Director's Cut
In a few days’ time, mothers, fathers, siblings, and relatives, along with any friends of the performers, and crowds of enthusiasts of everything that’s ‘SAC’, will be making their way to the St. Aloysius College theatre for the annual 2015 SAC Soirée. As our audience takes their seats to scroll through the nights’ programme, they would immediately see one of the shows highlights; this year’s highly anticipated musical is “Aladdin”. Little do they know the effort that has been put in to the making of the show, which has been the only thing on our Aloysian minds for many weeks.
“Aladdin” started off as a simple idea, evolved into a possibility, and resulted in a dream come true. Two separate groups came together as one in early days of September, to achieve their goals in directing and organizing this year’s musical, and even though many ideas did came to mind, Aladdin was chosen as the best suited, by far.. The directors immediately began to scribble down every inch of a proposal, which undoubtedly succeeded. Of course, we are extremely proud to have been chosen as the organizing team for this year’s musical.
As a director, I can honestly say that it hasn’t been an easy ride. Ever since October, all 12 directors have put their utmost into making sure that this year’s musical would be the best of the best. By late November, the basis of the cast of Aladdin, as well as the script had been completed. All the dancers had been assembled, and rehearsals commenced shortly afterwards. Christmas turned out to be a period of hard work indeed as a lot of time was spent preparing for the final 2 months of preparation.
January has, so far, been the busiest month, and I would have never expected that directing the musical would be this time-consuming. By the first week of school, all our directors were scattered around, all with different objectives in mind that needed to be completed; choreographers were putting dances together, whilst artistic directors and stage managers were busy forming the crew teams to ensure that “Aladdin” stands out on the night in every aesthetic way. And finally, our acting director was beating the clock, ensuring that our beloved actors are at their best, to impress the audience in a few days’ time, together with our vocal coach, who also made sure that their voices weren’t disregarded.
Today, our cast is all set and ready; our dancers know every move and are ready to flaunt their talent, our chorus of voices are in tune and all set out, and our actors are going crazier by the minute, as the team becomes even closer. We also know that crew is in the process of making the musical even greater than we all expect it to be, and of course, the school has caught on with this musical spirit, as tickets are being sold out quicker than a fresh batch of warm pastizzi – the crowds are as eager as ever to experience such a famous Aloysian phenomenon, and tradition.
From my point of view, I can’t believe all of this has taken shape so quickly; in my eyes, it was only yesterday that Aladdin was chosen as the musical of the year, or even the fact that I’m involved in its direction. Though as the opening night approaches, rehearsals progress and our relationship with the cast grows stronger and stronger it’s finally beginning to sink in; what a beautiful, magical reality.. The many hours spent together working on scene after scene have turned out to be an incredible experience, as we got to know every single actor so personally, to the point where it’s hard to distinguish good memories from tragic to insane..
After reading this article, I wouldn’t blame you for being short of breath; indeed, putting together a musical for such an extravagant event is quite tough. Despite the challenging nature of the situation, it has been an absolute pleasure. Indeed, what seemed to be a tiring, and a backbreaking struggle to suit the demands of the school, has turned out to be a marvelous journey where we not only got to know ourselves better, but also made incredible new friends who we plan to cherish for the rest of our days.
What I suggest now is catching up on what Aladdin is really all about; browse the internet for more information about the musical, listen to the soundtrack, and watch the film. More importantly, get to know our cast and what to expect of them. And get ready for the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th of February; an event we promise you’ll never forget.
While the directors are scrambling across backstage making sure that any final touches are running smoothly, we invited you to relax, and enjoy every moment of this fantastic musical. Just remember not to forget your tickets, and don’t be late! The doors shall be awaiting your entry at 7pm!
Matthew Micallef St. John
