THE CROSS COUNTRY EXPERIENCE

From the beginning of January, all students knew the day would come. The dreaded day where the student body — all except those in Musical Theatre — are dragged by their collars up to ‘B’ field, the day that everyone wishes they were sick, the day of Brentwood’s Annual Cross Country Run.

A few, for miscellaneous reasons, chose to walk either part or the whole of the trail. These participants, merely by crossing the finish line were still awarded points for their houses. No student went without recognition for his or her efforts, participation, and competitive spirit; each was welcomed by many friends, teachers, and beverages upon completing this trying task. This all-terrain trail, five kilometres (approximately 3 miles) long, tests the athleticism, endurance, determination, Interhouse dedication, and most of all, the sportsmanship of the Brentwood students.

Story by: Marlee Hahn (Grade 11)

Junior Boys:

CAREERS DAY

Careers Day, an information extravaganza, began Saturday last at 10:15 a.m. Old Brentonians, whose claim to fame were through success at school (former Head Prefects, House Captains etc.) or for daring exploits (jumping out of second-storey windows, for example) kindly offered to return to the school to impart their sage advice on life "outside the bubble" to the eager youngsters.

Careers as diverse as pharmacy, naturopathic medicine, graphic design, tax law, and many unique brands of entrepreneurship were discussed. Some of the presenters held down several careers during their lifetime, experiencing varying degrees of success. Mr. Jim Shockey, a Brentwood parent, for example, has been a construction worker, model for Vogue, antique dealer, outfitter, journalist, television producer, and outfitter, running a veritable empire of wheeling

and dealing. After informative presentations and question-and-answer-sessions, many students left feeling as if some light had been shed on their own career paths, and new possibilities had entered into their minds as viable career option. We would like to thank all who participated in making Careers Day a helpful and useful exercise.

Story by Jill Stothart (Grade 10)

Left: all students (and non-dieting staff) were delighted to receive 600 doughnuts for cookie-break on Tuesday, compliments of the McGuigan family.

Right: in celebration of
St. David's Day, true Welsh patriot Dewi Griffiths doubled the weight of the flagpole and spent the day explaining the difference between leeks and spring onions.

BEHIND THE SCENES

The costume directors, Jennifer Mann and Sarah O’Born, help the cast find their appropriate gowns, suits, or cowboy boots, and after some mild confusion, the cast is ready for the first scene.

Having the cast ready, is only part of preparing for the production. While the cast gets into character, Mrs. Edna Widenmaier (Director and Producer), Grant Schneider (Stage Manager), and Assistant Stage Managers Hanako Okano and Ashley Van Order have numerous other concerns. They are in control of many aspects of the production, such as getting the show started on time, organising set changes, assuring that the appropriate cast are ready for every scene, the lights, the sound, and anything else that needs to be done. All students with key backstage roles are wired on ClearCom, a system that allows them to communicate to each other through their headsets, and they also have intercom to give the actors their cues for their upcoming scenes. Side stage, Nikolas Lub runs the curtains, and with precise timing, opens and closes the show.

The backstage routine continues throughout the show, as costumes, make-up and sets need to be changed efficiently in the shortest time possible to keep the show flowing. Though getting ready for the performance is hectic, the crew would agree that the show is going much more smoothly this year in the T. Gil Bunch Theatre, with all the modern facilities. The new theatre has spacious dressing rooms with bright lights and a very efficient backstage. Hanako Okano, who was the costume director last year and the assistant stage manager this year has noticed a huge difference in the organisation backstage. “It is like assisting in a professional musical, and it is much easier to organise the cast for their scenes,” she said, excited for their first production. Opening night was on Tuesday and there will be shows every night this week, with the final show on Saturday. All the cast and crew are pumped and excited for the performances to come, and although they have put in countless hours for rehearsals, they agree that it is all worth it when they get on stage.

Story and Pictures by: Alison Gillespie (Grade 10)

Saturday night fourteen students entered a world – a world of haziness where they had no control over their physical or mental powers. With the coaxing voice of the legendary Mesmer saturating their entire being, these students were transformed into puppets for the pure amusement of the audience. How did these students fall under the control of this mysterious man? It was through hypnosis: the induced sleep-like state in which the subject acts on external suggestion.

The students were “mesmerized” for ninety straight minutes, performing absurd role-playing routines such as surfing, boxing, bodybuilding, and even dancing as 70’s disco dancers.

Brentwood students experience turbulence generated by Mesmer

The hypnosis started off on a dim stage where there was a prevailing sense of lethargy and tranquility. This lulled the unwary victims into a senseless sleep, putting them at the mercy of Mesmer. It took only the smooth voice of this enchanter and the entrancing music to take the minds of the students captive.

