OSMaD
OSMaD 2017 – get ready for Chess
2008- Les Miserables 2009- Jesus Christ Superstar 2010- My Fair Lady 2011- Sweeney Todd 2012- Normie-The Musical 2013- The Music Man 2014- The Producers 2015- Oliver! 2016- The Pajama Game
and now
2017- Chess
Old Scotch Music and Drama Club’ s 2017 production, Chess, was inspired by the political Cold War machinations shadowing the 1972 World Chess Championship between Bobby Fischer of the United States and defending champion Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union. In this‘ match of the century’ Fischer became the first American born in the United States to win the world title— a win which ended 24 years of Soviet domination of the world championship.
Chess has music written by Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus of ABBA fame, but it’ s certainly not Dancing Queen, Mamma Mia or Waterloo. Chess is operatic in construction but not an opera. It comes from an idea and with lyrics by Tim Rice, long-time collaborator with Andrew Lloyd Webber( Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat).
This is our 10th year of producing entertaining and professional standard production, using the Geoffrey McComas Theatre at Scotch. This year we have decided to change the pace again and tackle Chess. It should be obvious to our audience that we enjoy bringing these shows to life.
Last year’ s show, The Pajama Game, won many peer-judged awards which we, of course, thought were well deserved.
You will have heard of the Academy Awards, the Emmys, the Golden Globes, the BAFTA awards, and of course the Logies. But you may have missed all the shouting and noise of celebration from the recent 2016 Lyrebird Awards in Melbourne, when OSMaD’ s The Pajama Game was announced as the winner of the big one: 2016 Production of the Year— Musical. It also won several other awards: Best Director— Musical( Richard Perdriau), Best Musical Director— Musical( Ben Hudson), Best Choreographer— Musical( Louisa Mitchell), Best Supporting Actress – Musical( Kristy Griffin), Best Supporting Actor – Musical( Jeremy Russo), and the Judges’ Award for The Pajama Game’ s amazing knife-throwing effect.
But shows like Chess and The Pajama Game don’ t just happen. There are so many people who in their own way contribute to what is a whole team effort. Just to be nominated in any category is a great achievement: an award is the icing on the cake.
And you too can be part of it. Involvement in an OSMaD production is not restricted to Old Scotch Collegians nor to the Scotch Family, and you don’ t have to be a performer. If you understand fun, teamwork, community spirit and have ever been to the theatre, then you have all the qualifications you need to join us.
While there are many who stand on stage there are many more who act in backstage and other support roles – technical staging support, costuming and wardrobe, ticketing and front-ofhouse, set construction and painting— and we all find ourselves undertaking new tasks and learning new skills.
Chess will be staged in the Geoffrey McComas Theatre stage from 19 to 28 October. Tickets will be on sale from July through www. osmad. com. au. For more information, please contact Richard Beveridge on 0414 413 013 or at rbevo @ bigpond. net. au. RICHARD BEVERIDGE(‘ 62)
www. scotch. vic. edu. au Great Scot 73