CO-CURRICULAR DRAMA AT EMANUEL
At Emanuel, we are extremely proud of our productions across the school, and they are at the heart of our co-curricular programme. We hold ourselves and our students to high standards and our productions have been nationally recognised. We performed at the National School Theatre Awards 2024, and we received the award of ‘Performing Arts School of the Year’ in the Independent School Awards 2022 where the judges recognised our breadth of provision and the care with which it is delivered by highly motivated and skilful staff.
We typically run six shows across the year, with each year group having at least one opportunity to audition and participate. We aim to offer our students a wide breadth of experience across a range of styles, genres, and periods.
All our shows are run by a student crew, and we provide our technical students with the skills and confidence to independently operate in several technical disciplines. We believe that the experience of being part of
the Emanuel Theatre Company empowers our young performers and technicians to take ownership of the projects they are working on, developing their collaboration skills and resilience, as well as challenging themselves creatively.
We also run a comprehensive series of clubs with the aim of allowing pupils to explore performance skills without the pressure of preparing for a show. Drama Club will cover a wide range of skills, including devising, improvisation, ensemble building and script work. We also run Technical Theatre Club and Costume and Craft Club , which teach our students the skills they need to crew our productions.
This document will provide you with an overview of this years’ productions and clubs, and the opportunities for pupils and students to participate.
Ms Carla Graves Head of Co-curricular Drama
MEET THE TEAM
Mr L Burgess Director of Drama
A Kerstein Theatre and Events Manager
YEAR 6 PLAY
WHAT?
Ms C Graves Head of Co-Curricular Drama
Mr R Rogers Teacher of
C
The aims of the Year 6 Play are to build the confidence of our younger students in a safe and collaborative environment, whilst instilling a love of performing and theatre. Past productions have included ‘Annie’, ‘Aristocats’, ‘Shrek’ and ‘Matilda’.
WHERE?
The Fiennes Theatre
WHEN?
This play is prepared in lessons during the Spring and Summer Terms and performed to an external audience in June.
HOW?
All Year 6 pupils will participate in this play, which is prepared in lessons.
Miss
Miss A Marcovecchio Technical Manager
Mr S Harding Performing Arts Technician
Mr J Winer Director in Residence
Drama
Ms
Fearnley Teacher of Drama
YEAR 7 AND 8 PLAYS
WHAT?
This year, we will be presenting a double bill of two short plays, one of which will be a musical. We have a vast array of talent in our lower school and this project will allow the pupils to take on leading roles, as well as creating an ensemble to work collaboratively and creatively. The aim of producing two short plays is to allow as many performers as possible to participate and to provide a range of styles and genres to meet pupils’ various skills and interests.
WHERE?
The Fiennes Theatre
WHEN?
This project will be rehearsed in the Spring and Summer Terms, culminating in two performances in our Fiennes Theatre in May.
HOW?
For our Year 7 and 8 Plays, pupils will experience the audition process for the first time, as well as understand the commitment involved in being part of a company rehearsing outside of lessons. They will have the opportunity to work with other members of the department, including our technicians and our Director in Residence, and to meet and collaborate with pupils from other forms and year groups.
MIDDLE SCHOOL PLAY
WHAT?
The 39 Steps by Patrick Barlow.
Our Middle School Play involves students from Years 9, 10 and 11. It is a fantastic opportunity for students to challenge themselves in one of our key projects, taking on more ambitious material and working towards higher production values. In a cast of typically around 30-35 actors, students will be able to collaborate across the year groups and develop their personal performance skills, whilst learning to work as part of a theatre company.
WHERE?
The Fiennes Theatre
WHEN?
The 39 Steps will be rehearsed in the Autumn Term 2024 and performed on 4th6th December.
HOW?
This project was cast in the Summer Term 2024, and rehearsals will start in September.
SENIOR MUSICAL
WHAT?
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler.
Following the success of our whole school musical, ‘Beauty and the Beast’, we will be producing a senior musical, for Years 9, 10, 12 and 13. By making this project open to our older students, we are able to explore more mature and challenging content, and ensure they are able to access a range of styles and genres during their time at Emanuel. Students will also be able to apply to be part of the production team, leading on sound, costume and make-up, lighting, and stage management. All these areas are led by our technical team and supported by external professionals. This is an exciting opportunity for actors, singers, musicians, dancers and technicians to work together to create an outstanding performance.
WHERE?
The Hampden Hall WHEN?
Sweeney Todd will be rehearsed in the Autumn and Spring Terms and performed on 19th-22nd March.
