Getting Dramatic
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Jr Update
Rehearsals for our Primary School Production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Junior are in full swing. Students are using the Theatrette after school on Mondays and Fridays to work on scenes, blocking, practicing lines and their songs. Their improvement in expression, voice production and general stagecraft has been enormous!! Well done to all the main cast for their dedication and commitment to turning up, listening and implementing all suggestions from the director.
It has also been a buzz of activity and rehearsals during school, with each class learning their song and dance for the show. It has been wonderful to watch the growth in students’ confidence, ability to move in sync with others, focus, learn dance steps that they have never tried before, and embrace the parts they are playing (even when out of their comfort zone).
A huge shout out to the following students (this is not exhaustive, but I haven’t the room here to mention every student individually, even though I want to!) – Shine and Amelie P (SPG) for their fabulous Bombie Samba dance style; Mia M and Jehu for their amazing stage presence and team work as the Baron and Baroness; Josh Wenger for resilience and learning to connect to his character; Noah A for being a brilliant Grandpa and cracking us up every time!; Nathan G for his superb characterisation of Lord Scrumptious – and for filling in for everyone who is absent during rehearsals – if Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was a one person show, he’d be the perfect person to star in it, such a versatile actor; Noah R and Harin for being ze vonderful bumbling spies – awesome comedic acting.
Behind the scenes I want to shout out the amazing trio of talent and dedication to their craft, Jake K, Elijah C, Eli T and their assistants, Bodie H and Levi W. Their work in preparing the lighting, sound and prop schedule is next level; Esther T, Year 9 for choreographing Bombie Samba (and facing SPG each week to teach them the steps – no mean feat).
My staff shoutouts include (but are not limited to) the incredible Jennie Greenfield and Leesa Woods for assisting with directing and preparing actors for their roles; Elle Hepworth for team leading the crew, feedback at rehearsals, prop and costume support; the one and only fabulous Jan Home for her umpteen trips to Resource Rescue, creative ideas for making props and the foyer display. She just leaves me in awe of her creativity; Nikki Baldwin for her design of costumes, tickets, and so much more, another incredible talent; Becky Pratt for harnessing the powers of her Yr 9 textiles class to create and sew the JP and Prep costumes; Dave Sukh for being my go-to getting the Production page in Schoolbox sorted and up and running!!; and Danny Gamble for so graciously and willingly stepping into the role of Producer at short notice. He has been a solid foundation of support, and I am truly grateful!
In summary, I hope this long list of shout-outs provides a clear picture of the scope of talent and people involved in making our Primary Production a wonderful and memorable experience for all our students (and I didn’t even mention many that I could have!!). This is truly a team project and I value and appreciate every person involved. Lastly, I want to give a shout out to all the parents who are navigating extra rehearsals and picking up their children, supporting them at home to learn their parts, and cheerleading them through the process. And of course, coming to see the performance!!
Performances are Wednesday 21 August – Friday 23 August. Tickets will go on sale from 15 July. Keep a look out for the announcement via the MECS app.
Penny Mentiplay
Primary Music Teacher
CSEN Theatre Sports
We are thrilled to announce the outstanding performance of our senior secondary students who recently represented MECS at the annual CSEN Theatre Sports Championship. This exciting event brought together talented students from five different Christian schools, providing a platform for showcasing their improvisational skills.
MECS was proudly represented by two junior teams (Years 7-9) and one senior team (Year 10). Each team displayed remarkable creativity and quick thinking, impressing both the audience and judges with their spontaneous performances. The competition was fierce, but our students rose to the challenge, delivering performances filled with humour, wit, and ingenuity.
We are proud to share that both of our junior teams secured third place in their category, while our senior team also finished in third place. This is a testament to their hard work, dedication, and ability to think on their feet.
The event was expertly hosted by Allen Dickson, a former MECS teacher, whose dynamic presence added to the excitement of the day. In his closing prayer, Allen beautifully captured the essence of Theatre Sports, saying, "Theatre Sports is so close to our creator God. God created something out of nothing, and likewise what these brave students have done is get up and create something wonderful out of nothing."
We congratulate all our students for their incredible achievements and thank them for representing MECS with such distinction. Their performances were not just entertaining, but also inspiring, reflecting the creativity and talent that thrives within our school community.
Tristan Forrest
Secondary Music & Drama Teacher/Instrumental Coordinator