Celebrating major Creative Generation milestones

• This year marks 20 years of Creative Generation – State Schools Onstage and 30 years for Creative Generation Excellence Awards in Visual Art exhibition.
• Tickets are now on sale for CGEN - State Schools Onstage - Queensland’s largest youth performing arts event.
• 2024 will see record cast numbers of over 2 500 students
• Both programs support students to reach their full potential within the arts.

The Department of Education is this year celebrating two major milestones with 20 years of Creative Generation – State Schools Onstage and 30 years of the Creative Generation Excellence Awards in Visual Art exhibition.

Creative Generation – State Schools Onstage

Creative Generation – State Schools Onstage (CGEN) is Queensland’s largest annual award-winning youth performing arts event.

This year’s program will feature its largest cast to date, with more than 2500 state school students participating from 144 schools across Queensland.

The spectacular will showcase a 500-voice choir, 70-piece symphony orchestra, 1000 dancers, vocalists, drama students, drumline, musicians as well as student stage and media crews. The program also provides opportunities for students to learn directly from professional artists.

Queensland students from Kindy to Year 12 have an opportunity to participate in this six-month program, from as far north as Coconut Island in the Torres Strait and all the way down to Palm Beach Currumbin.

The program includes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance program, a 109-student Auslan signing choir, a Special School dance ensemble and a Kindy cast of up to 20 of our youngest performers.

The program will culminate in 4 spectacular performances, to be held at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre on 18, 19 and 20 July 2024.

Tickets for the 20-year celebration event are now on sale via Ticketek: https://premier.ticketek.com.au/shows/show.aspx?sh=CREATIVE24

CGEN Excellence Awards in Visual Art

Over the past 30 years of exhibiting, the Creative Generation Excellence Awards in Visual Art has raised community awareness of the degree of sophistication in concepts, diversity of technical competence, and the high standard of visual art education in Queensland secondary schools.

In that time over 13,000 works have been submitted into the awards and displayed in regional galleries and venues across the state.

The Department of Education is proud of its long-standing relationship with Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) who provide a world-class facility in which to view the student exhibition, offering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many aspiring artists.

The awards include mediums of ceramics, costume design, drawing, graphic design, photography, installation, painting, performance art, printmaking, sculpture, video, and more, including exploring the application of artificial intelligence.

In 2024, the Central Exhibition at QAGOMA celebrates 37 works by the 2023 excellence award winners and will run from 27 April to 25 August 2024.

For more information on the exhibition visit the Creative Generation website: https://creativegeneration.education.qld.gov.au/visual-art

Quotes attributable to Education Minister Di Farmer:

“I am excited to be a part of these two outstanding programs in this milestone year.

“These programs truly celebrate the diversity of our students, schools and communities right across Queensland.

“This much loved and importing performing arts event was one of the first things cut by the former Newman LNP government.

“If not for a wave of community outrage this important arts event for students from all across the state would not still be going today celebrating such a huge milestone in 2024.,

Fast Facts:

Breakdown of performers.

Featured vocalists: 27

Backing vocalists: 11

Company choir: 40

Featured choir: 50

Massed choir: 500

Massed Strings: 70

Symphony Orchestra: 67

Big Band: 17

Drumline: 34

Solo instrumentalists: 4

Drama: 11

Musical theatre: 111

Dance cast: 1152

First Nations Dance Ensemble: 105

Special School dance cast : 55

Kindy dance cast: 10

Stage Crew: 24

Event Crew: 6

Media Crew: 21

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Media – Tim Auguston 0427 090 563