Brentwood College School - Brentonian Yearbook (Mill Bay, British Columbia Canada)

Page 21 text:

Thisbe ' episode from ' A Midsummer Night ' s Dream, ' and the Senior Dramatic Society presented ' In The Zone ' by Eugene O ' Neill. I. R. Ford

Page 20 text:

School Activities The School Concert The first annual concert was held in the gymnasium on Feb. 28 and 29. An XIB contribution opened the entertainment; the Brentwood Beatles, Charkow, Martin, Reppun and Weinstein banged and shouted with great energy. They were enthusiastically received by an almost hysterical audience, although it must be admitted that many of the screaming girls bore a remarkable resemblance to members of XIB. After this noisy opening, the audience was treated to a fine display by the School Gymnastic Club. Kirby, Berry, Gordon, Howarth, Landale, Moss, McMartin, Williams and Woodward performed with smooth precision. Modern poems were the inspiration for an act by Hamilton, Pott- schmidt and Thorns. The poems were used to satirize the ' beat ' school of poetry, and the stylized movements and rapt contemplation of the lily added to this sly study. This was a clever idea, and it is a pity that the audience missed its subtlety. XC ' s fashion parade was a very amusing effort. The sophisticated music served only to emphasize the grotesque nature of the models — Liz Lamb, Sonny Magnuson, Twinkle Stevenson, Lindy Lovelace, Susie Stewart, Melissa Marlin, Cynthia Clarke and Fiona Fisher. The Stewballs, Peter, Taylor and Woodward sang their folk song with simple charm, and proved it is possible to sing well and to hold an audience without echo chambers, funny haircuts or other gimmicks. Reppun, Sutherland and Weinstein, dressed as small schoolboys, tried to prove that ' Children should be seen but never heard, ' and the Xl ' s showed what really happens when Dr. Kildare gets his hands on a patient. Two other items, which are reviewed elsewhere, completed the program. The Junior Dramatic Society presented the ' Pyramus and 18

Page 22 text:

Drama Throughout the season both junior and senior drama clubs under- took a varied and ambitious program. As talent was originally an unknown factor, extensive play-reading occupied the early meetings. Many of the seniors showed a marked preference for reading the more avant-garde plays, but thankfully the final choice fell upon one of the classics of the Early- American realistic theatre, Eugene O ' Neill ' s ' In The Zone. ' By contrast, the junior club wisely chose to present The Rustic Scenes from ' A Midsummer Night ' s Dream. ' Final performances of both plays provided highlights of the school concert. Once the ' Junior Rustics ' had caught the spirit of the piece, embellishment seemed to be the order of the day. Ralph Dale ' s Wall ' grew more and more stupid at each performance, and it came as no surprise to find Thisbe (Christopher Peter) finally dying in the front row of the audience. The production of ' In The Zone ' had already earned Honor Per- formance and a Best Actor Award for James Brown at the local Cowichan Schools ' Drama Festival, but in school, on the specially-designed circular stage beautifully lit by the science department, the emotional edges and subtleties of the relationships seemed more clearly defined. We feel that a more successful opening has been made to Brent- wood ' s histrionic career, and trust that a ' long run ' may be in store for both audience and players. T. G. Bunch 20