The world of live performances and productions

Dressing up and pretending to be someone else is fun at any age!

School musicals and theatre productions provide this for tamariki, and also result in many educational benefits.

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Learning opportunities

Students studying drama will, of course, learn a lot from school performances, linked to the New Zealand Curriculum. But every student, across all year levels, abilities, and subject areas can enjoy the benefits of participating in a school production. Many skills learned through performance are transferable, and prove useful across multiple curriculum.

Exploring characters makes children think beyond their own situation, and consider the experiences of other people and places. This helps students to become global citizens, aware of the challenges and triumphs experienced by others.

Developing quick thinking, problem solving, and building self-confidence are all key benefits of school productions, as well as working as a team. This helps foster important social skills, like communication, problem solving and cooperation.

Dave McMillan from School Musicals emphasised that a school production is primarily a learning experience for the students. “The actual performance is not where most of the learning takes place – it is in everything that leads up to the performance. That learning experience should be affirming and enjoyable for the students. Ultimately, school productions should light or fan the creative flames for the students, to benefit from the experience for a lifetime.”

Dr McMillan said there are many advantages of staging an original musical, such as having stories and content that is culturally relevant to students, for example, te ao māori. “Performing original musicals is one way to help students understand that creative outputs developed from a NZ perspective are as creatively significant as those first performed on Broadway.”

Economic realities, though, may make staging original productions difficult in secondary schools. “Unlike primary and intermediate productions, participants are usually a small proportion of the school roll. So, friends and whānau won’t automatically fill the theatre seats. Hence the attraction of performing well known musicals at this level.

“Some secondary schools embrace original musicals every second year. The lower license fees and typically less restrictive licensing requirements help keep costs down. Staging in the school hall rather than a hired theatre also helps the budget.”

Regulatory obligations

In Aotearoa New Zealand, school’s must apply for and receive a license to perform their chosen musical or play. It is an offence to put on a production without a license, and scripts cannot be distributed, or rehearsals commenced, until the license has been secured. External providers are available to help schools navigate this process.

Isaac Martyn from Playmarket said obtaining a license before staging your production is essential. “If you are performing in class with only the students normally enrolled in that class present, or the piece is being judged as part of a closed examination process, you do not need a licence. These are the only exceptions. School productions and NCEA assessments with observers must be licensed,” Mr Martyn said.

“If the production cannot be performed live, often a streaming licence can be issued, though there will likely be an additional fee.”

Mr Martyn highlighted the benefits to students of staging local plays. “Plays by Aotearoa playwrights have cultural relevance for our students, are easily relatable, fresh, in our own vernacular, and often inform us of our past.”

And while it is a breach of copyright to make changes to a script without the playwright’s express permission, this can usually be obtained. “Playwrights are usually very happy to allow you to adapt their scripts to avoid anything you think is inappropriate for your students. Just make sure you enquire first for permission.”

The performance area

Before raising the curtain on your production, make sure you have a suitable performance venue. Staging should be an adequate size to fit the cast, and should be in good repair. If you do not have a stage, or the stage is too small, portable staging is a practical solution. This will also give you the flexibility to move productions outside, or to other areas of the school that do not have a stage.

Rob Harris from Seating Services New Zealand said modern stage systems are a convenient way to transform a multi-purpose space, providing flexibility and adaptability for your school performance.

“These are easy to install, dismantle, and with the use of trolleys it is simple to transport and store until your next event. A multitude of different configurations can be achieved including runways and tiered platforms. Extras include handrails, steps, and skirts, and the stages can be made weather resistant for use outdoors.”

Seats in performance areas, Mr Harris said, need to be durable and able to withstand regular use. “Comfort, practicality, and design should be top considerations to ensure an immersive and comfortable experience for attendees.

“Portable school seating allows for easy reconfiguration, so rooms can be quickly adapted for different activities. They are lightweight and easy to manoeuvre, and they can also be used outdoors,” Mr Harris said.

For spaces that need seating some of the time but not always, Mr Harris recommends a retractable bleacher system. “These have all of the advantages of a fixed seating system, allowing for comfort and safety while also allowing access to the floor space when not in use. It’s seating when you need it, floor space when you don’t!” Mr Harris said. Retractable seating systems can be custom designed to meet each school’s varying requirements.

AV equipment for a professional production

Proper lighting and audio equipment will help elevate your production to a professional standard. Equipment can be purchased or hired, and will be an asset to your school, used repeatedly for school assemblies, performances, productions and presentation nights.

Using AV equipment to record your production can help parents not present at the live performance access it, and can be used as a learning tool for students to identify things they did well, and things they could have done differently during the performance.

Jonathan Neil from Edwards said that school productions are a cornerstone of a well-rounded education, but can be stressful. “One area where schools can significantly reduce anxiety and elevate the production value is by renting professional-grade audio-visual (AV) and lighting equipment.

“Renting AV equipment is a smart investment,” Mr Neil said. “Schools get access to maintained and top-tier equipment, expert support, and peace of mind, allowing students and teachers to focus on what truly matters: creating a magical performance that shines.”

Mr Neil highlighted several benefits of hiring equipment for your next performance. “Rental companies test and maintain their equipment, ensuring everything from microphones to spotlights function flawlessly. This eliminates the pre-show scramble to fix a temperamental projector or a flickering stage light,” he said.

“Providing expertise at your fingertips, rental company technicians not only deliver and set up the equipment, but could also offer training to student operators. This ensures your crew can confidently operate the equipment, minimising the risk of user error.”

And on call support means your school will not be left stranded when Murphy’s Law strikes. “Technicians are readily available from the rental company to troubleshoot any issues that may arise during rehearsals or performances, saving the day, and the show!”

Helping students remain the start of the show, Mr Neil said that with some training, students can learn to operate basic AV equipment. “If you’ve got some keen AV monitors in the school, a quick session when the equipment is set up can familiarise students with the equipment functions.”

Euan Mackenzie from NAS Solutions said before investing in this type of equipment, it is important to define the creative requirements, and the budget. “From there, as system designers, we can talk through the technical requirements and what’s achievable within the available budget.

“The requirements of a system to support a battle of the bands contest are quite different to that of a musical stage production, for example. Likewise, it might not be sensible to purchase wireless microphones to facilitate an annual musical theatre performance when they could be rented from a production company as required.

Mr Mackenzie said there can be benefits to portable equipment. “A battery-powered speaker system with wireless microphone can be invaluable for sports events. However, if the school has a dedicated space for performances, an installed system can provide much better and more consistent results.

“Installed AV systems also support bespoke control, allowing teaching staff and students (passcode protected) access to the systems at the touch of a button. A single button press could ready the speakers, microphones, video wall or projector, screens, curtains, and lights for a presentation.

“With the right support students can begin to use technical production equipment such as a sound mixing console, or stage lighting in a learning capacity during the final years of secondary education. This can be particularly exciting for students that don’t participate in stage performances yet enjoy being a part of these productions.”