Everyone loves High School Musical, and some people like med students, but this year, Med Revue have combined both to bring a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, Med School Musical.
If you haven’t heard of Med Revue before, it’s a student-led variety performance by the UoA School of Medicine, showcasing the best of acting, singing and dancing. And given these people have survived first-year biomed, it’s guaranteed that the show will be packed with drama aplenty.
But don’t take my word for it. I had the pleasure of firing questions at a few of this year’s all-star cast to find out if they’re ‘all in this together’ to knock the show out of the park.
B: What is most unique about Med Revue?
Damian (Chad): It’s showcasing what the Med School has to offer, and giving all the students something, other than studying, that [they] love, can jump in on and have a lot of fun doing.
Leo (Zeke): I’d say it’s representing the diversity of all the medical students in the faculty. There are so many cultures and talents that you can showcase.
Jono (Troy): I think it’s removing the myth that med students sit in Philson 24/7 and do nothing else. It’s showing that, yeah it’s a different tone than everyone expects and we’ve got everyone from all walks of life.
B: Explain your role in Med Revue, but poorly
Damian (Chad): Classic bro, meathead, and orthopaedics. Troy’s BFF but also ruining Troy’s life at some points.
Leo (Zeke): He’s a chill guy [who] doesn’t really care about too many things. And he likes baking (winky-face).
Jono (Troy): Insecure, considers himself a ladies man, daddy issues.
Patrick (Musical Director): Stressed coordinator with ill-defined responsibilities.
B: Given the theme this year is ‘Med School Musical,’ what is your favourite High School Musical moment or number? For me, nothing beats the pot-drumming and pepper-shaker grinding in Work This Out from HSM2.
Damian (Chad): My favourite moment is from HSM2 as well—which is the best movie. I like it when they’re playing baseball, and comparing it to dancing, and singing the ‘I can’t dance’ song. And then [Chad] realises baseball is just like dancing. I thought that was a very inspirational moment for me.
Leo (Zeke): Probably the baseball scene, but also the ending scene [of HSM2]. I don’t know how to describe it; they’re all coming together for the talent show, and it was just a touching moment.
Jono (Troy): The classic Troy and Gabriella reunite for their ‘we’re Soaring, we’re Flying’. The conclusion of their character arcs [in the first movie] is beautiful. Electricity.
B: Taking on a musical is a daunting task. Any hidden singing talents in the cast?
Leo (Zeke): I think Damian is pretty decent.
Damian (Chad): It’s absolutely not my forte. I think we’ve tried to minimise the singing on my part and leave it to the professionals. We’ve got an absolutely beautiful singer who’s playing Kelsi, her name is Irdina. She’s got a whole song, that is her song, and just absolutely crushes it every single time we practice. And every single time it gives me goosebumps.
Jono (Troy): I’ve personally got to give a shout-out to Tim (Ryan). We’ve got all the boys singing together in the tenor section, and I think we’d be royally screwed without Tim keeping us on track, and on notes. He’s very experienced.
B: So, how would you guys rate your own singing abilities out of ten?
Jono (Troy): Is one being no pain and ten being [the] most pain you’ve experienced?
Damian (Chad): If I had to put it on a scale, I think I’d be not quite at five. I definitely get overshadowed by other singers. But I like to think I can bring emotion to the words that I do sing, and that is very important in a musical.
Leo (Zeke): I’d say a six or a seven, purely because I sing in the shower at home. I don’t know if that helps, but I’ve sung in the shower for three years, you know. And then [also] I like to go karaoke.
Jono (Troy): I’d say solid six. It’s the classic ‘when you’ve got your headphones in, you’re singing along and sound great, but when you take them off, you’re like “oh god, do I sound like that?”’
Damian (Chad): Nah, [Jono’s] good
Patrick (Musical Director): He’s a nine.
B: We’ll let the readers be the judge of that.
Make sure you get your head in the game, and catch Med Revue at Skycity Theatre, playing 19th, 20th and 21st August.
