Their performances aren t until the end of October, but our senior students are well underway with rehearsals for their Shakespeare Festival.
6th class students have been learning their lines since just before the holidays. They re now rehearsing script free, four to five hours a week during class time.
This year, they are doing a 90 minute version of Twelfth Night, with each student having around 60 lines each. This, their final Festival, will showcase all the skills they ‘ve developed over seven years of Shakespeare productions.
By this stage, the students are making a lot of the decisions themselves: who plays what part, what the theme should be, what music to use, what props and costumes. Two girls are even choreographing the dance routines.
Class teacher Diane Renshaw and specialist drama teacher Zoe Emanuel are focusing on getting everyone really engaging with their lines, and aiding the story telling through inflections, mannerisms, timing and actions. For example, the 70s theme requires looser, less classical gestures, and a somewhat more modern tone to the original lines.
The photos below show a typical rehearsal up the front of the classroom at this stage of the production timeline.
