A Student’s perspective: MS Production The Middle School Production this year has been a truly enjoyable and interesting one. Taking a major detour from our usual performance style, this year’s production wasn’t a Musical, but instead went down the route of Live Theatre in the form of the comedy, How to Survive Being in a Shakespeare play. This new style came with its own unique set of challenges and rewards, as the cast soon found out. The auditions were the first interesting part of the process; we had a wide range of roles that all came with speaking parts, unlike in previous productions, so that every boy got a chance to enjoy the limelight at one point or another. The Year 9’s had the opportunity to fill some of the classic Shakespearean leads, such as Romeo, Hamlet and King Henry V, and the Year 7’s and 8’s got to play various hilarious characters from an assortment of Shakespeare’s plays. I thoroughly enjoyed playing Macbeth, fated to be killed by a woman who was “untimely ripped from the womb”, and one of the overzealous followers of the King Bro. After the first reading, where we got a full appreciation for the play, we came to realise that we would have to memorise all the hilarious lines we had been given. We began the long process of learning
our lines and blocking scenes, devoting our Thursday and Sunday afternoons to the production, but the boys pushed through, and soon we were bouncing lines back off one another on stage. We fast developed the characters and pace that give the show all of its charms, and before we knew it there was only a week before our first performance. After organising props and costumes, and getting all the lights and sounds organised, with lots of the laughing in between, the show was finally ready, and weeks of hard work have come to a point with this year’s incredible Middle School Production. Matteo Conte -Year 9
goes into putting on a production and the process of taking a show “From page to stage”. The cast worked for many hours to produce a very entertaining show that captivated audiences over three nights. A huge thank you to all staff and parents who helped behind the scenes. Here’s to next year’s production! Emma Leopardi
From the Director: It has been a brilliant experience for all involved in this year’s Middle School Production, ”How to survive being in a Shakespeare play” Not only did it challenge the boys to learn and perfect their dialogue but it also provided them with a greater capacity for characterisation than they may have had in the past. The boys supported each other along the way and should be applauded for their commitment and enthusiasm. Throughout the process, the boys gained a greater understanding of the work that 5 / the fish
