 7! I cannot believe how much we have achieved this term and how much we still have to come. This weekend we completed our dance groups at Gold Coast Eisteddfod with some amazing results. So many amazing studios and massive sections, but our cherubs held their own. Most importantly, they had a blast! I loved seeing them come off stage with faces beaming … that is what it’s all about!
15&U Team
1st - Musical Theatre - Evan Hansen
Highly Commended - Any Style (Acro) - Wizard of Oz
Highly Commended - Jazz - Stayin’ Alive
18&U Team
1st - Any Style (S&D) - Send in the Clowns
Highly Commended - Any Style (S&Tap) - New Money
2nd - Musical Theatre - Grease Got a Hold
Very Highly Commended - Musical Theatre - Sunshine State
3rd - Contemporary - Down Under
Highly Commended - Lyrical - Over the Love
Next up - Drama and Vocal sections!
QUICK REMINDERS
LOST AND FOUND IS FILLING UP AGAIN - PLEASE CHECK
COLD AND FLU SEASON IS STILL HERE - STAY WARM BEFORE AND AFTER CLASSES
DON’T FORGET TO LOG ABSENCES IN YOUR PARENT PORTAL
NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
IT’S PRODUCTION SEASON! SO MUCH ON OFFER OVER THE NEXT FEW WEEKS…
PERFORMANCE TEAM CONCERT
If you want to see what our Performance Team is all about, come check out our PT Concert. There are a few tickets left, so get in quick!
WINNIE THE POOH TICKET SALES
Winnie the Pooh tickets are now on sale to the public. Not many seats remain, so if you want to see this adorable production, book now!
APRIL AARDVARK
Our pre-senior actors bring this awesome piece to the stage in a few weeks! We’d love to see lots of our NAPA family supporting our acting cherubs, so please book a ticket and come see what our Tread the Boards classes have to offer!
EZ and his gang of bullies have created a fake social media account to inflict torment and misery on their fellow students. The account’s name, “April Aardvark”, echoes through the halls with fear and confusion. The gang is smugly satisfied with the results, until the day a student shows up to class claiming to be April Aardvark. She is the living, breathing manifestation of the account – a mean, obscene insult machine. She spreads chaos through the school, turning student against student and bully against bully. But is she really who she claims to be? And if so, how can she be stopped?
Only one thing is certain – she is the greatest bully that ever lived.
Wellbeing
Finding and Remembering Your “Why”
Life as a performer—and as a human—is full of highs, lows, and moments of doubt. The rush of auditions, rehearsals, and deadlines can make you lose sight of what really matters. That’s where your “why” comes in: your purpose, your guiding star, the reason you get up and keep going even when things feel hard. Having a clear purpose is vital for mental health. It reduces stress and anxiety, builds resilience, and gives direction. By knowing your values, setting goals, and engaging in meaningful activities, you can stay grounded, motivated, and more satisfied in life.
Why Your “Why” Matters
Your “why” is more than a motivational phrase. It’s the foundation of your decisions, your energy, and your creativity. When you know your why:
You can make choices that feel aligned, not just convenient.
You stay grounded when external validation—auditions, reviews, likes—fluctuates.
You reconnect with passion even when challenges arise.
Without it, it’s easy to drift, burn out, or feel like your efforts lack meaning.
How to Find Your Why
Reflect on Your Passion – Ask yourself: What first drew me to performing? What makes me excited to create? Look beyond accolades or recognition—focus on what lights up your soul.
Consider Your Values – Your why often aligns with what matters most to you: honesty, creativity, connection, joy, or impact. Identify your top values to see where your purpose lies.
Look at Your Impact – How does your work affect others? Even small gestures—a smile, a heartfelt performance, encouragement—can reveal a bigger purpose you might not see in the moment.
Write It Down – Articulating your why in a sentence or two helps it stick. Keep it visible: on your mirror, in your journal, or on your phone.
Remembering Your Why
Even when you’ve found it, life can make your why feel distant, or you can lose sight of it altogether when stress, panic and struggles kick in. Here’s how to reconnect:
Pause and Reflect – When you feel lost, take a moment to ask: Am I acting from my why right now?
Celebrate Progress, Not Just Outcomes – It’s easy to focus on the end result: landing a role or receiving praise. Instead, honour your effort, growth, and the joy of creating.
Reconnect With Your Inspirations – Watch performances that inspire you, revisit music or scripts that moved you, or spend time with people who energise you creatively.
Journal Your Wins and Gratitude – Regularly noting what you’ve achieved and what you’re grateful for keeps your purpose alive, even when the path feels uncertain.
A Performer’s Perspective
Performing is inherently vulnerable. Your why is your anchor amid rejection, stress, and the fast pace of the industry. When you step on stage or into an audition, connecting with your why transforms technique into story, presence, and authenticity. It reminds you that you’re not just doing tasks—you’re creating meaning.
Wellbeing Tip: Keep a “Why Reminder” list. Each day, write one small reason you perform or create—whether it’s joy, expression, connection, or growth. On challenging days, glance at it and reconnect with the heart behind your work.
CHERUB OF THE WEEK
CONGRATULATIONS TIAH STEWART!
This week we are thrilled to celebrate OUR CHERUB OF THE WEEK, TIAH STEWART.
This week we’re celebrating Tiah! Not only is she a wonderful mentor to our cherubs as a junior helper, but this week she went above and beyond by supporting some younger students through a social challenge she witnessed during break time. Always nurturing and dependable, her classmates affectionately call her “Mama Tiah” because she’s the first to lend a hand with hair, make-up, or anything else that needs doing. Tiah, your kindness, leadership, and generosity make you such a valued part of our NAPA family.
PERFORMANCE TIPS
Don’t Give Up Too Soon
In the performing arts world, it’s easy to compare yourself to others. You might see someone in your class who learns choreography instantly, memorises lines after one read, or hits vocal runs as if they were born doing it. Meanwhile, you might need extra time to learn the same material.
Here’s the truth: every performer grows at a different pace. Some are fast burners, others are slow burners—but both can become incredible. What matters most isn’t how quickly you learn, but how consistently you show up and work.
Performance is built on a balance of:
Skill – the techniques you learn and train for
Talent – the natural gifts you’re born with
Hard work – the effort you put in, even when it’s not easy
Determination – the drive to keep going, even when you want to quit
You can have talent without determination and still fail to progress. But if you combine even a little natural ability with consistent practice and perseverance, you can often surpass the most naturally gifted performers. Why? Because resilience, focus, and determination allow you to keep improving long after others plateau.
Think of it like this:
A dancer who struggles with picking up fast choreography but refuses to give up will eventually develop sharper memory and stronger focus than someone who never had to work for it.
An actor who stumbles over lines at first but practices with discipline will often bring deeper understanding and emotion to a role.
A singer who has to grind through scales and breathing exercises every day builds lasting technique, while a naturally gifted voice might falter without training.
Remember: If you’re not good at something right away, that doesn’t mean you never will be—it just means you’re still building. The strongest performers aren’t always the ones who start out the best. They’re the ones who stay the course, keep practicing, and use determination to transform weaknesses into strengths.
