Curtains close on Beauty and the Beast

Mazenod College and Avila College proudly presented Disney's Beauty and the Beast: The Broadway Musical at The Alexander Theatre, Monash University, following months of rehearsal, preparation and collaboration.

Across four performances, our talented cast, crew, orchestra, staff and volunteers brought this much-loved story to life, delighting audiences with a memorable production.

Congratulations to everyone involved in making the musical such a wonderful success. It was a fantastic celebration of the creativity, dedication and teamwork of our school communities.

The success of Beauty and the Beast extended far beyond the standing ovations and sold-out performances. It was a celebration of collaboration, creativity and community, with every cast member, musician, crew member and volunteer contributing to an unforgettable production. For many students, the experience left a lasting impact both on and off the stage.

Xavier (Year 10) Reflects on Playing the Beast

My joy in participating in the musical didn't come from my own performance as the Beast, but rather from seeing the amazing and pure talent of others, and watching each person develop in their role, whether in the ensemble or a featured part, in a way they wouldn't have been able to show if this opportunity didn't exist. One of the highlights of the rehearsal experience was the diverse range of performers we had in our cast, which only added to the breadth of capabilities that we possessed as a collective group. It was also an immense privilege to work with an incredible group of Avila students who were so willing and eager to collaborate with us at Mazenod. We are given very few chances to work with our sister school, and the yearly production we perform is the best display of our collaboration. This made me think about why teamwork itself feels meaningful.

This sense of joy and collaboration stayed with me beyond rehearsals and came back to me one day during R.E. a question was posed: What satisfies the human soul? The answer, of course, is that only God can fully satisfy this, but I began to think how this is shown. Not full and total satisfaction, but moments of God's love being displayed through pure human experiences. It's through events such as this musical that help us taste this feeling of purpose and satisfaction. We long for opportunities to work together as people of God to demonstrate our ability to love and help one another as our Lord instructed us to do. This was particularly exemplified through the ups and downs of show week and the ability to see the pure joy in everyone's eyes and seeing something that has taken so long to put together come to life.