Mr Heeblejeeble opens proceedings

Nathan was a dreamy boy. Everyone said so, not only his teachers but even his friends. He would sit in the classroom and stare out the window, or walk along with his eyes on the ground, or lean thoughtfully against the school fence with a frown on his face, or wander home along the river, gazing at the ripples on the water and hardly noticing the long grass brushing at his legs. You could call out to him and he wouldn't hear, at least not the first time, or the second, or sometimes even the third. Such a dreamy boy, everyone said, whatever does he think about?
He was as dreamy as ever on Performance Day. He wandered down the main corridor of the school with his hands in his pockets, while other children bumped and jostled around him. They bumped and jostled in the smaller corridors that led to the main corridor, as well, and on the stairs that lead to the smaller corridors. The whole school was on the move. A bobbing, bubbling river of children headed for the door of the Great Hall, carrying Nathan with it.
They poured in. The hall was divided into four sections, one for each of the four houses of the school, and each section was decorated with the colour of its house. Teachers hurried the students to their seats. They called out to some children to be quiet, and called out to other children to face the front, and called out even when they didn't need to call out because they knew if they didn't call out now they'd only have to call out later. In short, they tried to establish calm and order amongst a thousand children. This was their task, as it had been every year, for generations, when the entire school assembled on the morning of Performance Day.
At last the great oak doors of the hall were closed. The noise died away. Finally there was only the occasional giggle, or growl, or squeak when one of the children pinched another.
On the stage stood Mr Heeblejeeble, the school principal, and Mr Gopher, his deputy.
'Marvellous!' said Mr Heeblejeeble, beaming down at the children.
'Splendid!' said Mr Gopher, who had never been heard to disagree with anything Mr Heeblejeeble said.
Their voices came out loudly through a microphone at the front of the stage.
'What a wonderful day, Mr Gopher!' said Mr Heeblejeeble, clasping his hands enthusiastically.
'One couldn't ask for a better, Mr Heeblejeeble!' replied Mr Gopher.
'We're about to see some marvellous things, Mr Gopher.'
'Indeed we are, Mr Heeblejeeble.'
'Did you hear that, children?' asked Mr Heeblejeeble, beaming at them once again.
The children muttered, or growled, or groaned, or made faces and pretended to be sick.
'Marvellous!' said Mr Heeblejeeble. 'Children, in the next three hours, as we do on this day every year, we'll be going on a wonderful journey. Without leaving this hall, we'll be transported to a world of wonderful sights and sounds, fabulous stories and amazing characters.'