STUDENTS and staff at Mary McKillop College Swan Hill are busy preparing for this year’s musical drama production, Legally Blonde, with the curtain raising on the first show on Friday, August 23, at 7pm.
Two shows in August will be the culmination of many months of work by a dedicated team of actors, musicians and backstage crew and school staff.
They bring to life the story of a young woman who enrolls in Harvard Law School to win back her boyfriend and discovers that her legal knowledge can help others, in the process learning a lot about herself.
Brooke Thomson plays the lead character Elle Woods (made famous on the big screen by Reese Witherspoon) and said the main point of the story was around Elle becoming a woman and learning a lot from her experiences along the way.
“Although she is looking for love by becoming a lawyer Elle discovers she doesn’t need a man to become herself and the woman she wants to be,” Brooke said.
“I have only been doing shows for three or four years and I have found this is such a welcoming environment and it is so much fun.”
Bella Henderson who plays a hairdresser, Paulette, one of the few characters to have faith in Elle, and said being a part of the production was an amazing opportunity to have at school.
“There are a lot of like-minded people and it is a lot of fun getting out of your comfort zone and being someone else on stage,” Bella said.
“Everyone puts in so much work – we appreciate how much everyone puts in.
“It always comes out so beautiful.”
Auditions were held at the end of last year and each lunchtime and on some Sundays since the beginning of the year they have rehearsed.
School production coordinator Talia Henderson said this was a really fun and humorous, lighthearted show and the students enjoyed it and connected with it on many levels.
“The theme of being yourself never goes out of style and is a great message for all of us but particularly for our young people today,” she said.
“We have done two rock shows in the past and we wanted to do something that is back to our traditional musical theatre.
“We have quite a few kids who are into traditional music theatre and haven’t had an opportunity to experience it.
“This show is a little more complex and the kids have really grown to the experience.”
Ms Henderson added that even if students didn’t pursue the performing arts as a career, it gave them many skills that were transferable to things they might want to do in the future and could be taken into many different aspects of their lives.
“They learn commitment, they learn confidence, speaking skills and teamwork,” she said.
The two shows are on Friday, August 23, at 7pm and a Sunday matinee on August 25, at 2pm.
Tickets can be purchased from www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1158515 or from the Mary MacKillop College front office.
