With exam season well underway, this week saw our A-Level students’ drama pieces under the spotlight with the examination board as they demonstrated their understanding of a specific practitioner.
This year, the drama department worked in two groups; one group performing in the energetic and physical style of Frantic Assembly, and the other taking on the style of Brecht, who practices theatre in response to the political climate. We were able to enjoy the rehearsal of the group taking Brecht’s style, whose performance manifested itself with key features of song and political messaging using placards and projections to tell the horrific tragedy of Grenfell Towers.
The performance, which forms 30% of their overall exam mark, was written by the boys themselves and was an extremely insightful account of this recent tragedy, one which has caused much controversy and community division since. The piece was split into short acts, each telling the story from a different perspective; a witness review, the call centre, first officer on the scene, the firefighters, an old man, a group of youths, Theresa May, The Houses of Parliament and the survivors. There was music, there was song, there was laughter and there were tears. This short performance had it all. It culminated with a question posed to the audience, “Who do you blame?”, which was both insightful and thought provoking.
Head of Academic Drama, Mrs Antoinette Keylock, commented, “The student’s work was creative and highly innovative, and, yet again, the students surprised their audiences with original and powerful themes.”
