The Merritt Centre Opening Programme

THE MERRITT CENTRE

OFFICIAL OPENING

and Festival of Arts

Monday 24, Wednesday 26 & Thursday 27 June 2019

PROGRAMME

The Merritt Centre Officially opened by Dame Emma Kirkby on 26 June 2019.

In memory of Gwendoline Merritt, affectionately known as Queenie, who left her estate to the school in 2014. She was a much-loved member of the housekeeping team who is remembered for her kindness, tireless service and generosity to the school.

Queenie loved working at the school and commented when she retired that it was a privilege to have been able to work here. The privilege was ours. She never failed in her commitment to the house, even reporting that if the weather was bad, she would sleep on the floor in the kitchen in front of the stove so that she would be at work the following day. Queenie made the ultimate gesture in leaving her estate to the school in her Will. Her donation has made a significant contribution to the Arts Centre Appeal and we are delighted to name this inspirational new venue in her memory.

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The Merritt Centre Official Opening HEAD’S WELCOME This is a great day for Sherborne Girls and a great day for the Arts.

After more than a decade of planning and fundraising, I am thrilled to welcome you to the official opening of our stunning new performing arts centre, The Merritt Centre.

Sherborne Girls aims to deliver excellence in every area of school life and over the past decade, we have invested boldly in new and improved facilities. The Merritt Centre is the biggest and most ambitious capital project the school has undertaken, and the last piece in the previous ‘Growing for the Future’ development plan.

Music and the Arts have always been central to life at Sherborne Girls and in Sherborne. We are delighted to have a venue that can cater for the increasing number of girls playing instruments, singing in choirs or involved in speech and drama.

We are also excited to host visiting artists, musicians, performers and speakers, and to invite the local community into the school to enjoy events and share our venue.

In addition to state-of-the-art music and drama facilities, we hope the multi-functional spaces will be used for a range of events from art exhibitions and visiting speakers to match teas and socials.

Since the building became operational, we have welcomed the National Children’s Orchestra, Sherborne Abbey Festival and TEDx Sherborne, along with Ruth Rogers for our inaugural concert. Over 100 Old Girls attended Old Girls Day and we have enjoyed a programme of lunchtime and evening concerts by the girls. It is already evident that The Merritt Centre will bring a huge amount of joy to the girls, staff, parents and our Sherborne community.

A project of this scale involves an enormous number of people at every stage. It would be impossible to mention individuals; however, I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped through donations or in so many other ways.

You have given us a wonderful addition to the school and to the town: a building that gives performing arts the facilities they deserve but also a welcoming hub at the heart of the campus that both the school and local community will enjoy for generations to come.

Ruth Sullivan Headmistress

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John Jenkins Director of Music INTRODUCTION An ISI inspection report in 2000 observed the strength of Sherborne Girls’ music, the large number of girls involved, the outstanding teaching and its pervading influence in the school community. However, it concluded with the suggestion that ‘when finances allow, the school might like to consider the provision of a first-class concert hall’.

If good things come to those who wait, then the intervening period has been worth every moment of planning and patience. Touchingly and appropriately named The Merritt Centre, this glorious new venue for teaching and performing, gracefully situated at the heart of the school campus, fulfils the inspectors’ recommendations in every sense and goes way beyond them.

The suite of 19 teaching rooms are spacious and airy; the two classrooms are beautifully designed for all our academic music lessons and the provision of 12 Apple Mac computers is an invaluable new resource for the girls’ work in composing. For the first time, we have suitable teaching and rehearsal rooms for Rock Music and Percussion, and a state-of-the-art Recording Studio brings us up to date with the technology required in a thriving 21st century music department.

The replacement of our tired and worn pianos by a magnificent fleet of 37 new Yamaha instruments (11 of them for the houses) gives a

new lease of life to our large number of pianists. The PianoFest we held on 24 April was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear 55 pianists on 26 pianos performing a special arrangement of Mozart’s Variations on ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’, much appreciated later that day

by YouTube watchers around the world.

