Genre Music performance Inaugurated 1984 Previous event 23 and 24 November | Frequency annual Most recent 2016 | |
 | ||
Location(s) Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney (2016-present)
Sydney Entertainment Centre (1984-2015) | ||
The Schools Spectacular is an Australian variety show featuring more than 3,000 students from across New South Wales and was performed annually at the Sydney Entertainment Centre until 2015, and at the Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney Olympic Park since 2016. Highlights of the Schools Spectacular are broadcast each year by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and in 2016 by the Seven Network.
Contents
- Past Themes
- Schools Spectacular 2008
- Schools Spectacular 2007
- Schools Spectacular 2005
- Notable alumni
- References
The actual performance is made up of many different pieces. A typical piece would have a spotlighted soloist singing on an elevated platform in the arena, surrounded by many dancers and actors. On the stage, the orchestra would be playing the instrumental part of the song while the choirs behind and next to the orchestra would be singing the chorus of the song.
The first Schools Spectacular was Schools Spectacular 1983 and was intended to be a sound test for the Sydney Entertainment Centre. Since then, the Schools Spectacular has evolved significantly. The 2012 event included 3,600 students and 600 teachers from 400 schools in four performances viewed by 30,000 people. Schools Spectacular 2016 broke the Guinness World Record for "Largest Amateur Variety Act", with 5,500 performers.
Schools Spectacular is broadcast as a telecast with the highlights by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), by the Seven Network in 2016, and as a first, webcast through the Internet onto their website, with the help and sponsorship by Cisco Systems. The Schools Spectacular is produced by 'The Arts Unit' of the New South Wales Department of Education and Training.
Past Themes
Each year the School Spectacular follows a theme, usually reflective of something Australian.
Schools Spectacular 2008
2008 marked the 25th anniversary for Schools Spectacular. It intended to bring back some of the most talented performers in the show's history (many who are now world-famous), from when it began in 1984 until today. It planned to highlight how the show had grown over the twenty-five years.
The event has grown to be one of the biggest shows on earth, also published in Guinness World Records for over 10 years now as "the world's biggest variety show", and claimed by audiences across Australia as "the most heart-warming event of the year".
The Spectacular starts off with hundreds filling the grand stage for the opening and builds by "thousands" in over three hours of non-stop performances and talent. Finally the cast of over 3500 of the most talented student performers across NSW return to the one stage for the finale.
Schools Spectacular 2007
Schools Spectacular 2007, dubbed "My Spec", had a schools preview performance on Friday 23 November 2007, followed by an evening performance on the same day. There was another performance at 2pm and 8pm on Saturday 24 November.
Schools Spectacular 2005
Schools Spectacular 2005 was dubbed "The Face of Australia" and celebrated the Australian history, landscape, goal and lifestyle. A tribute to Alec Campbell, the last surviving ANZAC, who had died in 2002, was in the production. Previous Schools Spectacular successes like John Foreman, who has hosted Schools Spectacular since 2001 and Human Nature made appearances during the show.