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THE ALLEYNIAN 710
Reimagined journeys GCSE DEVISED DRAMA
Drawing on a range of stimuli from films and artworks, Year 11 Drama students devised a stunning array of pieces which were moving and startling in equal measure, says Kathryn Norton-Smith
explosion (depicted brilliantly with confetti and wind machines) was a catalyst for life-changing events, which were laid bare in a thought-provoking piece by Ben Birch, Luc Gerard, Milan Makrak-Singh, Yakov Kudryavtsev and Jacob Mensah-Eliot. Balloon tapped into the symbolism of balloons as motifs of hope, with a gang of youngsters exploring what has drawn them together. What should have been a story of hope became one of tragedy, as they found it impossible to bond in friendship. Integrating expressionistic physical theatre sequences, including a fight featuring the Frantic movement technique of ‘round, by, through’, we saw this tragedy unfold to thought- provoking effect. Bravo to Zak Broughton, Evan Fowler, Dagem Getaneh, Sachin Shukla, Harry Sugden and Josh Usideme.
The six original pieces created by our inventive Year 11 cohort were fuelled by a variety of stimuli, including narratives of journey, images of adventure and scenes from Dali’s surreal landscapes, as well as the chase sequence from Orson Welles’ The Third Man and an extract from Albert Lamorisse’s film about a balloon with a mind and will of its own. Each group created their own original piece using storytelling techniques of physical theatre, multi-roling, heightened caricature, choreography and direct address as well as naturalism, to convey character and narrative. At First Sight , inspired by the drawings and short films of Salvador Dali, as well as the life story of Aldous Huxley, movingly envisaged the metaphorical journey of a blind man who gains the ability to see. Amidst a world of factory repetition, an
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