The jewel in the crown is undoubtedly the Gransden Hall which, thanks to concerts by violinists Ruth Rogers and Matthew Trusler and our own Head of Keyboard, pianist Ana Laura Manero, is fast establishing itself as one of the outstanding musical venues in the South-West. The Concert Hall has a superb acoustic, warm and sufficiently resonant for both vocal and instrumental music. Acoustic banners allow a subtle flexibility of reverberation and the seating offers numerous configurations with which to accommodate varying numbers of performers and audience.

Aesthetically the Gransden Hall is an absolute joy, with its sumptuous wood, elegant seats and perfect sightlines in all directions, the whole bathed in natural light via three large skylights. We look forward to this beautiful hall being the venue for regular performances by our own Sherborne Girls musicians, the joint Sherborne Schools’ ensembles, members of the local community and a wide range of visiting professionals.

In addition to its role as an inspiring cultural venue, The Merritt Centre is fast becoming a delightful social hub for the girls, the staff and our visitors.

As well as the Gransden Hall’s capacity for hosting a variety of large-scale events, Queenie’s Café is a wonderfully welcoming haven in which to find a moment of calm, even if its delicious home baking is an unreasonable temptation for some of us.

As we celebrate the arrival of our splendid new building there are many hundreds of people to whom our thanks are due, too numerous to be individually acknowledged here.

However, we owe an enormous debt of gratitude to everyone who has helped make this project a reality.

We offer our profound thanks for giving Sherborne Girls an arts centre of which we can be proud, and which will inspire many generations of young women in the years to come.

We are thrilled that former Sherborne Girl Dame Emma Kirkby, one of the world’s most accomplished and respected singers, has kindly agreed to open The Merritt Centre formally for us, and also to sing in the Gala Concert alongside our own Senior Choir.

This concert will also feature the first performance of ‘Sounds and Sweet Airs’, a fascinating work for choir and orchestra by composer Ian Stephens, generously commissioned for Sherborne Girls to mark this

special occasion by Mr and Mrs Neil McCormick.

A programme of recitals, drama productions and art exhibitions will give a flavour of the cultural endeavours and achievements of current Sherborne Girls during this three-day Festival of Arts. We hope you will enjoy being with us for some of these events as we look forward eagerly to building on our strong cultural heritage with the added inspiration of our fine new building.

John Jenkins Director of Music

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Monday 24 JUNE

10.00am

Art & Design Exhibition 7.30-9.30pm

Aquinas Piano Trio Gransden Hall Ruth Rogers – Violin Katherine Jenkinson – Cello Martin Cousin – Piano Music by Haydn, Mendelssohn and Schumann

Jemima Norton (U6)

Jessica Upton (U6)

Verity Robinson (U6)

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Wednesday 26 JUNE Opening of The Merritt Centre

4.30-6.30pm

Art & Design Exhibition Wirth Foyer/Art Dept

7.00-7.30pm

Opening Ceremony Avalon Terrace Fanfare Opening speeches Ribbon cutting and blessing

7.30-9.30pm

Commemoration Concert

Dame Emma Kirkby feels lucky in many ways. At Sherborne Girls, among other inspirations (such as Gwen Beese’s inimitable Latin and Greek lessons!) she was a founder member of Augusta Miller’s Madrigal Society and fell in love with renaissance vocal polyphony. Then at Oxford University she continued with both passions, studying Classics and singing with the Schola Cantorum; perhaps best of all, it was here that she encountered ‘historical’ instruments known to Renaissance and Baroque composers, the lute, harpsichord, early piano, wind and string instruments, whose beauty of sound and human scale drew from her an instinctive response.

Beginning as a school teacher and amateur singer, she was soon invited to perform professionally with pioneer groups; and long partnerships followed in Britain and abroad, with ensembles, individual players, and record companies, so that now Emma’s voice and style are recognised worldwide.

She has been surprised by a series of honours, most recently a DBE (2007) the Queen’s Medal for Music (2011)

and a lifetime award from REMA, the association of European Early Music Agents (2018). These she sees as a welcome endorsement of a way of music-making that values ensemble, clarity and stillness over such things as volume and display.

Alongside the obvious repertoire – Bach, Purcell, Handel, Vivaldi, Mozart, Haydn – two vital threads through her career have been lute songs and vocal consort music, both explored over decades with specialist colleagues, performers and teachers, whose work is now showing fruit in the next generation of musicians.

