King's School Rochester Weekly News
Rika Awarded First Prize for IAPS Art Prize 2025
We are delighted to announce that Rika G (L5) was awarded the First Prize in the IAPS Art Prize 2025 in the category Year 9-10. Rika has been invited to the awards ceremony in Mayfair, London, to collect her prize in June. The judges commented on the work: 'The judges felt it was a skilful portrait painted on Perspex, cleverly creating the effect of a mirror, with artichokes symbolising layers of memory and reflection.
To accompany her entry, Rika wrote about her piece “Self-portrait with artichokes"
'I painted this self-portrait on perspex to simulate me looking at my reflection in a window. I reflect on childhood memories of artichokes growing in my grandmother’s garden and how the plant’s leaves around a soft core are like the layers of memories that have built up through my life making me who I am today. The different stages of the artichoke reflect stages of life: from the plump artichoke bud to the withering thistle flower, then delicate seed ready to disperse. In art history, the artichoke represents fertility and femininity whilst also being an emblem of Venus.'
We are delighted to receive this news and congratulate Rika on her much deserved prize.
A Shrek-tacular Success
After weeks of hard work, the curtain was raised as Prep pupils took to the stage to perform Shrek the Musical Jr. The production was an ogre-sized success, delighting audiences with its humour, heart and high-energy performances. The pupils truly brought the swamp to the stage, with Shrek’s gruff charm, Donkey’s hilarious antics and Princess Fiona’s fierce determination winning over the crowd. From Farquaad’s dramatic flair and Elizabeth the Dragon to the fairy tale creatures’ spirited ensemble, every moment was magical! With colourful costumes, lively choreography and toe-tapping tunes, it was a show that had everyone laughing happily ever after.
Backstage, the magic continued as our talented Theatre Production crew worked ogre-time to keep the sets, lighting, dragon and costumes running smoothly. Our thanks to Mr Bailey and all the staff who made this possible, as well as the parents for their support with the rehearsal schedule. We are so proud of our cast and crew for putting on a performance that was far from ordinary… in fact, it was Shrek-tacular!
Schools’ Sweet Symphony
Eleven pupils from King's Preparatory School headed to Benenden School to participate in a brilliant collaborative day for orchestral instrumentalists. Organised across the IAPS (formerly known as the Independent Association of Prep Schools) network, our pupils teamed up with around 150 young musicians from other schools in the region to workshop two pieces. After meeting together in the concert hall to warm up and start familiarising themselves with playing as one huge ensemble, pupils broke off into different sections of the orchestra to work through the repertoire in more detail.
In the afternoon, the two musical items were brought back together as a complete orchestra in the concert hall. Parents were invited in to hear the finished product and were delighted to see so much young musical talent gathered in this beautiful space. Congratulations to all King's musicians, who were superb ambassadors for themselves and their school. Special thanks go to Mrs Nathan and Mrs Harrod for making all the arrangements and to Benenden School for their kind hospitality as our hosts for the day.
May 2025