Performing at The Rise Maylands: A First Timer's Look
The first session at a new venue is the one families worry about most, and it is usually the room, not the music, that causes the nerves. The North of Perth Music Festival holds its sessions at The Rise in Maylands, and this guide is for parents, teachers and performers who want to walk in on the day knowing what to expect and what to sort out beforehand. Entries for 2026 are closed and the festival has concluded for the year, so treat this as preparation for 2027.
Where The Rise fits into the festival
The Rise is where the competing happens. In 2026, sessions ran from Saturday 5 September to Sunday 20 September, all at The Rise in Maylands. That is a stretch of weekends and days where singers, pianists, string players, instrumentalists and speech and drama entrants all take their turn in front of qualified adjudicators.
It is worth keeping the festival's venues straight, because families sometimes mix them up. The Rise hosts the sessions. The Winners' Concerts are held somewhere else: in 2026 the Juniors performed on Saturday 10 October and the Seniors on Sunday 11 October in the Wellington Room at Morley Recreation Centre. The festival's office address in Como is just that, an office. Nobody needs to go there to perform.
The festival is run in association with the City of Bayswater, which is its major sponsor, and it began in 1957 as the North Perth Methodist Music Festival. You can read more in the festival's history if you want to know what you are stepping into. It is a community competition that has run for over 69 years, and The Rise is simply where that community gathers for the sessions.
What should we expect at The Rise on the day?
Expect to perform your item for a qualified adjudicator, listen to other entrants in your section, and leave with a personal written report. The festival describes its aim as giving participants experience in public performance, as well as the chance to listen to others.
That second part matters more than first timers realise. A performer who has watched three or four other entrants before their own turn walks on knowing the room is friendly and the format is routine. Young entrants in particular often relax once they see someone else make a small slip and carry on.
What I can't give you here is a floor plan, a seating map or a running order, because those details are not something to guess at. The schedule for each year is published by the festival, and for anything practical that the schedule does not answer, the contact page lists a phone number and email for the organisers. Ask them rather than relying on a neighbour's memory of a previous year.
Practical checks before you leave home
Most of what goes wrong on a first day is logistical, and nearly all of it can be settled a week earlier. Here is a general checklist that applies to any session at an unfamiliar venue, not a list of festival rules:
- Check your session time on the published schedule and work backwards. Most families allow a generous buffer for travel and settling in, because arriving flustered is the fastest way to undo months of practice.
- Work out how you will get to Maylands and where you will park or be dropped off. If you are unsure about access or parking at The Rise, ask the festival before the day.
- Pack the item itself: your music, your script or your instrument, plus anything your teacher has told you to bring.
- Bring water and a small snack, particularly for children who may wait a while between arriving and performing.
- Know who is accompanying you, if anyone, and confirm that arrangement with them directly.
If your teacher is entering several students, agree on a meeting point and a time among yourselves. A group that arrives together tends to settle together.
Getting the performer ready for an unfamiliar room
A performer who has only ever played in the lounge room or a teacher's studio needs one rehearsal that simulates the real thing. Ask a few relatives or friends to sit and listen, stand or sit where you would perform, and run the item once from the start without stopping. Stopping and restarting is the habit that most often follows a young performer onto the stage.
Rooms sound different from home. A piano may feel heavier or lighter than the one you practise on, and a voice can sound thinner or bigger. This is general experience rather than anything specific to The Rise, but it is why most teachers suggest practising on more than one instrument if you can, and speaking or singing in a larger space once beforehand.
For speech and drama entrants, practise the walk in and the first breath. Where you stand, when you begin and how you finish are the parts nerves attack first. For singers and instrumentalists, rehearse the pause before the first note. If you want more on the emotional side of a first appearance, our piece on how to build real performer confidence through an eisteddfod covers what a young performer gets from the experience.
Sitting in the audience: what parents and teachers can do
Your job as the adult in the seat is to be steady, quiet and kind, whatever happens on stage. Children read faces. A parent who looks anxious tells the child there is something to be anxious about.
Festival programmes are sold at the sessions for $5.00. It is a small cost, and it is worth buying one. A programme lets you follow who is performing, see where your own entrant sits in the order and keep track of the pieces being played. It also gives young performers something to look at and discuss afterwards, which is a useful way to redirect nerves into curiosity.
Listen to the other entrants properly. This is a competition, but the festival's own wording describes it as a celebration of the arts, and children pick up on the tone adults set. Clapping warmly for every performer, not only your own, is the easiest way to model that. If you are a teacher, watching how other studios present their students is also a quiet way to learn what the standard looks like across sections.
After the session: the report, the results and the concerts
Every performer receives a personal report from qualified adjudicators, and that report is arguably the most valuable thing a first timer takes home. Prize money, gold medallions, trophies and certificates are part of the festival, with $11,000 in prize money on offer and a $2,500 cash prize from Zenith Music, the main award sponsor, for the Most Outstanding Performance. But a written comment from an adjudicator tells a performer what to work on next.
Read the report together, ideally a day or two after the session once any disappointment or excitement has settled. Pick one or two points to work on rather than trying to fix everything. If your child has a teacher, bring the report to the next lesson.
Results and the Winners' Concerts come after the sessions. In 2026 those concerts were held at Morley Recreation Centre in October, one for Juniors and one for Seniors, as described above. You can look back at who won through the outstanding winners page, which includes Heath Ledger, who won the Most Outstanding Speech and Drama Item in 1995, and Lisa McCune, who won the Ladies Vocal Championship in 1990.
Planning ahead for the next festival
The 2027 festival schedule will be released in May, and entries for 2026 have closed, so the sensible move now is to use the months between to build your item. Choose a piece early, work out your section, and talk to your teacher about whether the performer is ready or needs another year of preparation.
It also helps to see the festival before you commit. The photo gallery shows what past events looked like, which can reassure a nervous child more than any explanation. When the 2027 schedule appears, look at the dates against school terms, other commitments and your teacher's availability before you fill in an entry.
If you are weighing up whether a community performing arts festival suits you, the main thing to know is that it is open to participants of all ages, across piano, strings, singing, instrumental, and speech and drama. A first session at The Rise is a first session, not a final exam. Keep the preparation simple, ask the organisers when you are unsure, and let the performer enjoy it.
Frequently asked questions
Can I still enter this year if I want to perform at The Rise?
No. Entries for 2026 are closed and the festival has concluded for the year. The 2027 schedule will be released in May, and the festival says it will be looking for musicians, singers and actors then.
Are the Winners' Concerts also held at The Rise?
No. In 2026 the Winners' Concerts were held in the Wellington Room at Morley Recreation Centre, with Juniors on Saturday 10 October and Seniors on Sunday 11 October. The Rise is used for the sessions.
Do I need to buy a programme?
You do not have to, but programmes are sold at the sessions for $5.00. They are a handy way to follow the performers and keep track of the order of items.
Who do I contact with a question about the day?
Phone 0409 292 876 or email northofperthmusicfestival@yahoo.com.au. The festival's contact page also has a form you can complete, and the organisers say they will respond as soon as possible.
Will my child get feedback even if they do not win?
Yes. Every performer receives a personal report from qualified adjudicators, whether or not they place.
Related pages
This article draws on the following pages.