Arts News Term 3, Week 8 2026

MUSIC

SISTERS OF THE CHURCH

The Sisters of the Church schools reunited for a music festival choral tour last week. The group comprised SMC Chamber choir girls and four visiting Australian schools and toured around the South Island, performing in various venues along the way. Over 100 people travelled together in harmony, working alongside pre-eminent choral Director David Squire and pianist Hsing-Yin Lin.

New choral works had been specially commissioned for the occasion by local Christchurch composers Patrick Shepherd and Rosa Elliott. These works were learnt in advance, honed along the way with David’s expertise and guidance, and performed en masse.

One of the concerts took place at St Hilda’s Collegiate in Dunedin, who welcomed the group with their Kapa Haka in the school Chapel. Everyone was given a day off in Queenstown to experience the gondola, luge rides and a bit of shopping. After a beautiful culmination concert back in Christchurch, the girls were treated to Fush and Ben&Jerry’s to conclude the tour with fellowship and friendship. 

MUSIC SHOWCASE

The annual Music Showcase will take place next Thursday evening, highlighting various musical groups, a range of styles and student year groups. Please come and support our musical students if you can.

DANCE, DANCE, DANCE!

The 2026 Dance Showcase was a truly special evening celebrating the talent, creativity and dedication of St Margaret’s College dancers. The showcase brought together a wonderful combination of student- and teacher-choreographed works, highlighting the diversity and creativity of dance across the College.

Our talented dancers took to the stage with energy, commitment and confidence, leaving it all on the dance floor. Each performance reflected the many hours of rehearsals, hard work and collaboration that had gone into bringing the works to life.

A special mention must go to our Year 13 Dance students, whose choreographic works were a particular highlight of the evening. Their thoughtful concepts were brought to life through creative movement, strong performance and clear artistic vision. It was wonderful to see these students take ownership of the choreographic process and share such meaningful and engaging works with the audience. 

The evening also celebrated the special relationships that exist within our dance community, including the connections between our younger and older students. The sense of support, encouragement and friendship between our little sisters and big sisters was evident both on and off the stage.

The 2026 Dance Showcase was a fantastic celebration of dance at St Margaret’s College and a wonderful opportunity to recognise the passion, talent and commitment of our students. Congratulations to everyone involved in making the evening such a memorable success! 

Video link: Dance Showcase 2026

VISUAL ARTS

The I.B Arts exhibition takes place tomorrow - Friday 11 September from 4-5.30pm. Come and view our talented artists and their work on display in the Atrium of the Charles Luney Auditorium. 

THEATRESPORTS

Last Sunday, the Canterbury Schools Theatresports competition was held at the Court Theatre.  For the first time, SMC had two senior teams performing in the heats.  

Students took part in three rounds. The first was a blind round where they were given a game. They played the challenging 'shared style story,' where each student told a part of the story using a specific genre. Another game was 'word at a time'. 

The second round was a student choice round with students selecting their favourite game. For SMC, this was 'typewriter' and the chaotic 'half life'. In this game, students created a scene in one minute. Then they performed it repeatedly, but with the time cut in half.  Incorporating a one minute scene in one second is incredible to watch!  

The final round was a challenge round where they were given an object to incorporate into their scene. One team was presented with an embroidered cushion and the other a fire hose! 

Though neither team placed, they performed extremely well in closely fought competitions. Thank you to our supporters who came along. It was an afternoon of many laughs and fun for all.

DEBATING

The finals of the inter-school junior and senior debating competitions are taking place today, with a team in both finals. Next week, the Whiua Te Kupu debating tournament takes place against CC. We look forward to hearing more about both competitions next term.

SENIOR ARTS COUNCIL Broadway Bound!

The Arts Celebration will be taking place early next term. Join SMC staff and students for an unforgettable evening of captivating performances, tasty treats and immersive creative activities as we celebrate the Arts in 2026! 

Dress code: Broadway Bound! Show us your favourite hollywood icon, broadway star or simply come dressed for the red carpet. 

16th OCTOBER 4:30 - 6:45pm in the Charles Luney Auditorium and Atrium. 

Tickets should be booked in advance via Eventfinda - $10 TICKETS  
Get tickets here: Arts Celebration

CELEBRATIONS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

"Lizzie", a newly selected independent short film produced by Rippit Studios, has been selected for the Sydney Lift-Off. Rose Griffiths stars as the lead. A huge congratulations to Rose! 

The Sydney Lift-Off film festival supports ‘true-indie’ film and promotes emerging independent filmmakers, providing a space for collaboration and support for the next step in their career. The support is especially for first- and second-time directors working in shorts and low-budget movies. This takes place once a year during September.

OPPORTUNITIES

In collaboration with distinguished NZ writer and composer, Neill Pickard QSM, Enchanting Productions is thrilled to announce the first-ever multi-generational production of Sweet William or the Born to be Bard.

“Mr Pickard’s lively and witty show depicts Shakespeare’s boyhood in Stratford-on-Avon, his youthful marriage and domestic situation, early struggles as a writer in plague-ridden London, entanglements with the ‘Dark Lady’ and the enigmatic Earl of Southampton, and the flowering of his literary genius.” It also features Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, singing Greensleeves.

The show incorporates a variety of musical styles from jazz to rock, ballads to blues and swing to madrigals, and will be accompanied by a live band (including Richie Pickard, currently working with SMC jazz band) at The Piano 16-18 October. 

There are a number of our students involved, so please go and support them!

Louisa Thomsen - Barmaid

Mia Hearne - Lady MacBeth 

Rose Martin - Susanna Hall

Matilda Abbott - Judith Quiney 

Enchanting Productions

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY:

Music Festival area rehearsal 16 Sep

Music showcase 17 Sep

Senior Arts Awards 18 Sep

Term 4

Arts Celebration 16 Oct

Sedley Wells Orchestra Concert 20 Oct