Stage set for premiere of college musical
Students have been working tirelessly in preparation for the premiere of a new musical at William Clarke College , a P-12 Anglican school in the Hills District .
Mr Angus Trenerry , drama teacher and director , said the musical , Urinetown , was a brilliant satire . Nominated for nine Tony Awards , the production provokes its audience to think about important issues like capitalism , global warming and social responsibility .
“ The musical centres around a city where a terrible water shortage has led to a government-enforced ban on private
toilets ,” Mr Trenerry said . “ The only option for citizens is to use pay-per-use public amenities regulated by a corrupt company and anyone who can ’ t pay is sent away to ‘ Urinetown ’.
“ Eventually , one man decides that he ’ s had enough and plans a revolution to lead them all to freedom !”
Mr Trenerry said naturally the musical leaned into ‘ toilet ’ humour but did so with thought-provoking wit and creativity .
“ Urinetown deals with the pursuit of wealth at the expense of people , which is a worthy message at any time ,” he said .
“ We have set it in a modern Australian context which should help our audience connect with it in a different way than musicals set overseas .
“ It also pokes fun at the genre of musicals which allows us to explore some hilarious possibilities on stage and really engage our audience .
“ This means it will be entertaining for all our audience members whether they ‘ like ’ musicals or not !”
Shows will take place from 11 May through to 21 May . You can find out more about this fabulous production and purchase tickets at wcc . nsw . edu . au .
SKILLS4You - the path to a better life for migrant women
The brand new SKILL4You program provides a holistic environment in which to improve employment readiness , capability , and work experience for migrant women . The launch of the new SKILLS4You program comes at a crucial time , with critical labour shortages across the aged care , disability care , and child care sectors .
It assesses the individual ’ s level of employment readiness for the Australian workforce , sets employmentrelated goals , and provides an individualised training plan to achieve a successful outcome .
The program is designed for migrants such as Noura , a Sudanese born migrant who initially struggled to complete training and get a job in Australia . With support through the college , Noura was able to complete a CHC33015 Certificate III in Individual Support , specialising in aged and disability care and then a CHC43115 Certificate IV in Disability .
“ I began work before I even finished my course ,” says Noura .
Work placement , a crucial component of the course , not only gave her necessary work experience with aged care providers but also the opportunity to prove her worth . Noura is now in high demand as a care worker , with several employers offering her work .
SKILLS4U provides wrap-around support services combined with formal training in English language , ( including language specific to working in caring careers ), job readiness and formal qualification training .
Macquarie Community College , recognised High Performing Provider for Smart & Skilled is under contract with the NSW State Government as a Smart and Skilled and Adult Community Education ( ACE ) provider . This means that the program is fee-free for eligible students .
To enquire about SKILLS4You email sandra . mckinney @ macquarie . nsw . edu . au .
THE HILLS INDEPENDENT theindependentmagazine . com . au ISSUE 83 // MAY 2022 25