Therese Mavros: The Stage Stays With You
There is something about stepping onto a stage at school that never quite leaves you.
For some, it is the nerves before the curtain rises. For others, it is the feeling of being seen, heard and part of something bigger than yourself. For Therese Mavros (Class of 1986), that experience began at Santa Maria College and stayed with her long after she left.
In this video, Therese reflects on her performing arts journey and the part Santa Maria played in shaping it. Her story will feel familiar to many in our community, past and present, who have spent time in the theatre, dressing rooms, backstage or in rehearsals.
Performing arts have never just been about learning lines or putting on a show. It is about connection. It is about telling stories that reach others. It is about exploring big ideas and discovering what it means to express something true.
That is part of what makes her story so powerful.
Therese speaks warmly about her time at Santa Maria and reflects on the impact of drama teacher Hal Davies, whose passion and dedication helped shape her love of performance and storytelling. For those who have shared, or are now sharing, those same spaces, these experiences continue to resonate.
Where we Learn to be Brave
The places where we learn to perform often become the places where we learn to be brave.
A school stage is not only where productions happen. It is where students test their voice, take creative risks, work as an ensemble and feel the quiet thrill of reaching an audience. Long after costumes are packed away and sets are dismantled, that sense of possibility remains.
As Santa Maria prepares to open the new Cultural Centre, that same spirit moves into a new chapter. The building itself matters, but what matters more is what will happen inside it, new performances, new ideas, new friendships, and new moments when a student realises she has something to say, and the confidence to say it.
Leaving a Legacy for the Future
For our community, this is more than a new building. It is a chance to honour the experiences that have shaped so many, while creating opportunities for students today and tomorrow.
Through the Take Your Seat campaign, members of the Santa Maria community are invited to leave their legacy in the new Cultural Centre. It is a meaningful way to recognise the role the arts play in our College and to help ensure future generations have a place to discover their own voice.
Therese’s story is a reminder that the lessons of performing arts do not end when school does. They echo through careers, relationships and the way people move through the world. Some stories begin on a school stage and continue to unfold for years.
Now, as a new curtain prepares to rise at Santa Maria, our community is invited to be part of what comes next.
Seats are available from $500.
Leave your legacy: https://takeyourseat.santamaria.wa.edu.au/
- alumni legacy, Featured, Performing Arts Alumni, Santa Maria College alumni, Santa Maria College Cultural Centre, Santa Maria Community, school theatre memories, Take Your Seat campaign, Therese Mavros
Author: Santa Maria College
Santa Maria College is a vibrant girls school with a growing local presence and reputation. Our Mission is to educate young Mercy women who act with courage and compassion to enrich our world. Santa Maria College is located in Attadale in Western Australia, 16 km from the Perth CBD. We offer a Catholic education for girls in Years 5 – 12 and have 1300 students, including 152 boarders.
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