Video transcript
Schools Spectacular 2022 - Creating the Magic - behind the scenes - 03. The art of signing

JOSIE WOODS: I hope that the nation understands that there is so many more avenues in the performing arts for kids who are like me who want to do something with the performing arts and share their passion for Auslan. I can't wait to see what everyone does with it.

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BRADEN LANGLEY: It's been a great learning experience to incorporate Auslan into our entire performance. It's been so inspiring to watch Josie, and it's amazing to see all the younger kids that are going to be inspired by her at the front of the stage.

TEACHER: Hello, we're from Chertsey Primary School. We've come from the Central Coast. We are excited this year. This is our first year on Schools Spec, and we've bought students from our hearing support class and our mainstream along.

STUDENT: Hello, we are from Nepean CAPA (creative and performing) High School and from the Hunter Signing Choir.

ASHLEY NAPOLEONI: The process that I went through to incorporate Auslan into the choreography for the item, was to communicate with our featured artist, Josie Woods, and she created the signs for 'Fix You' and then sent them through to me so that I could analyse them as a choreographer. I then picked out particular motifs within each of the phrases of the lyrics and then decided which ones read well as a dance piece.

AMELIA MORELLO: I think Ash and I really feel the weight and the responsibility in order to do a really good job of incorporating those motifs, while also ensuring that the details are accurate and ensuring that they're read really well across to the audience, and I think that responsibility has transferred to our students.

NIINA OBUCHI: So, we were given a video of Josie doing the Auslan movement, and we manipulated the movement into our dancing and used different moves to connect the movement together.

TEACHER: It's not English word order, word for word. So, the English is off, and Auslan's more about meaning and feeling the signs and the meaning of the song.

CHARLIE NAGLE: I think it's important to use Auslan in a dance, because then it's more inclusive, and it sends more of a message to other dancers that they can dance and sign at the same time.

MOLLY OWEN: Well, it's definitely raising-- It's inclusive, and we get to see how Auslan is interpreted inside the dancers' dance, and we have the signing choir behind us as well, and I think it's really important that we're bringing everyone together through dance, singing and signing.

TEACHER: I think it helps teaching and learning for the students. So, even though students who don't sign at home will practise signing at school. So, that helps inclusion of everyone in the school.

ASHLEY NAPOLEONI: I think all of the elements that bring this item together will create a really strong impact for our audience, our signing choir, our featured signing artist, Josie Woods, the featured artist, and the dance cast, all coming together to create that beautiful signing artistry.

ILLAKIYA MURALI: I really think the audience-- Well, I hope, as well, that the audience really feel connected to us dancers and the Auslan signing choir, because it's a really great experience, not just for us, but for them to understand how we incorporated signing into our dance, and I really hope they feel magical after the performance.

AMELIA MORELLO: I believe it's going to be a really special moment. The show is called 'Creating the Magic', and this item certainly does in incorporating the Auslan signing. It's a really beautiful special moment.

JOSIE WOODS: Guess what? Performing arts is for everyone, and I can't wait to see you at Schools Spectacular 2022.

PERFORMERS: Schools Spectacular 2022, 'Creating the Magic'.

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