THE MUSICAL THAT ASKS THE MILLENNIUM QUESTION
AN EXCITING PROJECT
produced jointly by the
SCHOOLS OF WEDNESFIELDAND FALLINGS PARK
and the
CHURCHES OF WEDNESFIELD AND FALLINGS PARK
on
Thursday 17th February 2000
at the
WOLVERHAMPTON CIVIC HALL"Who Is This Jesus?" is a simple, but extremely moving and powerful musical based on the Biblical accounts of the life and teaching of Jesus. The ministers of churches from various demoninations in Wednesfield and Fallings Park took a promotional video into all the schools to see if they interested in working together on a large joint production. They were amazed by the response. 17 out of the 22 of the schools in Wednesfield and Fallings Park have committed themselves to being involved. A steering group and production team have been formed and and a venue has been booked for a single performance on 17th February 2000. Many teacher and others from the church have put in a lot of hard work to make this production a memorable event. It is an enormous undertaking that will involve 600 children in the choir as well as about 100 children for the drama, dance and mime sequences. The orchestra is made up of pupils from the secondary schools. The actors come from the Fallings Park United Reform Church Youth Drama Group and also from St Gregory's CE Church. It is likely to be one of, if not the biggest Millennium event in Wolverhampton. We have been awarded a Certificate by Wolverhampton Council who approved it as a recognised Millennium Project within Wolverhampton. It was a wonderful opportunity, which may never arise again for all the churches and school to work together on something which reached out and touched the whole community. After only two weeks of the tickets going on sale all 1200 sold out. Nick was involved because he has close links with 8 of the schools which are taking part and he also regularly attends one of the churches.
The school that took part were: Primary Schools, Corpus Christi Roman Catholic, Danesmore Park, D'Eyncourt, Long Knowle, Moathouse, Oak Meadow, Perry Hall, St Alban's Church of England, St Mary's Roman Catholic, St Thomas's Church of England, Underhill, Wednesfield Village, Wodensfield and Wood End.
Secondary Schools, Coppice High, Heath Park High and Wednesfield High.
Photographs of rehearsals in schools. These two photographs show children from
Wood End Primary Rehearsing their Dance called
"THE STORM".
Below are members of the Speaking Chorus, from Wednesfield High, patiently waiting for their next queue line.
Busy during rehearsals, the band made up from pupils from Heath Park High and Coppice High Schools.
The day before the lighting and sound technicians had installed all the equipment which took nearly all day. Also an extension to the front of the stage was added.
After a sleepless night for almost everyone who was taking part, final preparations were being made to the Civic Hall.
At ten on the big day equipment was checked over and adjusted. Lighting checks were made and sound checks were undertaken.
At 11 o'clock the members of the band arrived, set up on the stage and had a run through of all the music before all the other cast members arrived.
At 12 midday, the actors arrived and tried out their radio mikes and moved around the stage to get a real feel of how much space the had to work with.
At 12.30 the dancers and the choir started to arrive. All seven hundred of them.
Next came the mammoth task of seating all the cast on the stage safely and begin the rehearsal with all the members being together for the first time in all of the five months of preparation.
There was excitement but also there were many butterflies flying around in many tummies.
The first rehearsal went well with stops to confirm starts and stops, entrances and exits, spot lights and dimmed lights, fade sounds in and fade sounds out. Time for a well earned break, a drink and a visit to the loo.
