Many thanks to Miss Ross and Mrs Matthews for keeping the students engaged with innovative Drama lessons and activities, both in the classroom and online. I hope you have a relaxing and enjoyable summer break and I really look forward to seeing you in the Taylor Hall for some LIVE performances very soon.
and Robbie Evans should be particularly proud of themselves for representing the acting talent for the Third Form. It was fantastic to see such professional directing skills coming from the Sixth Form; Sam La Baigue from Newlands, Pratigya Peshen and Carys Hamill from Clifford, Laing’s Olivia Binfield and Alejandro Gurpegui Abud for Lodge to name just a few. A special mention to Fifth Formers Gabe Hayden and James Greene for taking on the Deacon job. This year, we also introduced the new option of monologue or duologue. These were filmed and edited in house and we were truly impressed with the powerful and brave performances.
of Rapunzels, Flynns and Mother Gothels. They ensured continuity of characterisation through the clever use of costume and props. Newland’s ‘ Forrest Gump ’ also used a range of clever and creative techniques to show Forrest through the different decades. Another change was the fact that all performances had to be filmed in Taylor Hall and not in front of a live audience. This came with its own challenges and the worry was that this may have a negative effect on the actors’ performances. However, again the students showed their professionalism as filming ran smoothly; Houses were well rehearsed and had considered how to use
Miss E Young , Head of Drama
House Drama
Insuchunprecedentedtimes itwasuncertain at the beginning of term as to whether the annual House Drama competition would happen. However, with much consideration we thought now more than ever, it was important for an event that brings so much positivity to the school community to take place. As the whole school is unable to meet collectively, the Drama department wanted to create something that would bring us all together in a safe and secure way. So, we had to do things a little differently this year. The students rose to the challenge and did not disappoint. The first thing to consider was how to perform safely and keep socially distanced; new rules had to be put in place. The first new rule was that House performances had to contain scenes performed by separate year bubbles, with the occasional performer from a different year bubble joining the scene but maintaining two-meters distance. This was indeed a challenge and it was so impressive to see how creative the Houses were in terms of casting and storytelling. Bellerby’s performance of ‘ Tangled ’ was of particular note. They used the drama technique of multi role effectively, with three different sets
lighting, sound and costume to enhance their story telling. This year’s theme was ‘hope’, as we wanted the performances to focus on uplifting and optimistic ideas. Again, the group
We were all captivated by Tower’s Chris Pun, who wrote an original monologue about the feelings of a bullied individual. The use of camera and soundtrack made Bellerby’s
‘we thought now more than ever, it was important for an event that brings so much positivity to the school community to take place’
Bridget Akpobolokemi and Valerie Ekong’s duologue entertaining and Emily Burne from Laing gave a very emotive performance. Amir Gurung’s performance of The Joker for Lodge’s duologue was magnificent! Although we were not able to watch all the performances together it has been fun to view them with our tutor groups and hear students discussing their favourites. No one will ever forget the Death Star exploding! It was theatre magic. Well done to all those students who took part, you should all be very proud of yourselves. Let’s hope next year we will be able to share the magic all together again.
performances ranged in subject. We had a dramatisation about the life of Mohammed Ali, and adaptations of Star Wars , Jurassic Park and Harry Potter . All houses reflected the theme of hope successfully into their plays. There were many stand out performances that made judging an almost impossible task. Two exceptional performances came from Zane Nettey and Joon Gurung from Lodge, whose scenes together created an intense and powerful pairing. Other strong performances came from Tishe Laniyan as Mohammed Ali, Toby Woodgate as Forrest Gump , Claudia Martinez as Rapunzel , and Anais Hamill, who had to take on a larger role at the lastmoment. Newcomers suchas, Anya Hooper, Oba Adeyinka, Sarah-Jane Revell
Miss A Ross, Head of Performance Drama
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