These days, teaching as much as she performs, Emma still enjoys the occasional recital with close colleagues, or, even better, sharing the platform with younger performers.

In 2018 she worked in five summer schools, in four countries, and a series of amazing historical venues, seeing again the effect of instrumental timbres and special acoustics on the singers and players who will be tomorrow’s masters. ‘Early music’ has come of age!

Gransden Hall Jazz Band New York, New York – Fred Ebb, John Kander Más Que Nada – Jorge Ben Alexandra Smith, Bella Cripwell, Matilda Johnson, Ruby George – alto saxophones Alice McCormick – tenor saxophone Alice Foulger – trumpet Kate Talbot-Rice – French horn Molly Mauleverer – double bass Mark Frampton – bass Jemima Nettleton – drum kit Simon Clarkson – piano Jennifer Nelson – soprano saxophone – Director West Strings Theme from the New World Symphony

by Dvořák Violins – Beatrice Gantlett and Isobel Blair Viola – Kate Crawford Cello – Kitty Wright and Victoria Phillips Double Bass – Vaidehi Somani

Quintabile (Lower 5 Choir) The Lily and the Rose – Chilcott Somewhere over the Rainbow – Arlen, arr. Snyder Shepherd, Shepherd, Leave Decoying – Purcell Elizabeth Ashford, Tillie Baker, Esme Beckly, Tilly Burney, Lily Cecil-Wright, Anna Cleveland, Selene Corran, Amélie Crozier-Jobber, Emilia de Boehmler, Amelia Hope-Hawkins, Carys Leonard, Imogen Lewis, Mary Li, Molly Mauleverer, Alice Playne, Isabelle Playne, Alethea Pugsley, Tomasina Ryan, Alexandra Smith, Kate Talbot-Rice, Imogen Walton, Lottie Welch, Juliet Woodhams Chiara Strings When You Wish Upon a Star – Washington and Harline Andante Festivo – Sibelius Violin 1 – Nicole Tam*, Willow Wordie*, Mia George, Natasha Copinger-Symes Violin 2 – Brenda Lam*, Eleanor Miller, Lotte Micklethwaite, Cayla Downer, May Cao Viola – Aidan Fisher Cello – Ellie George*, Alice McCormick*, Beatrisse Fender, Jemima Lawson Johnston, Amélie Crozier-Jobber, Kitty Wright, Amelia Monaghan, Janet Coles Double Bass – Molly Mauleverer, Mark Frampton *denotes section leader Flute – Kelly Kwong, Chloë Allday Oboe – Daisy Kwong, Alice Leach Clarinet – Polly Usher, Mary Li, Jennifer Nelson Bassoon – Lauren Carty, Celia Birkinshaw French Horn – Kate Talbot-Rice, Fiona Brockhurst Trumpet – Alice Foulger Timpani – Jemima Nettleton Piano – Simon Clarkson Cantilena Trio The Hebrides Overture – Mendelssohn Flight of the Bumble Bee – Rimsky-Korsakov Kelly Kwong, DipABRSM, flute; Daisy Kwong, LTCL, oboe; Isobel Gordon ARSM, oboe

Piano Solos/Duets Gradus ad Parnassum – Debussy: Shermaine Cheung Sonatine II movement – Ravel: Kelly Kwong Valse from Pieces for Four Hands, Op. 11 – Rakhmaninov: Shermaine Cheung & Kelly Kwong

Short Interval Recorder Consort Concerto in C, 1st mvt: Allegro – Vivaldi Charlotte Ferguson, Alice Leach – treble recorder; Georgina Andrews – tenor recorder; Katie Whitcher – bass recorder Madrigal Society Take, O take those lips away – Neaum Peter Piper – Bridge Remember me – Chilcott Flora Brewster, Iona Brewster, Charlotte Browning, May Cao, Iris Corran, Charlotte Ferguson, Maia Gardner, Ellie George, Isobel Gordon, Emily Hartley, Daisy Kwong, Portia Manson, Alice McCormick, Ella Pearce, Alice Pearman, Alice Richardson, Verity Robinson, Mrinalini Somani, Phoebe Wells, Willow Wordie Senior Choir with Dame Emma Kirkby and Strings Laudate Dominum – Mozart Dame Emma Kirkby Music for a While – Purcell Senior Choir, Orchestra and Piano Sounds and Sweet Airs – Ian Stephens – first performance Julia Aggett, Chloë Allday, Georgina Andrews, Nicole Appleby, Ellie Armitage, Poppy Bailey, Dominique-Léa BonelliBean, Flora Brewster, Iona Brewster, Charlotte Browning, Katie Browning, Harriet Bruges, May Cao, Madeleine Cater, Shermaine Cheung, Bella Cripwell, Iris Corran, Evie Coulton, Poppy d’Abo, Chloë Dick, Annabel Drummond, Amelia Etherington, Beatrisse Fender, Charlotte Ferguson, Daisy Foreman, Lucy Fortescue, Josephine French,

Maia Gardner, Ellie George, Francesca Gill, Isobel Gordon, Madeleine Gray, Fenella Guinness, Sophia Haithwaite, Emily Hartley, Lucy Holcroft, Sophie Holcroft, Chloe Huang, Rosie Hudson, Flora Jenkins, Bella Jones, Taya Keating, Emma Kitson, Imogen Knight, Daisy Kwong, Kelly Kwong, Brenda Lam, Arabella Lambeth, Portia Manson, Annabelle Martin, Lucy Maynard, Sophie Maynard, Alice McCormick, Lotte Micklethwaite, Amelia Morony, Phoebe Nettleton, Charlotte Orton, Lydia Paines, Ella Pearce, Alice Pearman, Alice Richards, Alice Richardson, Lily Ridout, Verity Robinson, Catherine Sawyer, Matilda Scott, Mrinalini Somani, Alice Southcombe, Alexia Spicer, Matilda Staples, Nicole Tam, Poppy Thomson, Mimi Tosh, Emilie Tubbs, Grace Tucker, Emily Watson, Phoebe Wells, Katie Whitcher, Isabel Wooddisse, Willow Wordie

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Thursday 27 JUNE Festival of Arts Morning session 10.00-12.00pm

10.00am

Art & Design Exhibition Wirth Foyer/Art Dept

10.00am

Slam Poets Mackenzie Foyer Angel Lulu-Briggs – Confused Eve Messervy – Places Amara Agwo – The Price of Privilege

10.00am

Jazz & Rock Gransden Hall Tilly Cripwell (vocals & guitar) – All You Need is Love – Lennon & McCartney Evie Coulton (vocals & guitar) – own composition Mrinalini Somani (vocals & guitar) – own composition Phoebe and Jemima Nettleton (vocals, guitar & drum kit) – Phoebe’s Song Jazz Band Un Poco Loco – Gael García Bernal, Anthony Gonzalez If – David Gates Más Que Nada – Jorge Ben Ella Pearce, Alexandra Smith, Bella Cripwell, Matilda Johnson, Ruby George – alto saxophones Alice McCormick – tenor saxophone Alice Foulger – trumpet Kate Talbot-Rice – French horn Molly Mauleverer – double bass Clinton Hough – bass Lucy Woodhams / Jemima Nettleton – drum kit Simon Clarkson – piano Jennifer Nelson – soprano saxophone – Director

10.15am

Performance Art Piece – Chair Duet Wirth Foyer Scarlet Alers-Hankey, Georgina Andrews, Elizabeth Ashford, Beatrice Baines, Esme Beckly, Katie Browning, Faye Cattermole, Lily Cecil-Wright, Matilda Clarke, Anna Cleveland, Florence Crabtree, Amélie Crozier-Jobber, Poppy d’Abo, Daisy Dunning, Alexa Gray, Sophia Hollingworth, Flora Jenkins, Sally Jepson, Bella Jones, Poppy Keith, Emilie Lawrence, Amelia Longpre, Lucy Maynard, Dolly Payne, Alicia ShorneySmith, Coco Skagerlind, Katie Soobiah, Malena Tannaz, Lily Thornham, Lara Tomlin, Lydia Tricks, Angel Wakayu, Lottie Welch, Alice Wooddisse

10.30am

String Ensembles Gransden Hall Concerto for Four Violins in E minor Vivaldi Op. 3 No. 4 i – Andante ii – Allegro Assai Violins – Brenda Lam, Nicole Tam, Willow Wordie, Mia George Abbey String Quartet Wondrous Love – Anon arr.

