DRAMA
A MUST-SEE MORPURGO MEDLEY
Lower School HouseDrama REVIEW
Peter Jolly
T his year’s House Drama asked for adaptations of the stories of Michael Morpurgo, and every House rose to the challenge. Animals, war, tsunamis and jungles were all depicted on the Edward Alleyn Theatre’s stage and our adjudicator, Ekow Quartey (OA), was impressed by the imagination and inventiveness on display. Spenser’s The Elephant In The Garden was praised for the delicacy of the storytelling and Edward Cook’s ominous performance as the Count. Jesse Gyane directed Raleigh’s entry of 946: The Amazing Story Of Adolphus Tips , where Jago McGuiness-Smith shone as Mme Bounine by displaying excellent stage-cycling skills and a haughty Gallic reserve with a hint of mischievousness. Grenville and Marlowe both produced effective and intelligent performances of extracts from War Horse . Grenville’s Harry Spicer won the Best Actor Cup for his performance as Ted, creating a palpable tension on stage through his dominating performance.
Peaceful . Paddy Burke and Alexander Rassmuson won the Best Director Cup for Howard, using beautifully judged still images and characterisation to create a powerful sense of loss. Sidney’s Running Wild was placed second for its strong ensemble feel, its cast brave in using both stillness and sound to create effective atmospheres. The memorable presence of an elephant on stage could have created much mirth, but Wilfrid Whitely and Ben Milliken created the animal with great sensitivity and they
justly were awarded the Jarman Cup to be given in recognition of creating something very special in LSHD. Ekow praised Gilbert Edwards for his extraordinarily mature performance as Kenzuke in Kenzuke’s Kingdom , but the laurels (and the Best Play Cup) went to Howard’s Private Peaceful . A final mention goes to Max Franklin Davis, awarded the Good Egg Cup by the Drama Department for his contribution to the Edward Alleyn Theatre throughout his time in the Lower School.
Both Howard and Drake effectively
created the Great War on stage as they produced excerpts from Private
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