Senior Performance

Drama Performance – Lovin’ It

Ōtaki College students have been taking on the challenge of directing theatre. The NCEA Drama class performed Lovin’ It by Jo Randerson on the 10th and 11th of September. The show had four sections and four directors - three of whom were students, two making their directorial debut. The three students, Olivia Fogden, James Auld and Lina Valu were supported by kaiako Tamsin Dashfield-Speight.

Olivia Fogden, Year 13, who is also a member of the Ngā Ringa Whero student leadership team, said “It was a really fun opportunity, it was a different experience to get to create the whole scene and bring it to life, to be in control and have it be my vision.”

The show was a colourful and energetic hour of enjoyable chaos. Lovin’ It began as Assisted Living which was originally commissioned by Long Cloud Youth Theatre and presented by Whitireia New Zealand. The script was evolved as part of a devising process with Aaron Cortesi and the cast of the original production. The script was published in 2015. Written by Jo Randerson ONZM it is set in a post-apocalyptic world on a stage that is a trash heap of objects and rubbish from the past.

About a group of people who have only shreds of memory of who they are and the world outside the room they live in, the play invites the audience to draw their own conclusions and interpretations. The characters try to find ways to cope with rollercoaster emotions, solve disagreements and seek wisdom in half-remembered motivational speeches and company slogans. Different audience members saw it as the inside of a teenagers brain, a cult who shut themselves away from the world, the school library at lunch time and a commentary on society, our history and loss of history and consumerism. They described as a hilarious and thought-provoking show.

Lina Valu, a Year 12 student director said  “The actors contributed their perspective on the play, they really listened to the concept and ideas that we had. This understanding showed in how they exaggerated their performances and communicated to the audience what it was about.”