College Production

With the glitter settled on the first PSC Production, I’ve been fortunate enough to reflect a little on my thoughts about the show. I have always believed in the transformative power of the arts. And closing the PSC debut musical production of ‘Back to the 80s’ only confirmed the beliefs I hold dear. The students that worked on the stage in the first week of August- whether they were singing and dancing their hearts out, working in the crew, assisting in quick changes, operating the tech- pushed themselves into unknown territory, and we all got to witness their confidence grow and their creativity flourish. I want to recognise the students that put their hands up for the school’s first production. Thank you for putting yourselves out there and allowing us to make a production program for you. You rose to the challenge and have built a great foundation… to many more shows to come!

But enough from me – let’s hear from other members of the team, who made the production possible: 

Genelle Lentini

Performing Arts Leader

It was truly inspiring to see a demographic of our students getting to express their creative sides and find acceptance and unity amongst themselves as part of the production team. The kids established new friendships, achieved goals, and executed back-to-back shows with such stride. A key highlight for me was witnessing the kids smash out some classic 80s records! I encourage all students to get involved in next year’s production. It is a great opportunity to exercise your creative abilities and build new relationships with your peers. 

Travis Bhandari, Production Team Member

A big highlight of this production is the Wednesdays and Thursdays we spent rehearsing it, but a much bigger highlight was at the theater with our mini dance party before every show! They were diffidently my favorite! Working in the theater was a wonderful experience for lots of us! The leads got to use the mics! The crew got to see where they needed to put tape down for props! I felt like I learnt a lot during the production! I learnt the dances and got to learn the amazing 80s songs. The number one reason you should join next year's production is that you can make great, close friendships with the cast & crew and overall, an amazing experience for people, you can gain way more skills! 

Paige M 7.3, Cast Member

One of the greatest moments in this year's show for me was working on and performing Let's Hear It For The Boy and Walking on Sunshine. I loved working with my cast mates to bring these numbers together. I loved working in the theatre because it made the entire performance feel so much more real, I felt like we were there with the characters. 

Lauren C 9.1, Cast Member

I have had a fantastic experience working and preforming throughout our first production in ages. It was extremely fun to work with an enthusiastic team of people that work very hard and managed to pull of this miracle of a show. 

Zavier C 7.5, Cast Member

I had such a fun time doing the production I have made so many friends I still talk to now, it’s a great way to make friends and learn new skills!! 

Cordelia W 7.6, Crew Member

Being involved in production this year has been such an incredibly fun and rewarding experience! I enjoyed planning different dances to suit each cast member’s personality and character, and loved seeing the steps come to life as each cast member performed them! I am so proud of every production member for challenging themselves and working together to create a fabulous performance.  

Amanda Peterson, Production Choreographer

It was so fun to have a go at something that I have never done before. It is really amazing what we have done to achieve this. Everyone worked so hard and I'm so proud of them. as I was a crew member working behind the scenes, I saw that everyone backstage was joining along and having fun. We couldn't have made this happen without the help of all the staff including the wonderful Miss Lentini. Thank you so much for making us come out of our shell and giving this a go. thank you so much. 

Alexandra F 9.3, Crew Member

Production had been a great experience for me. I enjoyed meeting new people, learning choreography and working on the stage. It has been an amazing experience to work on the show, and it felt good to hear the audience at the Cardinia Cultural Centre enjoying the show so much. It was fantastic, and we cannot wait to do other shows in the upcoming years, as it will be as amazing as this year's. This all couldn't be possible without the amazing team of teachers so thank you to all the teachers involved in this show. 

Kim K 7.5, Cast Member

I loved doing the 2023 production, it was so fun performing on stage with so many others  and none of this would've been possible without our crew and teachers involved. My highlight would've been spending every Wednesday and Thursday with the people involved and being able to show the amazing audience our project! 

Jaxon L 8.6, Cast Member

Genelle Lentini’s production “Back to the 80’s” for Pakenham Secondary College was simply spectacular. What she and her team were able to accomplish was astonishing, with the vision of an overly hilarious portrayal of the decade fulfilling the dual performances. The costumes, lighting, set & props design, songs and especially the performances from the cast had been superbly executed. The atmosphere brought by cast and crew was nothing short of comforting and enlightening. What I found just as exciting was hearing about the ideas for future shows. I cannot recommend highly enough for any future students thinking of signing up.

Kade A, 12.3, Crew Member

I absolutely loved working with everybody involved in this production, I have made so many new friends thanks to this experience and I love and appreciate them all. It was such a welcoming community. Thank you to everyone involved, especially Miss Lentini, the wonderful director of this fabulous show we put together.  

Ava P, 8.6, Crew Member

I had the most awesome time doing production with everyone who was involved. Every day I was always excited to go to production and help with this amazing show. I made incredible memories with everyone. This show is an amazing opportunity for everyone to do something they love and to make new friends. Production is an opportunity for anyone to get out of their shell and show the audience what you love. I thank everyone for the hard work from cast, crew, staff members and Miss Lentini for everything. 

Bec W, 7.7, Crew Member