It was an evening of entertainment at the expense of others where only the command of Mesmer could salvage the hypnotee’s reputations.

Four banjo players playing their hearts out at a talent show

Warren Daynes being put under the spell

Do they actually believe they are surfing in Hawaii?

Story and Pictures by: Vicki Ha (Grade 12)

GEOGRAPHY 12 FIELD TRIP

Last Monday a group of Brentwood students and their four Geography 12 ‘chauffeurs’ drove up island to Nanaimo to ‘get the facts about offshore oil and gas’ where the students listened intently to a two-hour lecture promoted by the David Suzuki Foundation. Among the speakers were David Suzuki himself, who passionately expressed his views of a future in which the children of today will live in the world that is created now. Mr. Dale Marshall, another speaker, spoke about the socioeconomic consequences of offshore drilling such as cost of construction of an oil rig (around $4 billion) and low employment due to NAFTA regulations (NAFTA does not allow the hiring of local labour, rather the rig is built where labour is cheap e.g. China). Also Ms. Linda Weilgart informed the audience that it is not only oil spills that kill marine life, but the preparation for the site of the oil rig.

Ms. Weilgart spoke about the effects of sound waves (seismic activity) on whales presented a very comprehensible examination; in order to get a clear and detailed idea of the dynamics of the ocean floor sound waves are bounced off the ocean floor and thus reveal the contours of the ocean floor. These sound waves are extremely intense and affect most marine life. Because whales use sound to communicate and navigate their way through the ocean, the sound waves being shot out from the ships penetrate deep into the ocean disrupting whale habitats, and many whales have washed ashore dead on the beaches surrounding sites (up to 25km away) where this seismic activity has taken place. In all, the lecture supported the argument that ‘The B.C. government should put its efforts into better economic development options.’ These were given as: wind projects, value-added wood production instead of raw log exports, and a solution to the softwood lumber crisis. Although the lecture was primarily biased against offshore drilling, most students found it to be a very motivating and enlightening experience. This week, the students involved are required to write an intellectual and compelling letter to the Prime Minister of Canada either in favour or against offshore drilling; this will give students a chance to voice their opinions about the planet they will inherit in the years to come, the planet they will be responsible for keeping alive.

Olivia Marshall (Grade 12)

HONOURS MUSICIANS

During the mid-term break, while most students were returning to campus, three students attended the BC Honours Concert Choir conference in North Delta, south-west of Vancouver. Starting Wednesday morning, Laura McCarthy, Ellen Kutscher and Jonathan Henning met other vocalists from diverse B.C. locations, ranging from Tsawassen to Prince George. One dedicated student commuted an hour-and-a-half every day from Chilliwack!
It is rather difficult to have seventy-two random people thrown together and told to sing, but after rehearsing eight hours a day for three days, the group began to mesh and the quality of audio output improved rapidly. The first public performance (of the Choir) was held at 5:00 p.m. on the Friday evening, with a second performance at 8:00 p.m. The concert included a diverse range of selections, from Canadian composers to popular ballads such as Moon River and Danny Boy.
All in all, the conference was a great experience for meeting new people and extending one's repertoire. unfortunately, the intensity of the occasion negated any rest gained from the holiday!

Also attending with other Honour Groups were Liam O’Brien at the BC Honours Jazz Choir who was featured as a soloist, and Sarah Park who played percussion in the Honours Orchestra.

Jonathan Henning (Grade 12)

OLYMPIC GUESTS

On Thursday, the School played host to the Canadian National Rowing team at the weekly assembly. In the group there were 14 World Champions, an Olympic Gold medallist, and their coaches and managers. The national team has qualified 19 seats for the mens program for the Athens Olympics and there are 5 Old Brentonians competing for these seats. Darren Barber (Grad 1987), Olympic Gold medallist from the 1992 Barcelona Games spoke to the School about setting short- and long-term goals during and after high school. He described the typical day of a national athlete striving to achieve the goal of an Olympic medal and outlined post-Olympics goals. The audience particularly enjoyed a video of last year's world championships compiled by Kevin Light, a repeat World champion. Tom Herschmiller (Grad 1996) finished off the presentation with some memories of the School and what the School meant to him.

Jan Tize, Captain of the Brentwood Boathouse, spoke on behalf of the School to thank the team for coming and wished them success in their endeavours this summer. The School then hosted the guests to a fine lunch in the dining hall before the team returned to Shawnigan Lake to resume their training. It was a very successful day for the School and a return visit in the fall, when the team could talk about their experiences in Athens, would be very welcome.

