Bell Shakespeare performs for SHINE families in Bathurst and Sydney

15 November 2013

SHINE for Kids works to support many children across all years at Kelso Public School in Bathurst. At this school, which has a very high proportion of students identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, the children actively participate in a range of the valuable programs on offer at SHINE for Kids. These include the Bathurst Education Program, which works within this school two days a week; the Mentoring Program; Child/Parent Activity Days; Children's Supported Transport Service; Video Visits; and weekend childcare. A number of the mothers and carers attend our fortnightly Carers Group held at SHINE's Child and Family Centre Bathurst, located near the prison in Mitchell Road.

Kelso Public School is located within a lower socioeconomic area of the Bathurst region. With limited school funds that can be made available to children, opportunities to engage the students in theatrical performances can be very challenging to initiate.

So it was a real treat when the Bell Shakespeare Theatre Company kindly offered to come to the school on 24 October 2013 and perform for 180 students, 20 teachers, 5 SHINE for Kids staff and volunteers, as well as SHINE for Kids parents and carers.

The SHINE for Kids children were excited to learn that the performance from this acclaimed theatre company was dedicated to them, and their fellow students were grateful for being included in the audience for 'Double Trouble'.

Afterwards the cast was officially thanked by two school representatives and Trish Carr, our Child and Family Worker in Bathurst.

Following their Bathurst visit, Bell Shakespeare also performed for some of our clients at Dooleys Waterview in Silverwater in western Sydney on 15 November. The audience was drawn from SHINE families in Windsor, Parklea and Silverwater. The donation of a room by Dooleys is very much appreciated.

The Bell Shakespeare company offers a range of theatre productions aimed at different age ranges and presents a range of different themes for the audience to process; they have recently written a production targeted at Juvenile Justice offenders in NSW.