St. Ben makes gold; celebrates with movies, musicals

ST. BEN STUDENTS perform “I Just Can’t Wait to be King” from the “Lion King.” (Contributed photo.)
ST. BEN STUDENTS perform “I Just Can’t Wait to be King” from the “Lion King.” (Contributed photo.)

TO HONOR its 50th year, Saint Benedict’s Childhood Education Centre (SBCEC) put up a production entitled “Gold! SBCEC in concert: A nostalgic journey through movies and musicals.”

The show started with a rendition of Annie’s “Tomorrow” sung by one of the younger female students, who made her way from a spotlight in the audience to the stage, where she was then replaced by one of the older female students who finished the song. As an opening, the performance was a kind of foreshadowing of what the show’s theme would be about: then and now, past and present—a glimpse through the years of SBCEC and its growth in the community.

Apart from showcasing their own versions of various hits from classic and contemporary movies and musicals, a handful of students also narrated the story of the school and offered trivia of what was happening in the world on that same year.

The cherry on top was a touching homage to their founder, Lygia Cabatingan Ibañez, who passed away a few years back.

The production involved more than just the whole student body—faculty, staff and alumni took part in it as well. The show closed with the whole cast singing ABBA’s “Thank You for the Music,” a fitting end to express the sentiments of the SBCEC community toward the school.

The celebration concert was a clear indication that St. Benedict’s school still continues to honor the memory of Ibañez, who is fondly remembered as someone who appreciated the balance of education and creativity.

Raul Fernando Ballesteros, SBCEC’s principal, shared that the celebration had been long overdue and should have been done in 2017. Nevertheless, the show went on.

“Miss Ibañez loved to have shows. We thought of coming up with a show that would this time focus and center on the milestones of St. Benedict—not just a play or a Disney show. It had to be about St. Benedict and how it has flourished in the last 50 years,” said the principal, who mentioned that the school even went so far as to hold auditions for the narrators and lead performers.

He also added that it did take quite some time to prepare for the show—all about a month and a half.

“We wanted to showcase the best of the best and, to be able to maximize participation, rehearsals were done in school—sometimes during class hours and sometimes after class,” said Ballesteros.

Trending

No stories found.

Just in

No stories found.

Branded Content

No stories found.
SunStar Publishing Inc.
www.sunstar.com.ph