HOW?
This project was cast in the Summer Term 2024, and rehearsals will start in September.
PLAY IN A WEEK
WHAT?
This project is rehearsed and produced in one week, with students needing to commit to a busy schedule over the 7 days. Following the success of our promenade project in 2023, we will continue with this format, staging a variety of scenes based on a theme, in various locations around the school. This project allows our students to experiment with an innovative theatre form, challenging them to show creativity and resilience when performing to a mobile audience in a non-performance space.
WHO?
This project to open to students in Year 9 and above.
WHERE?
The performance will take place in various locations around the school.
HOW?
Play in a Week will be auditioned and rehearsed in the Summer Term and performed at Dacre Day.
CLUBS
Technical Theatre Club
The Technical Theatre Club is an exciting opportunity to learn how to operate all the essential backstage technical elements of stagecraft, from lighting and sound design to set construction and creation. Tech club is currently open to students in Y9 and above, and we welcome students joining at any point. Students are split into two tech sessions per week: Year 9 and 10 attending Junior Tech Club, and Years 11, 12 and 13 attending Senior Tech Club.
We also work in close collaboration with our extensive variety of school productions to run the technical elements of a show, giving Tech Club students a chance to progress through a wide range of production roles and master coordinating technical cues seamlessly
during performances. We aim to advance our students’ skills and knowledge through hands-on show experience, starting from follow spot operating to stage management, providing a broad understanding of all backstage theatre opportunities. Whether they aspire to pursue careers in theatre or simply enjoy the buzz of backstage during productions, the Technical Theatre Club provides a supportive environment for students to hone their talents and express their creativity.
KS3 Drama Clubs
We offer two weekly Drama Clubs for KS3 students, a lunchtime club for Year 7 and 8 and an Assembly club for Year 9s. Drama Club usually starts with a warm-up, such as a physical and vocal exercise, or a teamwork game to get everyone focused and energised. Our favourites include Zip Zap Boing, Wah!, and the Penguin Game.
Once warmed up, our main activities change on a week-by-week basis, and over the term will include improvisation, devising, and script work, with students given the opportunity to share their work with each other so they can practise performing in front of an audience. In the past, we have looked at props-based devising, making our own game shows, and even acting out scripts from films and TV shows, such as “Friends” and “Twilight”. Drama Club is perfect for students who enjoy drama without the pressure of working towards a production. It gives students the opportunity to develop their confidence, communication and teamwork skills, as well as acting and drama skills including characterisation, staging, and storytelling.
Costume and Craft Club
The Drama Department offers two exciting opportunities for students to get involved in Costume and Crafts. Our Monday session is open to all year 6 and 7 students, while our Wednesday session is open to all year 8 students. In both sessions, students learn the basics of costume design and making, and have the chance to construct garments from scratch.
We look at a broad range of skills from design and fabrication to pattern cutting and sewing skills, all while applying the skills learnt practically. Last term the year 6 and 7 students learnt how to make sleeves from scratch, after taking their own measurements and drawing out the patterns to end up with a sleeve they could wear and further develop into a fully realised garment. They learnt how to take professional full body measurements and learnt how to record these to be used to draw patterns to create from.
With both sessions, there are chances for the students to get involved with the musical and other school productions, helping with making both costume pieces and props to be used on stage. The enthusiasm the students have for costume and creativity fuels our sessions and they can develop their skills throughout the year. This is an amazing opportunity for those students who don’t necessarily want to perform in the productions, but still want to be involved and put their creativity to the test.
Musical Theatre Club
On Wednesdays from 16:00-17:00 in the Concert Hall, our musical theatre club offers participants the opportunity to develop their vocal and physical skills in a fun and supportive environment led by staff from both the music and drama departments. There is also the opportunity to learn some simple dance though you do not need any prior experience. For those wishing to tread the boards in leading musical roles in the future, this club is an absolute must! All students are given the opportunity to perform a selection of numbers in our annual showcase event. Last year, pupils performed songs from Les Misérables, Rent, and Mamma Mia. Open to all pupils from year 8 and above.
LAMDA
Emanuel works in partnership with an external provider to run lessons for lower school pupils wishing to sit the LAMDA exams. Pupils have sat exams in ‘Performance’ and ‘Musical Theatre’, and we are looking to expand the curriculum to include ‘Speaking in Public’. Full details of our LAMDA programme can be found on our Firefly page.
Battersea Rise
London SW11 1HS 020 8870 4171 enquiries@emanuel.org.uk
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www.emanuel.org.uk