Year 7 & Y8 Drama
Students in KS3 are following a programme of learning that explores creating and performing skills. Year 7 Drama students are currently exploring Elements of Comedy and have studied Commedia Dell Arte, Slapstick and use of Status to create a comedy scenario. Year 8 Drama have been exploring the play Teechers by John Godber and had the opportunity to choose a designer or performer pathway to explore an extract from the script. They also watched part of the Black Eyed Theatre Company’s digital performance.
VIBE Drama Club Tuesday after school (Drama Rooms C030 C034)
Vibe Drama Club have been busy creating performances and performed their work in school on Wednesday 13th July in a Celebration Event with the Drama Leaders. Year 7 Vibe explored Roald Dahl’s Matilda and Y8 Vibe are explored the story of The Little Mermaid.
Enrichment Opportunity – Changing Climates Festival ‘Dreaming Graffiti’
On Monday 23 May and Wednesday 25 May, a group of Y8 and Y10 Drama students spent two intensive days working with two Highly Sprung Theatre practitioners using physical theatre techniques to devise a performance called “Dreaming Graffiti”, the story of Shamsia Hassani. Born April 1988, Shamsia is the first female graffiti artist of Afghanistan. Through her artwork, Shamsia portrays Afghan women in a male dominant society. 
“Art changes people’s minds and people change the world.”
The performance was performed as part of The Changing Climates Festival Fellowship hosted by The Belgrade Theatre on Thursday 9 June as 'The Changing Climates Festival'. This year’s festival will be viewing the climate crisis through the lens of ‘voice’, examining the influence and impact of young people’s opinions and how they are heard, or more likely not heard.
What impact does freedom of speech/expression or the lack of it have in promoting or contributing to climate change?
What say do we really have?
And who’s listening anyway?
The NLS students spent the morning of the festival exploring puppetry skills in performance with Moth Physical Theatre and watched the acclaimed performance by Created with world-renowned theatre company Complicité, 'Can I Live?' the story of how, as a part of the Global Majority, actor Fehinti Balogun's path has been forever changed by what he's learnt about our planet. This energising and uplifting film is an exploration of the place where the climate emergency and social justice meet, and a call-to-action to anyone who is curious about what we can do to help.
Students also got to take part in a Q&A with Siobhan Fitzpatrick a British Wheelchair Basketball player who is hoping to be participating in the Commonwealth Games. They also participated in a Highly Sprung masterclass. Students then experienced a technical run through, performed with maturity and demonstrated a high level of commitment and creativity.
The group then watched the performance of 'Silence Amplified' this year’s headline performance, devised by Highly Sprung’s acclaimed youth performance group Sprung Advance. The piece examines how we can find expression and develop opinion and language where we are denied a voice. Set in a world where air pollution has gone beyond crisis point and has shifted life into new ways of being… Breathing is now taxed, and words spoken are charged by the second. In this new world, young people are forced underground to find new ways to exist, grow and express themselves. The performance featured Florence Smith (Year 9) who also performed with Highly Sprung as part of the Platinum Jubilee Pageant on Sunday 5 June.
Thank you to Ms Murphy and Mrs Hill for their support.
GCSE Drama – Y9, Y10 and Y11
Year 9 GCSE Drama students have been exploring Component 2 scripted performances this half-term and the two classes will be sharing their work to each other on Wednesday 20 July in the Drama Studio. Performances include -
Arbeit Macht Frei - This play is a serious, stylised portrayal of the persecution of the Jews by the Nazis in the Second World War.
Alota Chocolata - This is a comedy in the style of Commedia dell’arte.
The Disappeared- This play tells the story of ‘The mothers of the Plaza de Mayo’ in Argentina, in 1976.
The Odd Couple – A story of two friend sharing an apartment and they have very different VERY different personalities.
Strangers on the Train - Guy Haines and Charles Bruno meet on a train and, because they are strangers, they think they can say anything while chatting.
Year 10 GCSE Drama Students have been busy working on their GCSE Drama Progress exam this term and for the last two weeks they will have the opportunity the review their Component 2 Performance Choices in preparation for Year 11. Students will PERFORM two key extracts from your chosen performance text. Each extract will be assessed independently, and it should be clear where each extract begins and ends.
Mrs Hill
The Big Bang Fair returned this year at the National Exhibition Centre and all year 8s had the opportunity to enrich their Science curriculum experiences through a number of talks, demonstrations, problem-solving tasks as well as careers advice.
