Chicago a triumph of perseverance and pizzazz
Written By Lynette Chan & Hubert Cheng
(Photo by Lynette) Year 12 Xylia Fung performing in the show as Velma Kelly
After rehearsing for months, performance day came and students, teachers and parents alike were amazed by this year’s school musical, ‘Chicago’ performed by our own secondary students Wednesday and Thursday, November 27th and 28th.
The show’s two nights were completely sold out and were attended by a wide variety of people, including parents, teachers, students and others wanting to view the stunning spectacle.
The actors had rehearsed and practised since school started in August, working with a choreographer, Victoria Akhurst, music teachers Daniel Tsang and Cam Otto along with the drama teachers, Kathy La Brooy, Amanda Chapman and Giuli Colarossi.
According to one performer, ensemble member Yonah Chan, the show went smoothly and most things went as expected. She commented on the cast and crew, saying, “I think my peers did great; they all put so much effort into it making the whole thing go through smoothly.” She also said that she would do it again as the process of learning and rehearsing the show and performing in the actual show was a fun experience.
Of course, the show didn’t go without a few hiccups. There were a few technical issues during the show, and according to backstage crew member Yoyo Chan, there were also a few problems with props as around half of the crew weren’t able to participate in the show.
As well as these issues, due to the protests and school being cancelled, the crew and cast missed out on a week of rehearsals. However, as everyone knows, the show must go on! According to Dr Brown, “We all felt that it was very important for our community that "Chicago" takes place because of all the time and effort the students and teachers had put into the production.”
When asked about the ups and downs experienced during and after the performance, Yonah Chan, one of the ensemble members, says, “The performance when smoothly and the transitions and everything we had to do like singing went just like expected. I also think that my peers did great, they all put so much effort into it making the whole thing go through smoothly. Although there was one problem during the performances: these fans for “Razzle-dazzle” and for “All I care for is love”, when we were performing both songs the fans were suddenly gone, so we had to improvise and go with the show.”
The director, Mrs La Brooy, didn’t let the final performance go without expressing a few sentiments. She shared these thoughts on the last night of the show, “I was very proud of them all. I think they performed excellently and with confidence and with pizzazz and they made the show come alive.”
All in all, the show was loved by all who watched and the problems seemed to be nonexistent by show night. Many confirmed this, but the most qualified seems to be Dr Brown, who went both nights and said, “I loved all the singing, the powerful acting, the sophisticated choreography that went into designing the dancing, and the elevated staging [which] made for a great view from every seat.”