Christian Morris Mia George, Eleanor Miller, Lotte Micklethwaite, Ellie George Harp Solo Fire Dance – David Watkin Ella Pearce Mulliner String Quartet Moon River – Henry Mancini arr.

Andrea Motas Violin 1 – Zara Smith Violin 2 – Felicity Prater Viola – Emily Hartley Cello – Emily Watson

Sherborne Girls Cello Ensemble Oblivion – Piazzolla Cellos – Beatrisse Fender, Alice McCormick, Emily Watson, Jemima Lawson Johnston Sherborne Girls String Orchestra Canon – Pachelbel Mother of God, Here I Stand – Tavener Libertango – Piazzolla String Orchestra Violins – Brenda Lam, Nicole Tam, Willow Wordie, Mia George Cello – Alice McCormick, Ellie George

10.30am

Speech & Drama Pieces Mackenzie Foyer Malena Tannaz & Angel Wakayu: Split Down the Middle Alice Evans, Mary Guy, Vaidehi Somani: The BFG Angelina Bonelli-Bean, Alexa Gray, Cerys Heard, Evie Harbinson: A Midsummer Night’s Dream Victoria Phillips & Inés Sancho Moreno-Torres: Alice Frankie Jaques: Invisible Friends Beatrice Baines & Bella Jones: Romeo and Juliet Zara Harris & Katherine Catmur: Ring Around the Moon Katie Browning & Claudia Norton: The School for Wives Imogen White, Dulcie Thornham & Charlotte Northcott: Macbeth Clementine Bond & Eva Kellaway: Alice

11.00am

12.00 noon

Gransden Hall Kelly Kwong: Hungarian Pastoral Fantasy – Doppler Alexandra Smith: Vacances – Damase Mary Li: Prelude – Finzi Bella Cripwell: Travelling Light – Buckland Chloë Allday: Aquarelle – Rae

Wirth Foyer Milly Holford, Angel Lulu-Briggs, Nicole Appleby

Woodwind, Brass & Percussion Players

Cantilena Trio Andante – Scarlatti Granada – Lars Floee Kelly Kwong, DipABRSM, flute; Daisy Kwong, LTCL, oboe; Isobel Gordon ARSM, oboe

11.15am

Morning Coffee 11.15am

Unplugged Mackenzie Foyer Tilly Burney Evie Coulton Tilly Cripwell Phoebe Nettleton Mrinalini Somani

11.30am

Quintabile (Lower 5 Choir) Gransden Hall Give me Wings – Rutter The Lily and the Rose – Chilcott Somewhere over the Rainbow – Arlen, arr. Snyder Shepherd, Shepherd, Leave Decoying – Purcell The Heavenly Aeroplane – Rutter

Performance Art Piece – ‘4:48 Psychosis’

Afternoon session 2.00-4.30pm

2.00pm

Pianists Gransden Hall Amélie Crozier-Jobber & Ana Manero: Waltz & Berceuse for Piano Four Hands – Carse Megan Davidson: In the Groove – Mike Cornick Bella Cripwell: Norwegian Dance – Grieg Cerys Heard: Farewell to Stromness – Maxwell Davies Tiffany Chan: Un Amanecer en Santa Marta – Federico Ruiz Kelly Kwong: Sonatina – 2nd Movement – Ravel Lauren Carty: from Visions Fugitives – Ridicolosamente – Prokofiev Imogen Knight: Holiday in Paris – William Gillock Shermaine Cheung: from Children’s Corner – Gradus ad parnassum – Debussy Shermaine Cheung & Kelly Kwong: Waltz – Rakhmaninov

2.00pm

Sound Installations Wirth Foyer Installations created in response to the Art and Design Exhibition: Poppy Bailey Charlotte Browning Lucy Blake Madeleine Cater Greta Dare Lily Ridout

