Summerlea United Church
225 50 Av, Lachine, Québec, H8T2T7, Canada. 514-634-2651
Welcome!
"Oh Jonah!" April 29, 2006 | Folks | Pages

"Oh Jonah!" April 23, 2006
By Allen Pote & Carole McCann
(www.choristersguild.org/pote.html & www.choristersguild.org/mccann.html)

Sunday April 23, 2006 some 35 dedicated and talented members of the Summerlea congregation and friends presented the musical "Oh Jonah!", under the direction of Connie Osborne, as the second half of the morning worship service. The musical, previously presented in 2004, was the culmination of several months of weekly practices and offered a faithful rendition of the biblical story of Jonah and the whale in a swinging, joyful musical format that made it difficult to keep from toe-tapping and swinging along.

The cast included young and not-so-young members of the congregation and community who reportedly had a great time together at the rehearsals.

The congregation was asked to hold applause until the completion of the play, at which time the full house leapt to their feet in a thunderous ovation that brought on an encore of the finale.

Congratulations and thanks to Connie, the players, the production staff and pianist Ann Sutton for a wonderful experience.

Following are some photos of the event, taken at the dress rehearsal the day before. In watching the performance again Sunday it became evident that photos cannot convey the spirit of joy and enthusiasm that was evidenced by the cast, but it's all we can offer. You can pick on the photos to see a larger version. To return here, pick Back on your browser.

There is also one video clip at the end to give a flavour of the fun. It's a 12 MB file, so be warned - it takes almost two minutes to download on high speed Internet.

Note: The musical will be presented again at Summerlea Saturday April 29 at 7 PM. A free-will offering will be received to go to the Summerlea organ fund.

"Oh Jonah"
Cast of Characters
(in order of appearance)
Allison: Marion Golden
Jonah: Aaron Miechkota
Captain: David Pryce
Captain's mate: Jacob Osborne
Captain's mate: Justin Roy
Queen of Nineveh: Janet Smart

Angels:
Head angel: Michelle McKenzie
Angel #1: Erin Overbury
Angel #2: Skye Miechkota
Angel #3: Alayna Roy
Angel #4: Shauna Overbury
Angel #5: Mara Vitols
Angel #6: Michelle McKenzie
Angel #7: Cassandra McKenzie

Sailors:
Fin Shirley, Bob Hoare, Terry Jones,
Kevin McKenzie, Keith McKenzie, John Osborne

Whale:
Michèle Bitauld, Marion Golden, Mary Guynan, Nancy Harvey, Ruth Heim,
Susan McKenzie, Jeannine Morin, Jane Percy, Janet Smart, Selga Vitols

Joining Nineveh scene: Ruth Heim

Production Staff
Musical Director: Constance Osborne
Stage Director: Howard Clark
Pianist: Ann Sutton
Costumes/Set Design
Kim Blatherwick
Bryan Maklan
Howard Clark
Constance Osborne
Videotaping: Anders Yates

Thanks
to St. Columba by the Lake for the risers;
to Frank Romagosa for building 2 risers;
to Ray Laviolette, Bryan Maklan, & Frank Romagosa for moving the risers;
to Michèle Bitauld for donation of props;
to our caretaker, George Provias, for his help and support.


Howard led the players in a prayer circle before the practice began.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

Marion Golden got the crew to figure out what the story is all about,
with emphasis on responsibility.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

The sleeping Jonah (Aaron Miechkota - can that gal sing!) hears angels telling him God wants him
to go to preach to the Ninevites. It takes some help from the rest of the cast to awaken him.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

Jonah is not keen to preach to the wicked Ninevites and packs his bag
(with items such as whale repellant and giant Tic-Tacs) to head for Joppa,
to catch a ship headed for Spain.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

While on the ship the angels warn of a mighty storm approaching,
which soon threatens to drown them all. Jonah realizes that the storm is his fault,
and asks the sailors to throw him overboard.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

The sailors are reluctant, but ultimately agree and over goes Jonah.
The sailors are sad - Jonah is no longer aboard. But the storm abates and they are saved.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

As Jonah swims he encounters a huge whale which swallows him up.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

Soon some angels come along and suggest that Jonah teach the whale to sing,
with a Hallelujah finale.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

After some false starts, the whale learns to sing Hallelujah and,
with its mouth open, out pops Jonah.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

The angels accompany him to Nineveh,
where he is appalled at the wicked ways of the Ninevites.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

But quickly his teaching convinces the queen of the error of their ways,
and the Ninevites proclaim the one true God.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

And then it's curtain time. We caught only a few of the very quick bows.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

Director Connie Osborne and pianist Ann Sutton doing their thing.
Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006 Oh Jonah 2006

And one video clip to give a flavour of the fun.
Beware - it's a large download (almost 2 minutes on high speed)!
Video clip (12 MB)

Our thanks to all who participated to make this a highly enjoyable telling of the biblical tale.

Top | "Oh Jonah!" April 29, 2006 | Folks | Pages