Brian Carr (Head Coach, Brentwood Rowing Club)

A FASHION STATEMENT

At Brentwood, just like at any private school, two very different worlds are constantly colliding, with uniforms and fashion going head-to-head with one another. Students often find themselves searching for a balance between their personal style, the fashion world’s dos and don'ts, and their mandatory school outfits. And as this battle of fashion continually wages, we often see new and contrasting styles arising on campus. When freedom reigns, we can find traces of the sporty, the classic, the trendy, and the whacky, with students wearing everything from Adidas to Abercrombie or Lulu Lemon to crazy 80’s gear. Even during class time, aspects of teenage style are peeking through the black and red, the ties and the kilts, with the rebellious few seen attempting to sneak skate shoes and non-regulation shirts and jackets past the eye of the guardians.

This is only to be expected for the students who are accustomed to wearing “street clothes” at home or at schools they might have attended before. Those students find it especially difficult when they are first catapulted into the Brentwood system to adjust to a school uniform worn 6 days a week, and a general dress code that is, by their previous standards, pretty strict. At a typical public high school, by contrast, the dress code ranges anywhere from dog collars to tummy shirts, pierced eyebrows to green hair and black lipstick.

While some would call these choices outrageous or outlandish, it is to a certain extent simply a means of a teen’s self-expression, and while almost no one will dress the same way they did in their teenage years, it is an important part of every person's growth and self-discovery. The students who are “daring to challenge the system” by wearing an article of their own clothing to school, a toque, a scarf, a jacket, are really just assuring themselves of their own person and their own freedom, freedom being a factor that is sometimes difficult to come by in a formal school atmosphere. Or maybe they’re just cold! Either way, the old adage that "clothes maketh the man" would make an interesting modern debate.

Amy Weinberg (Grade 11)

FAMILIAR FACES

The top picture at right shows an early version of a familiar visage on campus.
Who is it?

Send your guess to tx@brentwood.bc.ca. The first correct response wins a major prize of interest to chocaholics everywhere. Only one entry per person, please.

There were literally dozens of entrants last week with the correct answer of Mr. Marius Felix. The first correct response, however, was from Jennifer Mann who can collect her chocolate from the Math Office.

As the competition last week appeared to be rather easy, we have a rather difficult one for you for TW 19...

ISA SQUASH TOURNAMENT

On Saturday, Brentwood hosted the ISA squash tournament. The event is an Independent Schools Association competition, attended this year by Brentwood, Shawnigan Lake and St. Georges. In some previous years the competition has only been between Brentwood and Shawnigan, since St. Georges must make a lengthy ferry and bus trip from the mainland.

The competition was held in Brentwood's sports complex, which includes three excellent squash courts. When the Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday afternoons squash groups are not on the courts, the facilities are used by other students and staff who take the opportunity to improve their squash skills and enjoy the game. Brentwood's courts are also used by the local adult league, in which some of the Brentwood team's best players compete.

In the round-robin tournament, each player held a seat on his team, with #1 being the best player. Each player from the three teams played his opposite number from the other two schools in a match (the best of five games). Some students were not happy about having a day-long tournament where they only played two matches, but the limited number of courts meant that only three games could be going on at once.

Each school brought eight players; there were five seniors (Grades 11 and 12) and three juniors (Grades 8, 9 and10) on each team. The Brentwood Senior team (Tony Chen, Derek Candy, John Lee, Raymond Chow and Bram Steenbergen) played well but eventually took third place. The Junior Team (Nick Chesterley, Jonathan Dunstan and David Yeon) fought their way to second place.

Story and pictures by: Jonathan Dunstan (Grade 10)

THE BRENTWOOD MUSICAL

This year's production: Crazy For You runs through to Saturday 6th March.

Prospective patrons should contact Jenny O'Connor to reserve tickets at 743-8756 (direct line) or by e-mail at boxoffice@brentwood.bc.ca. Tickets are $15.00 adult, $10.00 student/senior. The tickets can be paid by VISA, cheque or student account. Tickets at the door are cash only.

Please note that — as a change from previous procedure — all seats are reserved and each performance begins at 7:30 p.m.

Patrons should note there is a limited amount of parking on campus. Guests are asked to use the day-student parking lot, Solarium Road, Lashburn Road, and the Mill Bay shopping centre. Please allow sufficient time for parking and the walk to the theatre.

T. GIL BUNCH CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

Future presentations in the Killy Theatre: