2014 Royal South Street Society Annual Report

2014 Annual Report

Come and discover Australia’s rising stars

Royal South Street Society

2 - Royal South Street Society Annual Report 2014

Contents

President’s report � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 32014 Season hightlights � � � � � � � � � � 4,5Historical Sub-committee � � � � � � � 6,7Debating Challenge Cup � � � � � � � � � 8,9City of Ballarat Choral Conest � � � � � � � 10Contemporay Vocal and Country Music � � 11Victorial Band Championships � � � � � � � 12Freemasons Festival of Bands & Strings and Instrumental Solo’s � � � � � � � � � � 13Pianoforte � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 14Energetiks Dance Competition � � � � 15,16,17CommBank Calisthenics � � � � � � � � � � 18Classical Vocal and Heral Sun Aria � � � � 19W&D Speech and Drama � � � � � � � � � 20Facts and Figures � � � � � � � � � � � � � 21Our Volunteers � � � � � � � � � � � � � 22, 23Our Sponsors � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 24Our Staff � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 24Business Manager’s Report � � � � � � � � 25Financial Report � � � � � � � � � � � � � 26,27

2014 Royal South Street Board of Directors

Tony Cole Michael Porter Lloyd Harvey Georgia English Peter Zala

Ron HarringtonChairman

Dr John ClarkDeputy Chairman

Ric DunlopSecretary

Janice ShelmerdineTreasurer

Our Mission

To conduct Australia’s foremost Eisteddfod, promoting, fostering and encouraging participation

in the performing arts.

Our ValuesWe are friendly and professional.

We are respectful of diversity.We act with honesty and integrity�We are committed to excellence�

We provide opportunities for personal growth (experience, self esteem, participation

and performance).

Royal South Street Society Annual Report 2014 - 3

Chairman’s Report

Our Mission

To conduct Australia’s foremost Eisteddfod, promoting, fostering and encouraging participation

in the performing arts.

On behalf of the Board I am pleased to report on the 123 year of Competitions.

Sheree Chevalier did not stand at the AGM after serving several years as a board member and discipline chair. Ric Dunlop and Dr John Clark were elected to the board�

My thanks to Linda Kinnersly who spent hours making sure all of the entries that had problems with the Geni system were entered�

The official launch of the 2014 season was held on 24th July and was officially opened by the Minister of the Arts Heidi Victoria.

Debating started our year in July again being held in the City of Ballarat Council Chambers with the support of the City of Ballarat. This provides a great atmosphere for the students to perform in.

The VBL Brass Bands section was held back in the theatre after being held at Wendouree for a number of years. On Line Streaming of this competition was held with 1,800 browsers registered�

Congratulations to Brett Macdonald, business manager, Amanda Fewell, marketing and competition coordinator, Marilyn Furness, volunteer liaison, Jo Ely-Crase, marketing and competitions and Angelique Balmer, admin officer who did a great job in running the competitions this year.

We congratulate and thank our discipline chair persons and their sub committees for the time and effort they put in to their sections. A very big thank you to all of our volunteers who supported us during the year assisting in the office and working in the many positions required during the competitions.

Thanks to Ballarat South Rotary Club who again assisted in the purchase of additional usher uniforms. Congratulations to members of the Team Archive who were finalists in the Ballarat Volunteer of the Year Awards.

During the year Sarah Pullan resigned from the board and Angelique Balmer resigned from her position as admin officer and Jo Ely finished in November as her six month casual contract ended.

There have been a number of functions during the year organized by Marilyn for the volunteers to get together over morning tea and meet one another as well as the theatre training sessions�

Stems again sponsored the Showcase and it was a great event. Thanks to all the front of house volunteers for their work on the day and the backstage crew. A big thank you to Pam McKee for putting it all together and Karen George as compere.

A lot of work has already been done in upgrading our web site and preparations for the 2015 competitions are well under way with the Prize List on line and entries already coming in.

It has been a privilege and honour to serve as President and I thank everyone for their support.

Ron Harrington OAM


2014 Season Highlights



This year marks the fifth anniversary of the setting up of The Historical Sub-Committee, so I thought

that I would begin by giving a snapshot of the main achievements in those 5 years.

From the 2009 Report• The Historical Sub-Committee had its first

meeting on 15 June 2009. The committee had as its foundation members John Clark (Chair), Bev Elshaug, Les Holloway, Emma Sbardella, Lois Shepherd, and Bill Vincent; later, David Callinan, Barb Dunlop, and George Wilkins were added, and Bill Vincent resigned due to the pressure of other commitments.

• Its first task was to put in place a suitable recognition for the 130th anniversary of the foundation of the South Street Society on 10 July 1879. On 13 July 2009, a double page spread, including text and photos, appeared in The Ballarat Courier.

• In November 2009, South Street was successful in obtaining a Community Heritage Grant in excess of $8,000. The purpose of this grant was to enable South Street to employ experts to assess the significance of its archival collection and to suggest techniques to best preserve the collection.

From the 2010 Report• Stella Barber, a Consultant Historian from

Melbourne, carried out the significance aspect of this project between February and May 2010. Members of the Committee volunteered to embark on research projects that were personally fulfilling, gave them new skills, and at the same time played a vital role in providing raw material for Stella’s final report. Her report concluded that, when considered in isolation, many items in the South Street Collection are significant; furthermore, the entire collection is significant on a State and National level for its historical and research potential.

• Jude Fraser, the Grimwade Conservator at the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation at The University of Melbourne, visited the archives in May 2010 to assess the condition of our collection and to suggest ways to best preserve the collection. She presented her report in August 2010. She concluded that the majority of the paper-based collection is in fair condition, showing degradation that is typical of paper materials dating from the 1880’s. As far as the non-paper objects in our collection are concerned, Jude noted that storage of these

objects requires improvement to reduce the risk of damage to them. The main issue for our collection at this time, both the paper materials and the non-paper objects, was that there was not sufficient storage area to hold the collection safely; this problem is less of an issue now, since more space was made available following the Society moving to rented space in Eureka House.

From the 2011 Report• Since its formation in 2009, the Historical Sub-

Committee had been working towards its aim of conducting an Exhibition of South Street memorabilia, timed to coincide with the 120th anniversary of the first South Street Competition, which was held in the period 16 - 26 June 1891. The major task of the Committee in 2011 was to complete its preparation for the Exhibition, which was held at the Gold Museum from 8 August 2011 to 29 January 2012.

• The Exhibition proved to be a great success, and did much to enhance the profile of South Street. There were 98,882 visitors to the Exhibition. In financial terms, the Exhibition was self-supporting. Grants were obtained from the Public Records Office, and from the City of Ballarat. The Friday Boys made a generous donation. The Central Highlands Library permitted us to scan past issues of the Ballarat Courier free of charge, thereby enabling us to have a full set of newspaper records of the South Street Competitions. The Gold Museum not only provided space for the Exhibition at no cost to South Street, it also donated the time and expertise of its staff to set up the Exhibition and it financially supported the catering provided at the opening of the Exhibition.

From the 2012 Report• Plans were started to create an online Exhibition

(similar in content to the physical Exhibition held at the Gold Museum) that will be accessible through the South Street website. A post-graduate student in the Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies course at Deakin University assisted with the planning of this Exhibition.

From the 2013 Report• On the Heritage Weekend in May 2013, the

Committee was invited to set up an Exhibition in the Mining Exchange to feature the part played by South Street in entertainment in Ballarat from the 1800’s on.

Historical Sub-Committee


And now for the 2014 Report• The decision of the Board to restructure the Office,

which resulted in all the Office Staff leaving South Street, was extremely disruptive for the Historical Sub-Committee. It resulted in the loss of Emma Sbardella from the Committee. The magnitude of the loss of Emma is best realized when one considers the following comments made by Stella Barber, our consultant historian, in 2010: “Emma has had a greater impact on the organization than any one person has in many years. Her energy and vision seems to know no bounds. I sincerely hope that the organization takes her advice, as her ideas, if properly implemented, will ensure the Society survives for decades to come.” Emma has been tireless in initiating and driving the many good things that have been achieved by the Historical Sub-Committee.The decision of the Board also resulted in David Callinan drastically reducing his commitment to the Historical Sub-Committee. David has been solely responsible for the re-organization and cataloging of the entire archival collection. He has also had a huge impact on the amazing progress made in the vital task of digitizing the collection, through scanning, photographing, and typing in data. He and Emma gathered a team of volunteers around them to assist, called Team Archive.The loss of both Emma and David as a consequence of one bad decision is a tragedy for the Committee.

• Team Archive, and David’s earlier helpers, have included Stan Cole, Dave Evans, Christine Geljon, Dora Gotsis, Lynda Grant, Judy Mander-Jones, Angela McCann, Tarja Rolston, Leigh Simpson, Cat Vance, and Silvia Wetzel. They have made spectacular progress on their latest task of entering on to the South Street website the names of all the prizewinners since the inauguration of the South Street Competitions. Their rapid progress in this endeavour was brought to an untimely halt some months ago by the inability of the website to securely receive more input of data, but once the website is rebuilt in early 2015 their work will be able to continue.

• The work of Team Archive has been recognized in the wider community - they reached the final of the Volunteer Awards ceremony.

• The 28 June 2014 edition of The Courier contained a double page spread and a beautiful single page photo featuring the work of Team Archive.

• Archival presentations were made at the Eisteddfod Societies of Australia AGM in March, and at the Annual Meeting of the Performing Arts Heritage Network of Museums Australia in October.

• A piece was written concerning the Library of the South Street Young Men’s Debating Society; this will be included in the book These Walls Speak Volumes: A History of the Mechanics Institutes of Victoria to be published in 2015.

• Each year, the South Street office continues to receive a number of requests from the public for information, usually concerning relatives who were past South Street participants. Despite an amount of information now being available on the website, these requests continue to flow in.

Finally, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to my fellow members of the Committee for their support during what has been a difficult year for all involved.

John ClarkHistorical Sub-Committee Chairman

Image courtesy of The Courier


VenueThe City of Ballarat again made the Council Chambers available for the Debating Challenge Cup heats and finals. This has proven to be a very suitable venue for the event and it is hoped that it will continue to be available. Once again the assistance and co-operation provided by the staff in the Town Hall in setting up the venue and during the competition was outstanding.

Unfortunately the Council was unable to provide chairs for this year’s competition. This necessitated the hiring of chairs (arranged by Brett). It seems that it will again be necessary to hire chairs if the competition is run in the Council Chambers again in 2015.

ParticipationThe number of entries in the competition in 2014 was down on the previous two years. Overall 64 teams entered this year as compared to 76 in 2013 and 74 in 2012.

Numbers of entries by section were:Year 5/6 16 entries (20 entries in 2013)Year 7/8 24 entries (18 entries in 2013) Year 9/10 14 entries (24 entries in 2013)Year 11/12 10 entries (14 entries in 2013)

Although overall numbers were down, there were some schools that entered teams for the first time, or re-entered the competition after a break. Daylesford Primary School, Dana St Primary School and Phoenix P-12 College entered teams in the year 5/6 section for the first time.

The Committee does not believe that the decrease in overall entries is necessarily the start of a trend or needs to be of major concern. It is expected that some schools that have participated previously, but which did not enter teams in 2014, will resume their participation in 2015. Efforts will also be made to attract more new schools in 2015.

AttendanceWhile actual numbers are not recorded, it appeared that overall attendance at the debating sessions was up on last year. Door takings were $1,672 for the season.

Revenue and expensesA summary of revenue and expenses as provided by the RSSS office is attached. This does not include the cost of medallions but neither does it include the registration fees for the sessions conducted by Rebbecca Grime in March. It would seem likely that there would have been a small loss overall.

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE SUMMARYREVENUEEntry fees $ 1,690�91Admission $ 1,672�00Sales (Merchandise) $ 270�00Sponsorships $ 220�00Miscellaneous $ $9�50TOTAL $ 3,862.47EXPENSESAdjudicator fees $ 2,187�00Adjudicator travel $ 450�00Equipment hire $ 863�64Prizes $ 220�00Trophies $ 43�64Till shortages $ 00�50Guide books printing $ 314�34TOTAL $ 4,079.62BALANCE - $ 217,15

NB:Does not include cost of medallions.Does not include registrations for sessions run for teachers.

Support for New SchoolsThe Committee arranged for Rebbecca Grime, one of our adjudicators, to run a two session program for teachers who are debating co-ordinators in March. About 12 teachers attended each session.

Debating Challenge Cup


The focus of the sessions was on how to prepare for team debating and on the adjudication process. In addition new schools were able to borrow a DVD of a grand final debate to assist them in preparing for the competition. Two of the new schools took advantage of this.

Already one school has made a request for some support in the lead up to the 2015 competition. At its recent meeting, it was agreed that this is a role that could be taken on by members of the Debating Committee

The competitionThe standard of debating was again of a high standard. It was particularly pleasing to see schools that were participating for the first time, or after a break, performing creditably and in one case, winning its section.

Winners of the sections were:Year 5/6 Daylesford Primary School Year 7/8 Damascus College Group 3Year 9/10 St Patrick’s College GoldYear 11/12 Daylesford Secondary College Senior 3

Adjudicators:Adjudicators for the 2014 competition were:Year 5/6 Mr Tony ReyntjesYear 7/8 Ms Rebbecca GrimeYear 9/10 Ms Sasha LytasYear 11/12 Mr Rohan Kelly

The Committee was satisfied with the standard of adjudication in all sections. All adjudicators have been reimbursed for their expenses.

It is unlikely that Ms Sasha Lytas will be available again in 2015. A search has begun to expand that pool of adjudicators from which the Committee can select. Already two potential future adjudicators have been identified and contacted. One has indicated his willingness to be involved.

Changes introduced in 2014The number of volunteers rostered on to sessions of the competition was reduced in 2014. Previously two volunteers had been rostered for registration for each session. It was felt that it was unnecessary to have two people assigned to this role. On the basis of the experience of 2014 it is proposed to continue this practice.

Possible future changesThe Committee is considering developing a policy relating to the number of debaters who can be replaced from the original team when a team reaches the semi-finals. The Committee is also considering the introduction of unseen topics in the semi-finals of the year 11/12 competition.Both matters were discussed at the September meeting of the Committee and will again be considered at the first meeting in 2015.

Debating CommitteeTwo new members, Andrew Greenwood and Joy Pike, joined the Debating Committee in 2014. Their perspectives and experience have been a valuable addition to the Committee. Mr Ric Dunlop, after many years of outstanding contribution as Chairperson, has rejoined the Committee as the RSSS Board member. The Debating Committee currently consists of Ric Dunlop, Andrew Greenwood, Allyson Hankin, Gail Hirst, Debbie Marshall, Eric McLeod, Joy Pike and Gordon Reynolds. An invitation has been extended to Ms Hilary Pope to join the Committee after she expressed an interest in joining. Hilary is the Secretary of Ballarat Zonta, one of the sponsors of the Debating Challenge Cup.

Special ThanksI would like to thank the following for their contribution to the success of the 2014 Debating Challenge Cup.

• The Ballarat East Rotary Club and Ballarat Zonta again provided monetary prizes for the best male and female debaters (respectively) in each section.

• The various volunteers who fill important roles such as timekeeper, chairperson, stage manager, registration and ticket sales.

• Members of the Debating Committee for their input to the selection of debating topics, for advice on ways to make the competition more successful and for their time in assisting new schools.

• Gordon Reynolds (Deputy Chairperson) for his invaluable work in timetabling the debating program and in preparing crit sheets and the Chairperson’s sheets in particular.

• The office staff, who though new to the whole process, managed to provide the support when it was needed.

Eric McLeodDebating Chairman


City of Ballarat Choral Contest

The 2014 Choral Contest was highly successful in many regards. Firstly our entrant numbers

were significantly up on the previous year. The choral competition was run over three days and run into the evening on two of those days in order to accommodate the growth in numbers. As a result we did have some withdrawals but overall the numbers were still higher. All Choirs sung and performed brilliantly. They were well behaved and were a credit to their schools and conductors. Our adjudicator this year was Douglas Heywood OAM. Douglas is well known for his conducting of the Hallelujah chorus at GTV 9’s national broadcast of Carols by Candlelight and he has many years involvement in the community of Melbourne as an orchestral and choral conductor. During the competition he provided feedback to all competitors and an impromptu audience lesson on how hard the choirs work was well received.

I would like to extend a huge thank you for all the volunteers who assisted over the three days of the choral competition. There are a number of people I need to individually thank. Firstly Linda Kinnersley, the previous Chair of Choral. Linda had many of the background arrangements in place before handing over the reins, including the appointment of the adjudicator. This made my role so much easier. Next I would like to sincerely thank Barb and Ric Dunlop, Michael Stewart and Peter Zala. Your support, assistance and knowledge during the three days of competitions was invaluable and I would not have been able to get through these days without you. Finally I would like to publicly thank the RSSS staff. Brett, Amanda, Marilyn, Jo and Angelique. Together it was a great team effort. THANK YOU ALL!

Janice ShelmerdineChoral Chairman


Venue Her Majesty's TheatreThursday 11th. to Sunday 14th. September 2014

Adjudicators Lyn Gillett and Clair Everton

Section ChairLloyd Harvey

Sub CommitteeCarolyn Bennett, Brenda Ludbrook, Peter Zala

In 2014 we had four days allocated for this very popular section with four hundreds entries received for competition.

10 years and under : sixty two entries11 to under 14 years :one hundred and eleven entries14 to under 16 years: one hundred and seven entries16 to under eighteen years: seventy one entries18 and over: forty nine entries

The ensembles were not held due to lack of entries but they will be included in 2015 programme. This will be advertised and promoted. We are also including Country Music in the 10 years and under section.

Four days are ideal for programming allowing room for expansion. And alternation of Adjudicators allows them time to relax between sessions.

Lack of volunteers was a concern again this year, but we sincerely thank those who were willing to support on multiple sessions.

Special thanks to Her Majesty’s technical theatre staff for their assistance to the success of this section.

In behalf of our sub committee I sincerely thank the volunteers, theatre staff and our sponsors, the Freemasons of Victoria and especially Graham Hodge from Redwood Recording Studio for his years of free recordings handed out to our prize winners.

Brett and myself presented Graham with a Royal South Street plaque for the years of support he has given our sections.

To the Royal South Street office staff a special thanks for their dedicated efforts during their first year of competitions.

Lloyd HarveyVocal Chairman

Contemporary Vocal and Country Music


The Victorian Band Championships, in conjunction with the Victorian Band league

(VBL), were held over the weekend of Saturday August 16 and Sunday August 17 at her Majesty’s Theatre. This competition returned to the theatre after having been held at the Wendouree Centre for Performing Arts (Ballarat Grammar School) for a number of years. The WCPA had been an ideal venue, especially as to warm up space, but its hire cost, unfortunately, had become prohibitive. The return to the theatre was generally well received by the musicians of all grades other than A grade.

Fourteen bands over four grades, competed on Saturday, and thirteen bands over two grades competed on Sunday, all adjudicated by Dr.Sean Priest. Twenty seven entries for 2014 were pleasing as it maintained the same number of entries as 2013 which was substantially up on only fifteen in 2012. Last year at twenty seven was the highest number of entries since 2008, coincidentally also at twenty seven.

The Frank Wright Medal was awarded to Ian Douglas who has been president of Croydon Citizen’s Band for twenty four years, is current vice president of the VBL, has served as president on eight occasions and has served on the executive for thirty five years. This medal honours a famous Ballarat musician, Frank Wright, who conducted bands in Ballarat, adjudicated at South Street, and had an illustrious career in London as a professor at the Guildhall School of Music and was also Director of Music for the London County Council.

In closing I would like to express my profound thanks to Brett Macdonald and the RSSS office team, Doug McGregor – who does a marvellous job organising the sound recordings etc, Megan Stapleton and the executive members at the VBL, Dominic Brine (ABC Radio), Janice Ballinger (City of Ballarat Municipal Brass Band), Michael Jongebloed (Fine Music) - who organises percussion and is invaluable back stage, and our many RSSS volunteers who pitched in and helped in many various ways.

Peter ZalaBrass Bands Chairman

Victorian Band Championships


The 2014 season could hardly have begun in a less auspicious manner as far as this discipline

was concerned. Barely had the 2014 program been set up, putting in place the recommendations of the Schools following the 2013 season, and adjudicators appointed, when the RSSS Board announced a restructure of the Office. This ultimately led to the departure of all of the Office Staff (Emma Sbardella had put the Instrumental Section together in 2013), and the resignation of Brian McInnis from his position as the Chair of Instrumental Solos and the Freemasons Festival of String Orchestras and Bands.

John Clark and Ric Dunlop took over from Brian, Ric being the Chair of Instrumental Solos and String Orchestras, and John the Chair of Bands. One of their first tasks, with the assistance of Brett Macdonald, was to rebuild the confidence of the Schools and the Sponsors in South Street; because no attempt had been made to supply the Schools and the Sponsors with information about the changes in personnel at South Street, rumours concerning the 2014 Competition were rife.

The new Chairmen and the new Office Staff were on a steep learning curve as they prepared for the Competition. But with the invaluable help of Michael Jongebloed, an extraordinarily generous supporter of the instrumental discipline in many ways for more than a decade, the solos were ready to begin as scheduled on 26 August, followed by the Freemasons Festival on 30 August. The adjudicators, the Schools, the audiences, and the volunteers all rated the 2014 instrumental discipline as a success.

The level of entries in the Freemasons Festival this year amounted to 170, which was a marginal decrease on the number of entries in 2013. The most worrying decrease in the levels of entry in 2014 occurred in a number of the percussion sections, the jazz combo, and the novice string orchestras. Following the completion of the instrumental program, steps have been taken to boost entries in these sections in 2015.

Ric and John want to express their thanks to all those who assisted them in the running of this years competitions. This includes the adjudicators (Julia Stoppa, Dave Newdick, Paul Jones, Peter Bandy, William Van De Vis, Andrew van Gemert, Brian Hogg, Cort McLaren, Roger Schmidli, and Robert Wagner), the volunteers back stage and front of house, and the Office Staff. John is also extremely appreciative of Ric taking on the complete preparation for the competition in the 3 weeks leading up to the Bands competition when John was out of action. And, of course, the competition in its present form would not be possible without the generosity of our many sponsors.

In his Annual Report for 2013, Brian McInnis paid tribute to the work done by Emma Sbardella. Ric and John wish to record the thanks of South Street for all that both Emma and Brian have done in the past to develop such a wonderful instrumental competition.

Preparations are already under way for the 2015 competitions. A survey was sent to Schools at the conclusion of this year’s competition, and the recommendations discussed at a meeting of selected schools with Michael Jongebloed and South Street representatives. As a result, there will be a number of significant changes in 2015. Further, about 50 schools within 100 km of Ballarat that did not enter the competition this year have been invited to send groups in 2015, and a number have already agreed to do so.

Ric Dunlop and John Clark Instrumental Chairmen

Freemasons Festival of Bands & Strings and Instrumental Solo’s


The first day of Pianoforte was this year held in the Humffray Room at the Mechanics’ Institute. The

different venue was well received by competitors, audience and teachers. The room was comfortable and convenient to local cafes and as this was the day for the youngest competitors it also attracted the largest audience.

The only problem was that Piano Tuner Phil Cockerill felt that the small grand piano at the Mechanics was not up to competition standard and kindly offered to bring in a suitable piano for the day. This was an upright piano and there were no complaints about its quality.

The adjudicator Anthony Halliday gave helpful advice and was very pleasant when addressing the young students. His choice of music for the August Challenge was a piece to be played with the left hand only. However only one competitor interpreted the music correctly and played with one hand. This was a true challenge!

The work of the volunteers was very much appreciated however there were some communication difficulties. It may be appropriate to have a short information session prior to the section as some did not understand the procedures and protocol.

Entry numbers were similar to the previous year except for the continuing decrease in the number of entries received in the Under 19 and Open sections. As a result we do not feel that the Frank Robertson –Smith Scholarship of $300.00 should be awarded in this age group until entries increase. Instead an award in each of these age groups in Frank’s name will be initiated.

The Jazz Section that was introduced this year will be continued with a requirement being that the piece must include some improvisation.

Junior Chopin attracted 11 entries with 3 withdrawals. 2 students had over committed to the preparation time required for their entries in the Under 16 sections. It is hoped that next year this section will be well supported. We thank Andrew Cochrane for donating the prize money for this section. The winner this year was also Highly Commended at Chopin at the Gallery

Copyright papers still were difficult to enforce and it is suggested that teachers may be able to do a bulk list to save the copious amount of paper.

Previous winners of awards in an age group to be checked due to a misunderstanding this year.

It is a request of this discipline that any issues during the competition be addressed through the Piano Chairperson and that teachers do not interfere with volunteers on duty.

There was some discrepancy between the geni entry and the guide book this year but we are sure that this will be addressed in 2015.

Chopin at the Gallery attracted 10 entries with one withdrawal. The standard was very high and due to the continued generosity of Andrew Cochrane an additional Encouragement Award was given.

The Gallery continues to be a popular venue with a lovely atmosphere. The audience was greater than the previous year and it is hoped that we may reach close to capacity in 2015 as it is the 10th year.

Kristian Chong was the adjudicator and he provided detailed and useful comments to all competitors.

We thank Phil Cockerill for the preparation of the piano, Wendy Rechenburg for chairing the performances, the Art Gallery of Ballarat for the use of the Danemann Grand Piano and Peter Freund for the use of the Oddie Gallery.

Thanks to my assistant Lynn Bowman who, as always, provides very willing support and comment.

In 2015 Wendy Rechenburg will join our committee and we welcome her expertise in this discipline.

Marion BlythmanPianoforte Chairman

Pianoforte


SummaryI would firstly like to stress that the overall running of the 2014 competition differed immensely to previous years, due to the obvious changes in the RSSS Office staff under the direction of the RSSS Board at the time.

I feel that from February 2014, the season was affected initially by a lack of transparency and discontent amongst volunteers which was followed by a lack of knowledge and experience in staffing. This continued throughout the 2014 season and caused consistent delays and errors, including issues with the collation of guidebooks, rosters and backstage documentation. I understand and empathise with the newly appointed staff and trust that the RSSS Board has addressed the shortfalls in training so that the 2015 season will not be plagued by the same issues.

Dancing ran for 18 days, from Wednesday September 17th (morning session) to Saturday October 4th. We had 2,489 entries in total for 2014, which is 145 more entries than 2013 (up 6%). Troupe entries remained on a par with 2013. Overall 85% of entries attended. The daily program followed the same format as recent years with shorter session times.

We had a number of issues with music playing, due to either scratched CDs or music burnt to CD in a differing or incompatible format. In most instances we were able to play the CDs through the HMT laptop with the valuable assistance of the HMT techs.

Our lack of volunteers remained an issue as in previous years.

We had good audience numbers, however this is an area which may be improved.

Our adjudicators were Felicity Hader (NSW) who was a first time adjudicator to RSSS and Joanne Ansell (NSW) who has adjudicated in previous years.

PreparationAs stated above, the loss of several years of experience and competition acumen played a significant role in the preparation of the 2014 season with issues arising including the confirmation of sponsors and trophies. In addition, schools and entrants noted a lack in the reminders and information that had been emailed in previous years. Jo did a great job in collating the Backstage Forms required for Groups and Troupes once they were available on the RSSS website and her experience gained in 2014 will be missed in the 2015 season.

Entries & Actuals Entries were up 6% to 2489. Solo entries were down in U6 (down by 23%); in U8 (up 8%); in U10 (up 10%); in U12 (up 5%); in U14 (up 14%); in U16 (up 9%) and Open (down by a significant 30%). Entries for the Junior Ballet Championship were up 27% and Junior Tap Championship were also up by 40% on 2013 entries. Entries for the Open Championships were all up on last year with the exception of the Courier Classical, though it was only slightly down, as follows: Courier Classical (down 1%); Pirouette Modern (up 19%); Senior Tap (up 50%) and Senior Theatrical Champ (up 90%) on last year’s entry numbers. Duo/Trio entries were down on last year for U13 by 25% and Open was on a par to 2013. Entries represented 63 schools from Melbourne (55%), Country (25%), Interstate (5%), and Ballarat (15%). Overall actual attendance was a gratifying 85%.

Energetiks Dance Competition

Entry 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009

All entries 2489 2344 2234 2101 2414 2233

Troupes 231 232 220 215 273 254

All schools 63 24 64 77 65 72

Troupe Schools 22 16 21 24 31 27

New Schools 2 2 10 14 3 13

Actual turn-ups 2118 2010 1911 1802 2015 1842

85% 85.7% 85.7% 86% 84% 82.5%

Actual troupes 207 184 184 190 220 216


Program Due to the increase in the number of entries, we had to commence the 2014 season on Wednesday morning (compared to Wednesday evening in 2013). The Production Schedule included additional information regarding Section Requirements which assisted ease of understanding backstage and with the HMT technical staff. We scheduled the Ballet and Theatrical Championships together in the same sessions, to encourage audience numbers, following complaints in 2013 of the lack of audience for the Theatrical Championships. We also scheduled the Championships at the end of age sections and this proved more successful. The Production Schedule was produced in good time. Assistance was given to the new RSSS office staff in relation to understanding the Production Schedule and its role in collating the Guide Book. The Guide Book is normally completed before the commencement of the ‘live’ season, however this was not possible under the difficult circumstances of 2014.

Adjudicators We welcomed Felicity Hader (a new Adjudicator who was referred by 2013 Adjudicator Amanda Clerke) and Joanne Ansell (who has adjudicated over previous years), both from NSW. They worked well together, however there were some complaints from teachers in relation to the critique sheets and noting there were repetitive and terse comments.

Teachers requested that future Adjudicators are made aware to bear in mind the age of the competitors. Another request by the teachers was that Adjudicators do not leave out one child in prizes in a section, particularly a Championship section which is presented on stage. These suggestions have been included for the Greeting Note for future Adjudicators. We are also in the process of reviewing Adjudicator selection criteria with a focus on obtaining more diverse Adjudicators and with a view to sourcing a greater scope of choices for the upcoming competition seasons.

The Comps Special thanks to Dr. Anthony Cole for his efforts in overseeing the “bump in” and “bump out” of Dance from Her Majesty’s Theatre, in particular at the conclusion of Dance when there was pressure to have the Theatre ready for its forthcoming scheduled events.

We presented 2,118 items over 18 days, with days starting at 9:00am and concluding on average by 10:00pm, with four late nights around 11:00pm. Morning and Evening sessions were timetabled to run slightly shorter than the afternoon sessions at approximately 3 ½ hours, with Afternoons sessions averaging 3 ¾ - 4 hours. We had good meal breaks

and plenty of Tech/hanging of flys time, with the exception of the Under 10 Group/Troupe afternoon when we commenced late due to adjudication time running over. We requested the Adjudicators to be aware of the timing and this helped slightly.

Our busiest days were in Under 8, Under 12 and under 14. Once again RSSS Volunteers, Staff and HMT people worked exceptionally well as a unit, considering the training requirements of the new RSSS office staff. Teething issues caused some problems with backstage Group/Troupe reports not being ready side stage for the Fly Time before Groups Sections. There was also an error in the calculation of the U16 Age Aggregate winner. Although most embarassing, this was quickly rectified through discussion with Dr. Cole, the relevant teacher and the Dance Committee present at the time and we were able to award a Special Encouragement to this competitor.

Identification Tags were once again utilised well, with many schools continuing to take advantage of the opportunity to market their schools by providing lanyards and branded name tags for their students. Dressing rooms were well-utilised and numbers backstage maintained within required guidelines. With the loss of the Melba Room as a dressing room, we were fortunate to obtain the use of the large room in Unicorn Lane. This area provided dressing room and warm up facilities for up to 4 schools and multiple competitors. Unfortunately, this room will not be available to us in 2015 and we will need to look for an alternate option. Dressing room space will be one of our biggest concerns for the 2015 competitions. The Lyric store-room was also used for storage of larger props.

The Registration desk once again was placed in the Green Room and this continues to be a successful change in backstage procedures. We relied heavily on a few regular backstage crew, with welcome relief from other volunteers but found once again, filling the positions of Security at the backstage door and the tunnel, our biggest challenge in relation to the volunteers’ roster.

My gratitude goes to the HMT Techs and Liz Mundell who were very accommodating in most requests by RSSS or teachers and were invaluable when dealing with the music/CD/sound issues.

Comp Problems Many of the problems faced this year were understandably a result of inexperience and this will be slowly rectified by having gone through a ‘live’ competition. A decline in volunteer numbers following the RSSS AGM was noticeable but we also saw some new faces and some volunteers returned as the competitions progressed.

Energetiks Dance Competition Continued


Incorrect entries and requests relating to entries were increased this year in the RSSS office, due predominantly to a lack of general knowledge and experience with the Dance rules and HMT procedures. Understandably, it will take time to gain this knowledge and experience. I suggested the new Office staff attend some sessions in Dance to gain some understanding of the back stage requirements, in particular the Group/Troupe sections, however this was not possible due to their roster and office commitments. I hope that attending sessions backstage in 2015 will be taken advantage of, to assist with gaining competition acumen. CD problems, as mentioned above, were dealt with promptly thanks to the quick attention and expertise of our HMT Techs. Use of the projector was less than last year and schools utilising this option had met the requirements of booking a light plotting session to ensure the process ran smoothly.

Ushers and lack thereof, caused the usual issues that we have been experiencing over recent years. However, the RSSS Office maintained a constant review of volunteer availabilities and responded quickly to filling the gaps in the roster.

Comp Joy Despite the few issues above, we once again all worked very well together and were able to rely on each other for support and assistance. The ongoing rapport between RSSS and HMT ensured a smooth-running Comp, with only a couple of time delays when adjudication was tardy.

Safety There were no hold-ups over safety and props, with compliance being upheld well by those utilising props. We had no major falls by dancers and use of first aid was minimal with the HMT staff providing necessary assistance when required.

Audience Ticket prices increased 20 cents on last year to include the $1.50 HMT booking fee (was $1.30).

Total audience (excluding competitors) was 7309, up 129. Ticket income was up 16.5 % to $77,289. An additional $29,052 was received for Multi Passes. Workers A small but dedicated team managed to man almost 400 Backstage-rostered positions. Unfilled positions at the start of Dance were efficiently filled, with the bulk of the unfilled backstage positions for Security (tunnel & back door). As previously advised, this is our biggest area of concern, along with FOH ushers.

Our volunteers once again worked with abundant enthusiasm, knowledge and camaraderie with many being introduced to the new Office staff, as volunteers did an exceptional job with filling the “help” requests for both Backstage & FOH Ushers.

We hope to discuss a more structured initiative in relation to filling volunteer roles with the Office staff for the 2015 season so that we may build on our volunteers to ensure the viability of the Competitions.

As in recent years, we relied completely on a small number of incredibly committed volunteers who repeatedly filled gaps where necessary. Our gratitude goes to the Dance Committee who continually and enthusiastically committed of their time and efforts to ensure everything ran smoothly.

Groups, Troupes &Special Events The group work was outstanding, with Ballarat schools winning 24% of placings (1st, 2nd or 3rd). Melbourne schools represented the majority of the placings in the Theatrical Troupes, with Michelle Slater-Coyne Performing Arts School once again taking the Teachers Aggregate.

• Courier Classical won by Emily Bray (Carrum Downs)

• Pirouette Modern Champ won by Tahnee Simpson (Ballarat)

• Senior Theatrical Champ won by Isabella Farley (Point Cook)

• Grand Aggregate went to Abbey Lavery (Ballarat East)

• Teachers Aggregate won again, with outstanding work by Michelle Slater

Sincere Gratitude My sincere gratitude goes to the wonderful and ever-efficient Dance Committee: Dr. Anthony Cole, Kerryn Gledhill, Lisa Pyke, Ray Pezzutti, Karen George and Karen Biggelaar. Thank you all most sincerely for your encouragement and in particular, your valued support in what was a personally challenging year.

In conclusion, my heartfelt appreciation goes to the amazing Volunteer Helpers who give so selflessly of their time to ensure we presented yet another wonderful competition.

Angela CannizzaroDance Chairman


CommBank Calisthenics

Calisthenic commenced on Sunday 12th October and finished on Saturday 1st November.

Operating in two venues: Wendouree Centre of Performing Arts and Her Majesty’s Theatre.67 sessions were held over the 21 days. Three less sessions than last year and five less days as six days were held concurrently.The Commonwealth Bank continued as a sponsor.Adjudicators were:1st Period: Marion Longstaff, Vic. Paula Hessey, Vic.2nd Period: Helen Simmons, Vic. Bronwyn Lloyd, Vic.Sub-Junior and Junior Championship panel: Barbara Nickless, Vic. and Dianne Houston, Vic. 3rd Period: Margaret Bourne W.A. Kerryn Waddell, Vic. Senior Championship. & Championship. Reserve Panel: Barbara Nickless Vic. Julie Fox, Vic. 4th Period: Shirley Pettitt, Vic. Cheryle Ablett S.A.Intermediate Championship Panel: Julie Fox, Vic. Dianne Houston, Vic

Entries No of Entries Cancellations No of

competitors

Tinies 49 1 134

Sub-junior 568 3 1108

Junior 613 5 1051

Intermediate 524 6 877

Senior 628 8 1250

Solo 26 26

TOTAL 2408 23 4446

Entries were up 25 on last year. Inters down by 134 and Sub Jnr were up by 116. 93 Clubs from Victoria, S.A., W.A. Qld. N.S.W. and A.C.T., competed. 4 more than last year. We had a total of 17 interstate clubs. Five more than 2013 and one of these is a new club from S.A.The Graceful Solo was again sponsored by Peace & Quiet (owned and operated by UFS Dispensaries.) Victoria had twenty entries, W.A. 4 and two from ACT. The winner was Megan Roughana from VIC.Graceful Girl and Senior championship sections. In all 4 sessions. $91,749 (LY $79,316). All other Calisthenics box office takings totalled $141,965 (LY $123,975). Total box office takings recorded for the Calisthenic section was $233,714 (LY $203,291. This does not include RSSS office after hour’s sales of $36,235. Calisthenics admissions are 63% of all admissions and entries 43% of all entries. This was a difficult year with calisthenics operating in two venues for the first week.

Thanks to Julie Wiseman for putting everything together along with liaising with Aaron the Wendouree technician. Sharon Mason and Kerryn Gledhill did a great job helping Julie by sorting into order all of the lighting and curtain sheets. Thanks go to the entire front of house and back stage crew who did extra work to get us over that first week as we were stretched to the limit.We trialled wrist bands at Wendouree for admittance and it worked well not having to issue pass outs.This year the theatre required us to have three more ushers than usual on the Senior Championship sections. This proved very difficult as we just don’t have enough volunteers. Lots of times the office staff had to fill in as ushers, even Jo’s husband Josh. Marilyn Furness did a great job of doing the rosters for our ushers, no easy task.A big thank you to all of our dedicated volunteers who worked as ushers, back stage crew, dressing room check and stage door security. We are most grateful to them.We were not in the theatre for one week due to the request of the City of Ballarat and Ballarat Regional Tourism board because of the International Masters Rowing Competition being held in Ballarat.The theatre used the free week to put on several shows requiring our entire infrastructure to be taken down, stored away and then having to be set up again. A terrific job by everyone involved in making sure this happened and a very big thank you to everyone.The theatre techs did an excellent job with the lighting and backstage requirements along with Jo and her box office staff who also have a big job to do. Thank you for the work you all do.Janet McCulloch does a wonderful job supervising the Long Room for the clubs to go and have their lunch and tea meals. Thank you Janet.Special thanks to the board, their partners and life members for the help and support they give me and Dawn, and to those that helped her with suppers. I thank my sub-committee and deputy Dawn for their assistance. Thanks to Brett, Amanda, Marilyn and Jo for all the work they do in the preparation and managing of the Calisthenic section. To my wife Dawn for all the work she does a big thank you. I couldn’t manage this section without her help. A meeting was held with officials from CVI, VCCA, and adjudicators In November to go over the recent event and have the changes for 2015 presented to us.

Ron Harrington Calisthenics Chairman


Unfortunately I have to report that this section is languishing. There were 124 entries this year

which compares with 370 in 2004 which represents a decline of 66.5% over the last ten years. Ten years ago the appearance rate was 73% over twenty song categories and this year the appearance rate was 69% over thirteen events.

This phenomenon is generally widespread over most eisteddfodau and is by no means confined to South Street. Of further concern is the less than heartening standard of performance, so much so that the adjudicator this year judged the Stage Musical songs as a concert performance rather than taking into account musicality, vocal techniques etc. and declined to award the encouragement prize. The adjudicator was a very experienced singer and adjudicator from Sydney, however, having an interstate and experienced adjudicator did not, unfortunately, advance the competition.

For some years we have seen the trend in vocal competition shift from classical to contemporary, and competitions across the country are finding the same development as us in that contemporary vocal

competitions are experiencing very strong growth at the expense of classical singing vernacular. Over a very long period of time the classical repertoire represented the contemporary scene but this has now changed rather dramatically. Some anecdotal examples are illuminating: It is reported that the more recent teachers of singing have grown up with the contemporary style and so that teachers in the classical idiom are becoming fewer and fewer; a director of Opera Australia informed me a couple of years ago that the company is having difficulty in casting some male roles, and an experienced classical vocal adjudicator who coaches VCE students at one Melbourne secondary college, has some twenty students, no real change from about ten years ago, however ten years ago all were singing in the classical genre but today all but one student is singing in the contemporary style.

In an effort to encourage entries for 2015 we have had the matter raised at a recent conference of the Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing (ANATS) which has highlighted the problem with its membership in it’s newsletters. We have produced an attractive coloured poster which ANATS has kindly mailed to it’s membership promoting our classical vocal competition.

In recent years this section has been chaired by Juanita Baldock who unfortunately for us has had to step down occasioned by the family moving from Ballarat. Juanita has done a sterling job in a section of our competitions which has become progressively more challenging. I would also thank Pam Lee, the deputy of the section, for her tireless work, and I am very pleased that Helen Noonan, an experienced singer and performer, has joined the committee.

The Herald Sun Aria received forty two entries in 2014, which is fairly normal and the aria was won by Katherine Radcliffe, a soprano, from Croydon VIC; Lucinda-Mirikata, a soprano, from Newtown NSW, was awarded second place; and the encouragement award went to Maximilian Riebl a counter tenor from Carlton VIC.

The panel of three adjudicators was led as usual by Richard Dival supported this year by Roxane Hislop and Tiffany Speight. The Herald Sun Aria continues to have a strong presence and influence in the music world. My profound thanks goes to the many people who contribute outstandingly each year to this prestigious event.

Peter ZalaClassical Vocal Chairman

Classical Vocal and Herald Sun Aria


Speech and Drama ran from August 11-14 inclusive, 2014. It was highly successful with

an increase in entries on previous years (we continue to grow) and an increase in audience attendance. We continue to be thrilled by the level of participation and by the positive and friendly atmosphere that is being generated during the competitions.

Our adjudicator, Ms Janine McKenzie, came from Geelong. Her comments and insights were much appreciated.

2014 was not kind to our committee, with both myself and Sallyanne Vawdrey (a teacher and committee member) suffering serious illness. Owing to illness, I was unable to attend after day one of the competitions, but the committee organised that a committee member was present for each session. Thanks are especially due to Kris Carroll, the Deputy Chair, for making herself available to cover extra sessions. It is clear that we have a strong committee who can pick up the pieces. Committee members in 2014 were: Sallyanne Vawdrey, Penny Powell, Alexandra Meerbach, Kris Carroll and Tammy Vandenberg. While thanks for their dedication and effort is always appropriate, it is particularly so given the difficult circumstances in 2014.

One area for improvement emerged from the 2014 competitions: as a result of increasing numbers and new teachers becoming involved, the committee has decided to clearly articulate ‘house’ rules/definitions for 2015 which will be made available to teachers and adjudicators in order to ensure that competitors are not disadvantaged by variant interpretations of poetic forms, genres and expectations of particular sections.

It must also be noted that a life member, previous chairman of the board, and strong supporter of Speech and Drama, Mr Ronald Morgan, died in December. Ron attended the Speech and Drama in 2014 and presented the Ron and Monica Morgan aggregate award in the under 14 age group. He has been a strong presence at the Speech and Drama for many, many years (having competed there himself as a boy and young man; then having taught; and then chaired), and will be sadly missed by students, teachers, volunteers and parents

Mary-Rose McLarenSpeech and Drama Chairman

W&D Finance Speech & Drama

$330KThe value of the hours

worked by our volunteers in 2014

The most common age of a South Street

competitor is 15


Facts and Figures

123rdyear since our

first competition

$330KThe value of the hours

worked by our volunteers in 2014

$14m

South Street annually contributes $14m

to the Ballarat economy

6970Section entries

in 2014

The most common age of a South Street

competitor is 15


Our Volunteers

Volunteer Milstone Anniversaries

Alex Ball 10Denise Wright 10Graeme Hodder 10Hetty Crouch 10Lesley Lyons 10Lorraine Forbes 10Marion Blythman 10Mavis Lancashire 10Meridyth Sutherland 10Takako Saito 10

Amanda Milton 11Cheryl Russell 11Harry Gibcus 11Helen Emery 11Helen Kinnersly 11Kristen Carroll 11Wayne George 11

Barbara Turner 12Gail Lock 12Graeme Strachan 12Ione Myers 12Jeff Lock 12Joan Jamieson 12Linda Danvers 12

Kerrie Corcoran 15

Stana Lewis 17

Lois Sheppard 18

Daryl Shipham 20Janet McCulloch 20

Amanda Bridges-Lucas 21

Bob Matthews 22

Barb Dunlop 24Ric Dunlop 24

Anthony Cole 31Barbara Cole 31Dawn Harrington 31John Chenery 31Ron Harrington 31

Peter Zala 36

Lorraine Harvey 54

Lloyd Harvey 57


Lorraine AdriaansChristine AllenSandra AssaadJuanita BaldockAlex BallAnn BallKristie BarkerAdela BartropPaul BeecheySusan BeecheyJoan BellCarolyn BennettKath BennettsLisa BennettsKaren BiggelaarYvonne BiggsJoan BinneyPhilip BinneyJohn BlythmanMarion BlythmanCarolyn BourkeLynn BowmanAmanda Bridges-LucasJill BroadbentRalph BroemmerLouise BrooksAndrea BrownCherie BrownStacey BrownhillRicardo BuensucesoRay BullHelen BurzacottMichelle ButterworthAllison BykersmaChristine CallaghanDavid CallinanAngela CannizzaroKristen CarrollSimon CarrollCaron CavalierSheree ChevalierJohn ClarkVal ClarkPeter CocksAnthony ColePat ConroyTanya CookMaria CookKerrie CorcoranThomas CorcoranAngela CoxDzintra CrockerHetty CrouchArnie CurrieJoyce CurrieKaren DaniellKerry DaniellNoreen DaniellLinda DanversNorma Day

Keith DriscollBarb DunlopRic DunlopJulian DziobaMaurie EdlundVivienne EdlundBeverley ElshaugRobert ElshaugHelen EmeryGeorgia EnglishDavid EvansJennifer EvendenJill FilmerSandra FishwickRon FlemingKaren FlorenceLindsay FlorenceDonna FlynnLorraine ForbesMaureen FoulkesLauris FranksChristopher GardnerChristine GeljonKaren GeorgeWayne GeorgeAnn GladmanKerryn GledhillPamela GoodfellowTheodora GotsisRobyn GouldEmily GracieDenise GrantLynda GrantStephen GrantAndrew GreenwoodGlenys GriggHarley GrumontLorraine HaintzDawn HarringtonRon HarringtonTrudy HarrisNeil HarrisonSamuel HarrisonMarg HarrisonJanice HarveyLloyd HarveyLorraine HarveyMolly HassallMary HigginsonGail HirstGraeme HodderColleen HollowaySherryn HoneymanYvonne HorsfieldBeverley HorwoodBarb HowesJulie HunneybellBeverley JacksonJoan JamiesonJenny Jeffree

Keith JeffsRebecca JonesCarol KingHelen KinnerslyBeverley KnightMavis LancashireAlison LauderMichael LaveryPamela LeaMargaret LewisRobert LewisJean LewisStana LewisTed LewisAileen LinahanGail LockJeff LockStella LoversoLesley LyonsAileen MaherJudy Mander-JonesRichard MartinVerna MartinNick MartinichDarren MasonSharon MasonBob MatthewsChristina MausethAngela McCannJanet McCullochDoug McGregorJames McKeeJosh McKeePam McKeeMary-Rose McLarenEric McLeodLynn McMurrayRobyn MendozaAmanda MiltonPeter MortonHeather MouldPeter MouldIone MyersDanielle NeenanRebecca NorrisKaren PengellyJudith PetersMaree PhelanHelen PidgeonJoy PikeChristine PollardMichael PorterKatrina ProelssLisa PykeGraeme RaggGwenda RaggTarja RalstonBernadette ReusGordon ReynoldsShirley Reynolds

Tony ReyntjesAlison RobertsonBrenda RobertsonMerv RomeoLuci SahrRay SchenkPauline SculleyDavid SearlJennifer SearlJill SegraveHeather ShannonPat SharpJanice ShelmerdineLois SheppardDaryl ShiphamSue SidebottomAlison SmithHeather SmithYvonne SmithMarion SpicerBev SquiresBarbara SteadRon SteadHeather StefaniakBetty StewartCarol StewartKristen StewartMichael StewartDanni StonehouseGraeme StrachanJill SutherlandMeridyth SutherlandGraeme SuttonShirley SymesJenny Talbett-RoweCath TaylorNeville TelferHoward TerrillClaire ThorpePeter ThorpeHeather TurnerKaye ValpiedLiz VerlindenMarian WaldronMarlee WallisHeidi WalshJoylene WeckertTrisha WeickhardtJoan WeirSilvia WetzelHelen WhatmanNorman WhittonJulie WisemanJulieanne WisemanRebecca WisemanKaren WoodardDenise WrightPeter Zala

2014 Active Volunteers Thankyou!


Our Sponsors

Our Staff

Brett MacdonaldBusiness Manager

Amanda FewellCompetition &

Marketing Co-ordinator

Marilyn FurnessVolunteer Liason

Susan HugesFinance &

Administration Officer


Business Manager’s Report

Following a re-structure the new office team under my leadership took the reigns of South Street

from April / May 2014. Despite a few bumps in the road the 123rd Royal South Street Eisteddfod since our first competitions was a great succes with lots of positive feedback from some of our 10,000 plus competitors.The Victorian Minister for the Arts Heidi Victoria opened the Eisteddfod at a VIP launch at Her Majesty’s Theatre Long Room in July. She spoke fondly of her time as a South Street competitor many years ago. This years competitions ran for 14 weeks from late July (with Debating) and culminated with our ‘best and brightest’ Stems Showcase concert on November 2nd.Entries in our larger disciplines such as Energetiks Dance and CommBank Calisthenics were up, although area’s such as Classical Vocal and the Herald Sun Aria did not meet last years numbers.South Street celebrated two major anniversaries in 2014, with the 90th anniversary of both the prestigious Calisthenics Graceful Girl and the Herald Sun Aria. Pleasingly, the Chairman of the Herald & Weekly Times Board Penny Fowler indicated that this partnership is likely to continue for a long time yet.Volunteers play a crucial role in the running of South Street, quite simply, no volunteers, no South Street. We had 176 active volunteers in 2014 who worked 8770 roster hours conservatively valued at over $330k. Hours worked outside of the roster are hard to measure but are plentiful. Our front of house volunteers were in short supply, especially given the fact we ran Calisthenics at two venues simultaneously in October.

2014 Initiatives:• Eclipse Ford loaned us a vehicle for 3 months

with plans to create a volunteer shuttle easing parking woes. Unfortunately staffing this vehicle proved difficult. With the support of Rotary Clubs it is hoped we can get the car back on the road in 2015.

• The gloss covers of our 6 guidebooks adopted a magazine style approach with “hero” shots of competitors on each of them.

• The Victorian Bands League competition was streamed live online through a trial partnership with 5 Stream. It attracted around 1800 unique viewers and much social media commentary.

• South Street was able to secure sponsorship (at no charge) of the 3BA morning program “Ballarat Today”. This ensured South Street was

mentioned numerous times a day increasing awareness of the competition.

• Ballarat Regional Tourism contributed in a significant financial way to a multi media advertising campaign to promote our end of season Stems Showcase concert.

• The Rotary Club of Ballarat South contributed a further $1000 for Volunteer shirts.

• South Street partnered with Dance sponsor Energetiks to produce a fashion parade during a break in the dance program. Local dance students volunteered as models with Jules Zass from the Power FM breakfast show as our host. Energetiks products were given away.

• South Street adopted a new positioning statement for 2014… “Come and Discover Australia’s Rising Stars”. This sets us up as a breeding ground for future talent and was used in all media as well as on flags, a billboard and bus back.

• To ensure suitable infrastructure South Street partnered with the City of Ballarat to build external change room facilities for a week of calisthenics at Wendouree Centre for Performing Arts. The facilities received high praise with no cost to the society.

• Three sub-committes of the board were established. They are Risk & Finance, Volunteer and Marketing. These groups can drill down on detail and in some cases involve external expertise.

• South Street concluded the year with a Volunteer “bright idea’s” session in which all active volunteers were invited to a morning tea to tell us what they think. A myriad of bright idea’s were put forward which have gone to our Volunteer sub-committee for considertaion.

A sincere thankyou to the board, our volunteer army and my small team who produced big results. Amanda, Marilyn, Jo, Angelique, Susan, Colleen & Nikisha… thank you ladies.I’d also like to thank Julieanne Wiseman who has donated her graphic artist talents to produce this annual report and in fact all our artwork since May last year.South Street continues to be Australia’s foremost Eisteddfod fostering the performing arts, engaging young people and contributing some $14m to the Ballarat economy annually, it’s a pleasure to be its Business Manager.

Brett MacdonaldBusiness Manager


Financial Report

2014 2013$ $

IncomeAdmissions 427,763 426,640Entry Fees 171,718 181,091Other Income 258,941 224,349

Total Income 858,422 832,080

ExpensesAdjudicators & Writers 91,578 81,937Prize Money 78,196 67,031Salaries & Superannuation 266,117 218,486Other Expenses 371,755 342,882

Total Expenses 807,646 710,336

Net Operating Profit from Ordinary Activities 50,776 121,744

Other Comprehensive IncomeUnrealised gain on revaluation of Pianos 111,766 -Total Comprehensive Income 162,542 121,744

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2014ABRIDGED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

ABN 33 764 110 838ROYAL SOUTH STREET SOCIETY

These abridged financial statements are a summary of the audited financial statements, which can be obtained upon request.

2014 2013$ $


Total Income 858,422 832,080









2014 2013$ $

Current AssetsCash 495,030 333,189Receivables 45,441 27,490

Total Current Assets 540,471 360,679

Non Current AssetsFixed Assets 160,924 55,554Investments 414,574 529,075

Total Non Current Assets 575,498 584,629

Total Assets 1,115,969 945,308

Current LiabilitiesEmployee Provisions 11,698 28,233Payables 68,616 43,962

Total Liabilities 80,314 72,195

Net Assets 1,035,655 873,113

Members' FundsPiano Restoration Reserve - 2,262Piano Revaluation Reserve 111,766 -Trust Fund Reserve 277,328 272,857Retained Earnings 646,561 597,994

Total Members' Funds 1,035,655 873,113

ABRIDGED BALANCE SHEET


AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2014


2014 2013$ $


Total Income 858,422 832,080








Phone: (03) 5332 1054Email: [email protected]

www.royalsouthstreet.com.au

Annual report design by Julieanne WisemanImages coutesy of NL Harvey & Sons, Winkipop Media and The Courier

Documents

2014 Royal South Street Society Annual Report