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Performing Arts Update

News
18 November 2021

In this week's article, Senior Drama Teacher Rebecca Hassam and Director of Music Andrew Edge discuss the Year 11 production of Glengarry Glen Ross and the recent Instrumental Music Recital.

Parachute Productions presents David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross

Stage 1 Drama students have continued their exploration into American Drama and the associated theme of toxic masculinity. In October, they laid bare assumptions and busted notions attached to the American Dream in scenes from Glengarry Glen Ross, by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright David Mamet on Wednesday 27 October in the Prince Philip Theatre.

Packing a punch with this performance, the incredibly talented ensemble cast of Angus Porter, Shae Olsson-Jones, Matthew Adams, Leith Johnson, Sam Read, Hugo Walker-Mizgalski with Patrick Femia leading the design and technical work. The boys excelled in the execution of this challenging satirical comedy.

The story follows two days in the lives of four desperate Chicago real estate agents involved in a competition to be top of the sales board. The winner gets a Cadillac, while the loser gets fired! The play is charged with underlying tension which drives the action and dictates the interactions of the characters in their workspace, Premiere Properties. Unethical illegal acts which Premiere Properties specialise in involve lies, bribery, threats, intimidation and burglary to sell their useless real estate.

Memorable moments from the production included Moss (Shae Olsson-Jones) trapping Aaronow (Sam Read) at the Chinese restaurant into his plan to rob the office of the premium Glengarry leads; top man Ricky Roma (Angus Porter) scamming James Lingk (Hugo Walker-Mizgalski) to wait out the extra days for the sale to go through and Shelley Levene (Matthew Adams) caught out in his crime during the climax of the play, who then resorts to bribery of an unmovable Williamson (Leith Johnson) to absolve him of his dire offence.

Throughout the production period the ensemble and tech crew worked tirelessly on designing their scenes, developing their character nuances and on perfecting their comical timing. They were challenged by Mamet’s fragmented dialogue, his preference for broken syntax and use of nonsensical language. Throughout their process, the class participated in acting workshops with industry professionals and former actors including director David Mealor and Cole Thomas. They extended their acting prowess and deeply explored the given circumstances of their scenes using Meisner acting techniques to extract the believability in their performance.

This production played to a select audience of invited guests, who witnessed the genuine triumph of raw talent amongst the Year 11 cohort. This is another giant step forward in the Performing Arts program at PAC. Congratulations Stage 1 Drama!

Rebecca Hassam
Senior Drama Teacher

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Instrumental Music Recital

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Year 1 student Harry Han performing ‘Patrick’s Reel’ on the violin.

On Thursday 11 November the College Chapel hosted an Instrumental Music Recital, featuring young soloists from Year 1 up to Year 12. It was a chance for boys of all ages, experience levels and instrument types to showcase their hard work and develop their live performance skills. No matter the stage of each boy’s journey, what was on display was the result of practice, discipline and responding to feedback, and the growth of many other qualities that are part of why learning music is such a wonderful thing for anyone to pursue.

From beautiful concertos from our senior violinists to rousing show tunes from some of our Prep vocalists, the evening offered music for all tastes. The looks on boys’ faces as they smiled and enjoyed warm applause from the audience, and high fives and compliments shared between the students after their performances, were very special moments for the staff and parents who were fortunate to attend.

Well done to all students involved – we look forward to enjoying more of these recitals together in 2022.

Andrew Edge
Director of Music



Christmas Fair and Christmas Tree Festival 
featuring Princes Voices @ 12:30pm
Saturday 20 November, 10am-3pm
St. David’s Church, 490 Glynburn Road, Burnside

To ring in the festive season, the Princes Voices and the Intermediate Vocal Ensemble will be singing carols this coming Saturday between 12:30-1:30pm at St David’s Christmas Fair.

Come and enjoy some festive favourites and stay for cakes, coffee, sausage sizzle, gift stalls, fashions and more.

Contact Vocal Coordinator Ms. Fran Greenwood for further information: fgreenwood@pac.edu.au

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