Arts Festival sparks creativity across Wellington College China

This is the first year in which all schools in the Wellington College China group have taken part in the Arts Festival. This is equally important because it encourages engagement across the entire Wellington Community. It brings together pupils, parents, and teachers from Tianjin, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Nantong to share in the joy of creation.

“I think this opportunity is so precious. I got to meet a lot of different Wellington pupils all across China. This really enables me to improve my acting skills and also builds up my confidence. So, thank you for this opportunity. And I believe that I will work harder in the future.”

— Kitty
Pupil, Wellington Hangzhou

“When I was creating, I felt very free, and just did what felt right, I could express myself through colours and different art styles.”

— Sienna
Pupil, Wellington Shanghai

The festival kicked off on Friday 13 October when a select group of nearly 200 of Wellington College China’s best artists came to Shanghai for our ‘Elite Pods’. This was a three-day series of enriching workshops in music, drama, dance and the visual arts at our Wellington and Hiba Academy Shanghai campuses. Our young artists and performers had a unique opportunity to learn from experienced professionals in their respective fields, showcase their talents, collaborate with their peers and develop their skills with an eye toward professional pathways.  

Visual arts pupils enjoyed a visit to Shanghai’s interactive light and sound exhibition TeamLAB, which served as inspiration for a massive multi-story painting installation that spanned several large canvases. Our dancers worked together, tackling some challenging choreography in intensive rehearsals, culminating in a captivating performance of jazz dance. Drama pupils devised a promenade performance based on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Our Elite Pod Orchestra learned and performed pieces by Strauss, Dvorak and Williams, whilst our choirs enjoyed singing a broad selection of contemporary, classical and folk choral works.

“I think playing different varieties of instruments really opens up my vision on music. I enjoy it. Expressing myself in different ways through music is what I like doing.”

— Emily

Pupil, Wellington Tianjin

Dramatic performances always require us to open up ourselves, greatly enhancing our ability to express ourselves. Now, when I am on stage, I am more confident. At the same time, dramatic performances demand a high level of English proficiency. We need to accurately describe how we perform, direct and design using a second language. As a result, my English writing skills have also greatly improved.

— Selina

Pupil, Hiba Academy Shanghai

The opening weekend of the Arts Festival was also an opportunity to showcase the results of our first group-wide art competition. Selected entrants had their works on exhibit in the Wellington Shanghai foyer. They submitted some spectacular drawings, paintings and mixed media pieces around the theme of ‘Connections’.

By the following Monday, all Wellington and Hiba pupils had a chance to get involved, with every campus across the group organising interactive school-wide opportunities for the entire week. This year’s theme was ‘time’, which opened up countless avenues for exploration and discovery.

In Shanghai, for instance, pupils could screen print their own ‘Arts Festival 2023’ tote bags, learn how to throw pottery, paint Chinese terracotta warriors or even contribute to a Dale Chihuly-inspired art installation in the College atrium. Bands, choirs, orchestras, dancers and actors were all showcased throughout each day and were joined in performance by The JZ Club musicians and singers from NYU SH. The week culminated in a flash mob performance of the song ‘Time Warp’ from The Rocky Horror Picture Show in the Promenade.

Hiba Shanghai’s Primary School took the entire Monday to ‘play with time’ in an immersive day of the arts. For the rest of the week, the school’s choirs and rock bands put on impromptu lunchtime performances and jam sessions. The week ended with an open rehearsal for the Hiba Shanghai Orchestra.

At Hiba Nantong, children showcased their talents in whole-school assembly. It featured choir and band performances and even a puppet show. Visual arts pupils also shared their works in feature videos.

In Hangzhou, our Hiba and Wellington pupils filled the week with daily music performances, visual art installations around the campus, dramatic monologues and melodrama performances.

Meanwhile, Wellington Tianjin dove deep into music, exploring jazz, baroque, classical Chinese and even Balinese gamelan. The school also had several collaborative visual art projects in the works.

Throughout the entire eight days, pupils, parents and teachers across the Wellington College China Family witnessed the transformative power of the arts. From painting to pottery, singing to sculpture and dance to design, it was an invaluable opportunity to enrich our pupils and inspire them to be learners, connectors and changemakers.