Dark auditorium, audience of school children are watching something unseen on stage or screen

Digital Teach

Our Digital Teach projects combine, opera, storytelling, composition and digital animation, giving Year 5 and 6 pupils the opportunity to be involved in the exciting creative process of making an animated film. Each Digital Teach animation explores the themes, storylines and music of a chosen opera from WNO’s current main scale productions, inspiring pupils to devise their own storylines, musical motifs and animations. 

Five primary schools work with our WNO composer and an animation team to create one story arc, with our talented composer weaving together pupils’ musical ideas to create a finished underscore. The result is a 7 – 10 minute animation created by over 120 pupils. The project links in with the National Curriculum’s Digital Competency Framework but also develops literacy, critical thinking, cultural and social understanding, composition and team working skills. 

We have delivered the project in Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Aberystwyth, Bangor, Birmingham and Liverpool.

At the moment there are no Digital Teach projects coming up, but please get in contact with schools@wno.org.uk if you would like to be informed of any more upcoming opportunities.

Gardd o Gerdd (Garden of Music)

On 22 June 2017, WNO orchestra performed a 'Summer Classics' concert at Pontio with Rebecca Evans (soprano) and Paul Charles Clarke (tenor). 
 
In the build up to this concert, as part of our ongoing partnership and residency at Pontio and our North Wales WNO Youth & Community programme, there were three months of drama, composing and digital workshops led by WNO creative team with 2 local primary schools, Ysgol Gynradd Llanrhug and Ysgol Gynradd Llanfairpwll. 
 
The result being this animated film devised by pupils on the theme of ‘Summer Classics’. Gardd o Gerdd was premiered in Pontio’s cinema on 22 June 2017 as part of our Digital Teach project.

Uprising! 

WNO worked with year 4/5 & 6 pupils from five primary schools across Liverpool using the Digital Teach model. Working with multimedia company Twin Vision and LIPA’s composer in residence Paul Mitchell-Davidson , pupils created a short animated film with underscore responding to the themes of our main scale Autumn season, Uprising! and Revolution, particularly focusing on the Industrial Revolution, which of course has great links with Liverpool as a city. The final film was screened at the Liverpool Empire when WNO were in residence.