House Play Festival Programme 2023

33 rd Annual House Plays Festival

2020 SOMERSET COLLEGE ANNUAL REPORT

SOMERSET SEMESTER ONE

TERM ONE

Week 1

House Play Festival Winner 2022

2022 House Plays Festival Highlights

2022 House Plays Festival Highlights

Welcome It is that time of year again! What better way to begin House Plays Festival than to give you a window into the creative process of 2023. Term 4, 2022. Directors were selected and after a strong week of auditions, casts were finalised. House Plays auditions earnt each participant a Spirit point. To all who bravely stepped into the audition room, our directors thank you! Your talent and passion made their final decisions so very difficult. Day 1, Term 1, 2023. The full company of 108 divided into rehearsal spaces, completed a table read and began the process of staging a play in 4 weeks. No time is wasted. With directors scouring over the schedules of their large casts, finding every possible moment to block a scene, run transitions and develop character. Week 2 is a busy week of deadlines; costume, set and prop requirements, and (most importantly) the completed stage action. Week 3 focuses on characterisation, with directors opting to embrace smaller cast rehearsals as our Year 7’s enjoy camp. Week 3 culminates in a technical rehearsal, where the directors collaborate with Mr Cash and members of the technical services crew, to design their sound, lighting and visual effects. Week 4 begins with dress rehearsals, where the show runs for the first time. The directors focus on honing acting skills, navigating set transitions, finalising staff cameo appearances, and learn the importance of returning props to their allocated location. Gaffer tape, corflute, glitter foam and textured wallpaper magically transform the set. The 5 plays do not get the luxury of multiple runs of show prior to opening night. Our actors and directors are resilient and flexible, constantly using critical and creative thinking skills to solve problems and refine their productions. For our company, it is a labour of love, and they are fiercely proud of their work. House Plays Festival truly focuses on the journey. Sure, awards and accolades are nice for a moment, but the strong bonds that form between each cast member are what truly count. The moments of play that lead to unexpected magic when developing a scene. The uncontrollable laughter. The hug when you are having a rough day. A listening ear. Sharing a creative thought. These are the memories that matter. The true Spirit of the festival. On behalf of the House Plays Festival directors, actors, and technical crew, we would like to sincerely thank the families of all participants for supporting the festival. Without your commitment, the festival could not run. We extend our thanks to all staff for their assistance, and invite you, our wonderful audience, to sit back and enjoy the show.

Anna D’Arcy

Josephine Flynn

Assistant Head of Performing Arts

Theatre Manager

2023 House Plays Festival Adjudicator Ari Palani

Ari Palani is a passionate director, producer, community engagement specialist and theatre maker. He has worked across a number of communities in Australia facilitating creative outcomes that advocate for intercultural collaboration, Arts education and emerging narratives. Ari is internationally focused on building cultural economies, humanitarian responses and increasing the discussion around displaced communities. He has worked extensively in South Korea and Malaysia developing innovative programs highlighting the interconnectedness of the Arts in contemporary STEAM education and translating these into hybrid models of cultural engagement in the vast Australian landscape. His recent theatrical works include The Neighbourhood (LB2020), The Time is Now (LB2021), Brother’s Book Club (Kingston Butter Factory 2022) and a number of developments and readings nationally amongst these. He is currently a Producer and Director at La Boite Theatre and it is his desire to build the capacity of industries and promote the joy of collaborative practice.

Order of Plays

There will be a 10 minute interval between each play

Technical Assistant

Sam Cash

Technical Services Crew

Riddhi Athota Amelia Cotton Steff Chang Yuvi Chauhan

Noa Chester-Haviv

Haysal Denzongpa-Bathols

Luke Oishi Oliver Yang

Festival Photographer

Paul.A.Broben

Cut

Written by Ed Monk

Performance rights granted through Origin Theatrical Australia

Synopsis A group of actors rehearses a play within a play within a play. As the plot complications multiply, the actors begin to forget who is playing whom, and who is the real director - as opposed to the actor who is playing the director, or vice versa.

Directors

Georgie Kilmartin

Xavier O’Brien

Cast

Benjamin Arnold

Xanthe Clifford

Erin Davies

Arya Denzongpa-Bathols

Haysal Denzongpa-Bathols

Hrishi Kadiyala

Alex Kilmartin

Georgina Littleton

Benji Liu

Cast

Allegra Liussi

Maddi McLaughlin

Lauren Mills

John Oluteye

Grace Pan

Aanika Soni

Action News Now with 10% More Action

Written by Jonathan Rand

Performance rights granted through playwright

Synopsis Welcome to WOW OMG Action News, the most trusted news program since the invention of trust, news, and programs. Join lead anchors Babs Buttlebee and Jim Pickles as they usher us through tonight's top stories; from adorable killer puppies, to Apocalypse status updates, and don’t forget the weather! Tune in to WOW OMG Action News! Or don't and suffer the consequences…

Directors

Lael Jeon

Ellie Ryan

Cast

Ishan Chauhan

Samantha Coomber

Evan Cosson

Sarah Cosson

Sania Gill

Secret Goetz

Katie Hammett

Atlanta Horan

Shanti Keats

Cast

Ashane Kulawickrama

Lava Lopez

Ruhara Mapabandara

Lyla Proctor

Niamh Rogers

Zara Ryan

Roni Shamsi

Bridie Sly

Tony Stephens

Cast

Riko Tateno

River Teixeira

Dreams

Written by Barry Kay

Performance rights granted through playwright

Synopsis With the myriad of possibilities and all the pressure to make a decision as early as possible, what’s a young person supposed to do with their dreams for their own future? Dreams explores a fantasy world where the Dream Agency can assist with planning a future just as you would use a travel agent to plan a holiday.

Directors

Heidi Hoffman

Tatiana Leon

Cast

Sabine Booth

Hayeon Byun

Megan Cattell

Ayla Chirathivat-Geralds

Jamie Chirathivat-Geralds

Sophie Colahan

Austin Dover

James Gell

Alice Jones

Cast

Hamish Kennedy

Briana Leon

Timothy McSwan

Lucy Millar

Rishi Veeramachaneni

Liana Warwick

Island of Secrets

Written by Tony Nicholls

Performance rights granted through playwright

Synopsis Two children are travelling to meet the father they have never known when their ship is wrecked in a storm. They find themselves caught up in rebellion, magic, and mystery. Their presence seems to have been pre-arranged - but by whom?

Directors

Kaelyn Dolan

Ava McCarthy

Cast

Emmeline Anthony

Magnus Anthony

Annabel Bartley

Elliot Bartley

Xanthe Baxter

Giselle Burke

Ella Cao

Ashton Crasto

Darcy Daly

Cast

Georgia Daly

Grace Hickey

Tarang Kondamudi

Anika Lu

Aleeza Tariq

Mia Woodthorpe

Pinoki Knows

Written by Sallie Brockman

Performance rights granted through playwright

Synopsis Pinoki dreams of joining a boy band and becoming rich and famous. In his quest, he sets out to find a way to become a ‘real’ boy and, along the way, many well known characters give Pinoki some much-needed help and valuable advice.

Directors

Iona Radcliffe

Gianni Restaino

Cast

Lily Allen

Bella Beer

Sienna Briggs

Noah Carter

Raye FengXu

Esther Fink

Sara Gacina Richardson

Joey Garrett

Alex Halloran

Cast

Julian Kelly-Correa

Maya Moshtagh

Aditya Naik

Farron Parker

William Pluss

Julia Puhalla

Abhiraj Sarmah

Daisy Symons

Sophie Ward-Harvey

Cast

Daisy Webber

Hannah Zubair

Leylah Zubair