2.15pm

Performance Art Piece – Chair Duet Wirth Foyer Scarlet Alers-Hankey, Georgina Andrews, Elizabeth Ashford, Beatrice Baines, Esme Beckly, Katie Browning, Faye Cattermole, Lily Cecil-Wright, Matilda Clarke, Anna Cleveland, Florence Crabtree, Amélie Crozier-Jobber, Poppy d’Abo, Daisy Dunning, Alexa Gray, Sophia Hollingworth, Flora Jenkins, Sally Jepson, Bella Jones, Poppy Keith, Emilie Lawrence, Amelia Longpre, Lucy Maynard, Dolly Payne, Alicia ShorneySmith, Coco Skagerlind, Katie Soobiah, Malena Tannaz, Lily Thornham, Lara Tomlin, Lydia Tricks, Angel Wakayu, Lottie Welch, Alice Wooddisse

2.30pm

Afternoon Tea

T H E M E R R I T T C E N T R E O F F I C I A L O P E N I N G & F E S T I VA L O F A R T S

2.30pm

3.15pm

Mackenzie Foyer Jemima Nettleton

Mackenzie Foyer Eleanor Miller & Lotte Micklethwaite: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Anna Cleveland & Lily Cecil-Wright: Agnes Of God Tillie Baker & Lydia Tricks: Tartuffe Sophia Hollingworth: The Bald Prima Donna Poppy Keith, Emilie Lawrence, Coco Skagerlind: Fantastic Mr Fox Tilly Burney: Romeo and Juliet Sally Jepson, Scarlet Alers-Hankey, Elizabeth Ashford: The Birthday Party Lily Ridout & Sophie Maynard: The Black and White Lucy Maynard: The Mysteries Georgina Andrews & Poppy d’Abo: Hamlet

DJ set

2.45pm

Aldhelmsted West Musicians Gransden Hall Isobel Blair (violin): Over the Rainbow – Arlen and Harburg Vaidehi Somani (double bass): German Dance – Anon Kitty Wright (cello): Music for a While – Purcell Victoria Phillips (cello): A Little Reverie – Adam Carse Hattie Collinge (clarinet): Hatikvah – Hebrew, trad.

Tilly Garton (flute): Jazz Waltz – Richard Michael Kythe Comstive (piano): Sonatina in A minor – Georg Benard

3.15pm

Sherborne School Barbershop Gransden Hall Shenandoah – arr Bob Chilcott Loch Lomond – arr David Overton Ubi caritas – Duruflé You are the new day – Peter Knight/John David Short People – Randy Newman Java Jive – Milton Drake Words – Anders Edenroth Angus Williams Hendrik Ashbrooke Archie Burton Sam Hill Henry Le Cornu Hector Fiennes Jono Post Max Pugsley Ciaran Smith Edward Pinnock Nathanael Fagerson

Speech & Drama Pieces

3.45pm

Philippa Lawrence Poetry Recital Wirth Foyer Esme Beckly – How You Speak the Words Eve Messervy – Dawn and Die Georgina Andrews – An Endless Cycle Evie Harbinson – Thinking of You Poppy Thomson – Solstice

4.15pm

New Views Play Wirth Foyer Eleanor Miller Lily Cecil-Wright Lydia Tricks Esme Beckly

6.00pm

Drinks Reception

Poppy Smith (U6)

T H E M E R R I T T C E N T R E O F F I C I A L O P E N I N G & F E S T I VA L O F A R T S

Breaking Ground to Completion July 2017 - April 2019

T H E M E R R I T T C E N T R E O F F I C I A L O P E N I N G & F E S T I VA L O F A R T S

Lizzie Nurse Head of Drama which is better than the sum of its parts; and to take the lead, bringing others with us to our final goal.

To have a professional and flexible theatre space, equipped with the latest technology, means our productions can reach a whole new level. Girls will have the opportunity to explore the difference lighting, sound and projection can make.

They can try working in completely different styles, experimenting with where they put the audience to create totally new dynamics, and be ever more creative.

