You’ve seen Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat before, but you’ve never seen it quite the way St. Christopher’s Panania perform it.
All year long the staff and students at St. Christopher’s Primary School in Panania have been working hard to chase a dream, but not just any dream would do.
Despite the lockdowns the dreamers at Panania planned and rehearsed a COVID-safe rendition of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, the only musical being performed by one of Sydney’s Catholic schools in 2020.
The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical is brought to life with an incredibly talented cast of young students bursting with a contagious enthusiasm that will make you want to sing along in your seat.
For a night like this to be possible in a year like 2020 is no easy feat! It requires the cooperation, compromise and extraordinary commitment from parents, students and staff.
The show is being performed in the hall at De La Salle College in Revesby Heights, allowing parents from St. Christopher’s Panania a chance to safely gather to watch their children perform.
St. Christopher’s Principal Jamie Wahab said the event would not have been possible without the help and support of the staff at De La Salle.
“We could not have done this without the Principal and Assistant Principal at De La Salle, Mr Tim Logue and Mr Simon Ghantous,” said Mr. Wahab. “Tim and Simon have been so supportive and accommodating in letting us use this beautiful hall.
“Without their support, there simply would not have been a musical this year.”
To meet COVID-safe requirements, the audio for the entire show has been pre-recorded, requiring extra effort from staff and students to get the show ready.
Creative Director Louise Jaques said that after working with the cast of students since January, she was incredibly happy with the way it went and was looking forward to performing the show for parents.
“It has been an incredibly difficult year trying to put on a musical while we’re navigating a global pandemic,” Ms Jaques said. “But I could not be prouder than I am at this moment.”
“I’m so excited for the rest of the performances. Now that we’ve got the first one out of the way on 30 November, the cast has got rid of their nerves and they’re ready to put on an amazing show.”
The show’s leading man in the title role of Joseph was year 6 student Oscar Barnett who said he had enjoyed preparing this musical was looking forward to the remaining performances.
“I had a lot of fun with my friends,” said Oscar. “And I really enjoyed singing ‘Close every door.’
After the show Mr Wahab said that it was wonderful to see it all come together after months of such hard work from students and staff alike.
“When we started this project last year Louise and I really want to put something on for the community,” said Mr Wahab. “As we’ve gone through this pandemic it became even more important for us to have a celebration at the end of the year.
“It’s been a tough year for everyone and we wanted our school to really make the community smile and I believe we’ve achieved that.”
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