The Drama Department 

Project Direct is a biennial event run by McClelland’s Drama Department in which students have the opportunity to direct, stage manage, and act in short, one-act plays. 

Hi, I’m Cai (Year 12) and I’m one of the directors in this year’s Project Direct program! As a lover of theatre and the arts, I am interested in the backstage works of musicals and plays and hope to involve myself in the field after school. I have previous experience in directing as assistant director in three of McClelland’s previous productions - the Musical Theatre MAP’s ‘Musical Mayhem’, the College Musical ‘We Will Rock You’, and last Project Direct’s ‘Dancing in the Afternoon’ - as well as having involvement in acting in these productions. This is my first solo directing project in which I’m hoping to expand my directing skills and confidence to create a play that I am proud of. 

…and I’m Rohan (also Year 12, and also a director for Project Direct). This program to me is a way to explore different methods of expressing a creative vision. As a semi-experienced screenwriter and director for short films, having to direct someone else’s screenplay through a completely different medium (stage) is challenging and exciting to me.

What stage are we at in the directing process?

The anticipation is killing us right now — we’re about to enter our auditioning phase. That means we’re polishing up our scripts and preparing to fill the roles with talented students from all year levels. The directors have been brushing up on both technical and managerial skills to make sure things run as smoothly as possible for everyone involved in our journey to transfer our creative visions onto the stage!

What challenges have we faced and what have we learnt?

Balancing our roles and expectations as directors with our VCE workload has been the biggest challenge we’ve faced so far. That being said, directing requires effective time management, a skill we’ve been forced to practice! 

Performance night is Thursday, September 1st. We hope to see you there!

FROM SENHORA SPROULE

The audition process was a not only a great experience but also a success for the five Directors. At the time of preparing this COG entry, casting was being finalised, and actors are being notified. Watch this space, and the College social media accounts, for the exciting casting announcements…