Musical 2008

SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS

ROCKWELL COLLEGE

OCTOBER 21st – 23rd 2008.

For three nights, the Concert Hall in Rockwell College was the venue for this year’s musical presentation by the students. This year’s show was Seven Brides for Seven Brothers whose catchy tunes and foot-tapping dance rhythms made it an ideal choice for an enthusiastic group of young people. Rehearsals for the show began as soon as school resumed in September, auditions having taken place the previous May. The show was the third in the current series of musical productions in the College, its predecessors being Once On This Island and Jesus Christ Superstar.

A dedicated and gifted group of teachers worked tirelessly with the students during the weeks of rehearsal. Musical direction was in the capable hands of Ms. Orla O’Dwyer, music teacher in the College. Ms. Gemma Walsh-Cummins was in charge of production with Ms. Fiona Noonan as Stage Manager, while the set design was the work of art teacher, Ms. Eleanor Kilroy, who also played the violin in the orchestra. Other staff members, assisted by enthusiastic students, looked after costumes, lighting, sound, programmes, tickets and all the other seemingly countless details which are essential to the presentation of a successful show.

The cast was drawn from students in 2nd, Transition and 5th Years. Due to examination commitments, Junior and Leaving Certificate Students are not permitted to take part.

Dermot Maher played the part of Adam, the eldest of the alphabetical Pontipee brothers, with Colm Summers playing Benjamin, Nicholas Ryan (Caleb), Micheál Butler (Daniel), Jack Sutcliffe (Ephraim), Jack Jeffries (Frank) and Ause Abdelhaq (Gideon). Colm, in his character of Benjamin, also gave a delightfully witty introduction to the show each evening. The brothers were partnered by Ursula O’Sullivan playing the part of Millie, accompanied by Jane O’Connor, Eimear Barron, Eva Cummins, Elayne Mulcahy, Elaine Long and Emma Wilson who took the roles of Dorcas, Alice, Liza, Martha, Ruth and Sarah. The roles of the suitors were taken by Luke Mulcahy, Neville Flynn, Michael Fitzgerald, Laurens Van Bussel, Aidan Moloney and Eoghan Sheehy. The owners of the village Store, Mr. and Mrs. Bixby were portrayed by Richard Moran and Joanne Irwin, with Laurens Van Bussel standing in for Richard, who unfortunately had to withdraw, due to illness, after the first performance. Paraic Ryan played the part of Mr. Perkins, proprietor of the Saloon, with Kate Ryan as his wife, while David Smyth, with fitting gravity of demeanour, played the part of the Preacher.

The leader of the Orchestra was Mr. Noel Lennon and his enthusiasm at the pre-performance vocal warm-up each evening quickly communicated itself to the cast. In the weeks preceding the performance, tunes like “Bless your beautiful hide”, “Goin’ Courting’” “Sobbin Women” and “Spring” could be heard being hummed, sung, and whistled up and down the school. Five current students played in the orchestra – Finbarr English, Aidan Burke, Michael Mullins, Matt O’Sullivan and Ann Kristin Scheibe.

A production of this kind called for a deep level of commitment from all the young people who were involved and the trust that the adults involved placed in the students was amply justified by the level of hard work, courtesy, enthusiasm and good humour that characterised the weeks of preparation – not to mention two Saturday and one Sunday rehearsals as Opening Night drew ever closer.

After the final performance, there was an inevitable element of sadness that the show was well and truly over for another year. Some cast members with more enthusiasm than sense wanted to do another one after Christmas! However, when a lot of French and German, Maths and Physics, History and Chemistry will have been forgotten, the memories of the three nights of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers will remain ever green.