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On December 8th, 2017 we hosted a Madrigal Dinner. A Madrigal Dinner is a feast set in the Middle Ages with singing, dancing, and acting. Usually, Madrigal Dinners are put on by churches or schools. Or, in our case, a co-op. We had four crews— event, publicity, tech, and costume. These crews worked very hard to make the Madrigal Dinner a success. We also had a great deal of parents who helped out. Without them, the Madrigal Dinner would have never happened. Our event crew planned the decorations and casted our “12 Days of Christmas” song for our dinner finale. Our publicity crew helped us get the word out about our event. Our tech crew put together a wonderful playlist for a medieval mood. Finally, our costume crew put together beautiful ensembles for our “Oh Holy Knight” actors to wear.
The night was filled with family, fun, and a delicious menu. On the morning of the day, we met at our host church to set up for this event. Tables and chairs filled the room along with a large stage. For dinner, salad, ham, chicken, and veggies, along with pound cake for dessert, were served. Later that evening, we had a traditional non-alcoholic wassail. Our “Oh Holy Knight” actors made excellent waiters and waitresses! Many classes in Shanan partook in the Madrigal dinner. The Junior Worship class did an outstanding performance; the sewing class made adorable table decorations. The drawing class also made delightful table decorations for all to see. The poetry class recited beautiful pieces of poetry. The middle school literature class also recited a few lovely monologues. The worship team performed a magnificent song called “Masters in The Hall”. We, the drama class, put on a very humorous play called “Oh Holy Knight”. A large number of Shanan students acted out a popular Christmas carol the conclude the night- “The 12 Medieval Days of Christmas”. The song was altered to be medieval to accentuate the theme of the night. Overall, we had an extremely successful night. Thank you all who supported us and made the Madrigal Dinner a success. We, Drama People, take our audition process very serious. This year is the Shakespeare year. We were required to memorize a monologue from an English Speaking Union packet and perform it in front of our teachers in groups. After that, we were called back to read for certain roles in which our teachers thought we would do well. We were selected for our roles depending on how much we commit and how well we portray the character as well as certain factors, like our availability and even physical characteristics. Although this process seems stressful, it’s a lot of fun. The most exciting part is when we get our cast list. This year we put on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream andThe Merry Adventures of Robin Hood.
Some of the drama students have shared their perspectives on this long and exciting process. “It’s hard but a mountain of fun!” says Drama People actor, Ernie. Ashton stated, “The audition process can be at first intimidating for two reasons. First, you must decide on your own monologue and memorize it (There are rules and boundaries in choosing). And second, there are more than likely many students competing for the same role as you. The process of auditioning isn’t hard, if you put the time into finding and memorizing your monologue, and get over yourself and be confident and articulate, then the stage is set (pun intended).” One of the best things to remember when auditioning for Drama People is that there is no such thing as a small role! Every character has purpose ‘cause if they didn’t, why would the play writer bother putting them in there?” “I love the audition process!” says a freshman with Drama People. “It is a lot of fun and the suspense of waiting for the cast list has me on the edge of my seat! I love working with my friends and being in drama!” Hannah stated, “Well, I mean it was tough memorizing the Shakespeare monologue. It was definitely a step out of my comfort zone, but I liked it. I picked my monologue and held nothing back. I’m proud of what I put before the judges.” The audition process takes a long time but is worth it in the end! Thanks to our students, hard-working teachers, and our loving God, our casting for our shows has been a success! |
AuthorWe are the drama class of the Shanan Co-op in Franklin, TN. Archives
December 2018
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