Throughout Term 1 and 2, students and teachers from Pakuranga College prepared for one of the year’s most highly anticipated events – the school production!
For Today, written by Mr Hamish Arthur, is a musical set in a New Zealand high school. It features all the singing, dancing, and romance that you would expect from a high school musical, all set to live New Zealand music performed by the school band. The production is centered around David Miller, an ex-rugby player who was involved in the death of his friend, Tom Burrows, and moved down south because of it. Upon his return, he joins the choir to meet Sophie, a new girl who came to the school when he was down south. The cast consists of Sophie and her Mum, David, his sister Roni and their parents, as well as David’s friends Calvin, Paul, and Alex. There is also Jordan, a tough guy who blames David for the death of Tom. A chorus of about 20 students make up the majority of the choir and class, while also singing most of the songs.
For Today makes extensive use of the hall’s sound and lighting, to the point where we had to hire lights and re-patch the mixer so we could have microphones for the lead characters. This was good for the show, just lots of work for us sound and lighting people! The show also makes good use of the space in the hall, with David entering the hall through a side door when arriving at Sophie’s house, and the chorus running up the centre aisle in the second half.
I went to see the production on Friday the 31st of May, the last night (which was a sell-out) and despite going overtime by about 20 minutes, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was everything it was advertised as, and despite the long line, it was well worth the wait. It started on time as promised, and you were immediately thrown into the life of David Miller. There was an extensive use of props, including a couch, a table, around 20 chairs, and various boxes. Despite this, scene changes were short, well-rehearsed, and the band played excellent music throughout the entire show. Both halves of the performance were engaging, and Act One ended with an exciting fight scene, leaving the audience excited for what was to come in Act Two.
Act Two begins with the choir and a duet between David and Sophie. This is then immediately followed by the flashing lights of “Harmonic Generator”, a brilliant use of the school’s lighting. Throughout these scenes, there is a buildup of tension between David and Jordan, until Tom’s sister reveals that the accident was not David’s fault before the show ends with a brilliant rendition of Every Day’s a Saturday.
Overall, For Today was a brilliant show, and well worth the $10 for tickets, despite us going overtime with an encore and speeches from several people. If given the chance to see it again, I certainly would, and we can only hope that next year’s production lives up to the same standard.
Connor Hart – Year 9
