Liberty Jack and Connor Kelly-Gage will star as Bonnie and Clyde in the upcoming St Peter’s musical.
The story of the infamous outlaw couple Bonnie and Clyde will be performed on the St Peter’s stage next month.
Bonnie & Clyde the musical will feature Year 13 student Liberty Jack as the leading lady Bonnie, and Year 11 student Connor Kelly-Gage as the gangster man himself, Clyde.
It’s quite the leap for Connor, who hasn’t starred in a school production before, let alone in a lead role. But the 15-year-old was keen as mustard to jump in the deep end, after the school’s head boy Jonathan Khalil, a prefect in his boarding house, convinced him to audition.
“He just really wanted me to audition, so I did,” Connor explained. “He’s been a really great help with learning lines.”
Khalil will also star in the show as Clyde’s brother Buck.
Having only ever performed in a school kapahaka, the Turangi native said the journey to the stage had been quite the experience, but heaps of fun.
“It’s something that I’m absolutely not used to, learning lines, and reaching higher notes, I’ve never really had to do that,” he said.
But memorizing lines with the help of Jonathan Khalil, and many hours practicing with Liberty, have helped him perfect the art, Connor said.
Liberty on the other hand has been starring in musicals for much of her life. She moved to New Zealand from London in 2015, getting involved in the school’s performing arts department from day-one.
“Working with the staff and all the cast has been really great,” she said of her fifth and final St Peter’s school production.
“During the production process we get quite close because we’re all together so much, so you make a lot of new friends and get to know people, that’s probably the best part,” she said.
68 students are performing in this year’s St Peter’s production. Combined with those working backstage on lighting, sound, hair and makeup, just over a hundred students are involved – roughly ten percent of the whole school.
The production runs May 3 – 9 with five evening performances and a 2pm matinee on Sunday, May 5. Tickets are available through iTicket.
Cambridge News has two tickets to give away to the show. Just send your full name and contact number, with the subject line “Bonnie and Clyde”, to: [email protected]. Entries must be received no later than 9am, Tuesday April 23.
