“This is no ordinary lamp! … Perhaps you would like to hear the tale?” asks the peddler in the animated movie Aladdin. A tale then began to unfold. As the curtains were drawn back, a series of Disney-themed performances were presented on the stage on 15 May 2013, in UIC’s student-produced musical show named “Back to Childhood”.
Go the distance
In front of a jam-packed UIC auditorium, the programme, which had taken eight months to prepare, featured 14 musical plays based on eight Disney animated films such as Aladdin, Hercules, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story, Mulan, Pocahontas, and The Lion King. The performances included solo, choral, and group musical acts that dazzled audiences with their emotional expressions, strongly choreographed dances and vivid costume choices.
 |
|
 |
| Be our guest |
|
Arabian nights |
“I can tell they’ve put a lot of effort into this musical,” said audience member Wenyan Yang, “It really took us back to our childhood memories when we adored Disney films.”
Shadowland
According to Ms. Sandra Lau, UIC Campus Music Activity Organizer and Supervisor of the show, the “Back to Childhood” musical concentrated on the vivid expressions, upbeat choreography, vocal prowess and beautiful costumes, in contrast to the lyrical and melodic focus of UIC’s first musical production – “Legend”.
Circle of life
The student musical director and co-producer, Jonathan Au, revealed that the performers of both musicals were nearly the same. “They just didn’t want to stop after the successful performance in the ‘Legend’. They wanted to keep on working together to produce more shows,” he said.
Despite some technical difficulties and external obstacles during its preparation, the “Back to Childhood” musical performance was a great success. More than 2000 students requested tickets but only 400 tickets were available, and a number of teachers and students even asked for a second showing of “Back to Childhood”!
“No matter how much time and effort we have put into this production, it was worth it,” said Ms. Sandra Lau.
Reporter: Chiu Wen Chin
Photographer: Henry Wong
Editor: Deen He
(from MPRO, with special thanks to the ELC)
