THE saying goes that the show must go on, and the student body of St. Mel’s have come together to ensure this is the case.
Every two to three years St. Mel’s put together a production extravaganza, performed over two nights in September.
Like with many things, COVID put a spanner in the works, but the school community are coming together to perform their show during the day, have it filmed and then shared with families.
‘Under The Big Top’, written by John Duff, is the 2021 production. It follows the tale of a circus that is being sabotaged by a villain called ‘Big Boss Daddy’. The circus folk band together and manage to save the day, with the help of their superhero, Circus Boy! The show features an incredible 17 songs with students from all classes performing in the production.
The core cast consists of 17 grade five and six students, including two ringmasters, clowns, jugglers, tight-rope walkers, a trapeze artist, acrobat, a strongman as well as Big Boss Daddy, his offsider, Clem, Circus Boy and a star-struck audience member, Mallory.
We spoke with ‘Big Boss Daddy’, Lucas O’Hora, who shared his thoughts on this great production.
“It was very messy at the beginning, especially when we went into remote learning and had to practice over google meets. We thought it may not even go ahead, with so many ups and downs, but in the end we pulled it all together & performed a great show! It’s an experience I’ll never forget and definitely a highlight of my primary school years.”
Cast:
Big Boss Daddy – Lucas O’Hora
Clem -Alston Wood
Circus Boy (Johnny Silver) -Ryan Woodman
Draco – Chase Morgan
Darryl – Cruz Rodriguez
Sharon – Tess Hamilton
Tinsel Belle – Tayla Green
Calamity Jane McDonald – Rhea Manigandan
Colonel Lex Walker – Dakota Soccio
Hoppo – Allie Green
Bumpo – Maddi Curtis
Oomph – Saihaj Chumber
Jingo – Jasmine Minhas
Jango – Lola Richards
Jongo – Bella Napier
Mallory – Mimi Batamuliza
Sylvester the Acrobat – Nathan Cross
