At the Artz Centre, one of our key values is to ‘Aim High’, and we encourage each and every single one of our students to aspire to this idea; whether they are 3 or 93 years old. After all, there is no age limit on striving to be the best version of yourself.
So, when it came to staging our Infant showcase this year, we thought, why should this production be any less professional, with any less of a budget, or any less technical equipment …just because our performers are between the ages of 4 and 8? After all, it is never too early to teach our youngest friends to Aim High, and to create the opportunities for them to do so.
Now, you might think we’re absolutely mad taking to a full-scale professional theatre venue with 30 tiny humans in-tow; and don’t worry, we think we’re quite mad, too. But actually, there is a method to this madness. In the past, we have staged our Infant productions inside our Artz Centre buildings, with smaller audiences, and these events have been wonderful. However, this year, we changed our mindset, and realised there was a huge value in putting our Infants on the same stage that their Artz big brothers and sisters perform on, too.
The method to the madness, comes in providing high-quality creative educational platforms for our young people, no matter how young. This week, we’ve introduced 30 youngsters to the inner workings of professional theatre magic. Our Infants have had a full tour of the theatre, they’ve learnt a little about lighting and sound, they’ve worn microphones, they’ve negotiated curtain tabs, got to know the haze machine and learnt how to navigate our backstage areas safely. Theatres are extremely magical and exciting places, but they can also be dangerous, and a huge amount of learning has taken place this week to ensure our littlest performers are safe and knowledgable of the space around them.
But why have we placed such importance on our Infants receiving the same experience as our Junior and Senior students? The answer is really simple. It is never too early to inspire our young people, and whilst these brave 4 to 8 year olds will perhaps grow up to work in a whole host of careers beyond the arts, what they will carry with them is a hard work ethic, enthusiasm, passion, problem-solving skills and memories that will last their life-time.