We will have a suitable space to host professional theatre companies, giving more students access to live theatre and a range of cultural activities. We will be able to show

Drama is a subject which benefits every girl. We all need the confidence to present our opinions to others; to be creative; to collaborate, making a final project

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recordings of live theatre on a big screen, recreating the effect of being there, such as some of the best National Theatre and Royal Shakespeare Company productions from the last few years.

I am so excited about having an arts centre at the heart of the school.

I firmly believe that creativity is our most important skill for the future as well as one of the best ways to keep our mental health positive. I hope the proximity of our three departments will allow us to develop many more links across our specialities and encourage ever more girls to take part in the myriad of opportunities available to them at Sherborne Girls.

Lizzie Nurse

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Photograph by Steve Tanner

Emma Rice Wise Children

I’ve always loved theatre. As a child I was regularly taken to the theatre by my parents and I was intoxicated by the whole event. I loved the planning, the anticipation and the delicious feeling of a night out.

Somehow life was more exciting and more glamourous whenever theatre was involved. As a second child, I was a natural show-off and took every opportunity to perform.

I loved ballet (even without any ability or genetic aptitude!) I was the girl at the back of the ballet class pirouetting the opposite way from everyone else and loving every minute of it. I was dressed up more often than I wore normal clothes, made up site specific plays around the house most weekends and

chose a trip to the theatre for every birthday outing.

As a professional theatre director, I now look back on those early years as an organic playground that set me up for a life of curiosity, adventure and creativity. I look back at my years studying drama as a more practical and vocational foundation. Theatre has given me such joy, challenge, friendship and fun over my varied career and I would recommend a career in the performing arts to anyone with a skip in their step and a twinkle in their eye. However, I’m also a strong advocate for the joy and power of performing for anyone.

It doesn’t matter if it’s not what you go on to do for a living, making theatre is sheer delight, an exercise in creative thinking, teamwork, and a chance to inhabit and understand other people’s lives. Drama frees us up to be other than ourselves, to be brave or scared or furious or deliriously happy, and to return from those perilous places with greater wisdom and compassion. Theatre is a life lesson in empathy.

I started my career as an actor but it was no surprise that I moved quickly into choreography and then directing. Theatre is a fantastically broad industry with many roles that require a wide spectrum of skills

and interests. I found it easy to grow and develop within the industry and found that opportunities presented themselves. I just had to be brave enough to take them. Over time, I found out that what excited me most was being at the centre of things! I love pulling all the elements together: actors, set, lighting, sound, music, text. I love story-telling in all its personal and messy glory!

I’m delighted to see what an important role drama plays at Sherborne Girls, and the commitment of the staff and school leaders has been demonstrated by their support of my company Wise Children. We’ll be working with Sherborne Girls to create an original piece of theatre, and we can’t wait to see what these talented young women come up with! Sherborne Girls has also supported the creation of Wise Children’s second show, Malory Towers, adapted from the novels by Enid Blyton and telling the tale of an earlier generation of talented young women and the drama – on and off stage – they create.

I hope you’ll be able to see some of the work that comes out of our collaboration!

Emma Rice

Malory Towers plays at The Passenger Shed in Bristol from 19 July – 18 August.

Tickets on sale from Bristol Old Vic: bristololdvic.org.uk or 0117 987 7877

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F.31

6.924 sq m

LOBBY LOBBY

DIS WC

GALLERY

DEPARTMENT OFFICE

MALE WC's

DIRECTOR OF MUSIC

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FEMALE WC's

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STAFF ROOM

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The Merritt Centre floor plans Upper Level

DF-01 (T41)

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RECITAL HALL

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LIBRARY

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LARGE CLASSROOM

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The Younger Room The Thomas Family Room The Cotton Room The Staples Room The Richardson Room The Sarah Lovell Room The Gill Blenkinsop Room The Augusta Miller Studio

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The Upper Lobby

UF The Mackenzie Foyer

ML The Ducie Music Library

The Bice Crichton-Miller Room

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DM Director of Music Office

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Lower Level

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PERCUSSION

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RECITAL HALL

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WOODWIND BRASS & PERCUSSION STUDIO

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KEYBOARD STUDIO

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LOWER FOYER

The Wirth Foyer

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The Avalon Terrace

The Royds Percussion, Recording & Rock Suite

RH The Gransden Hall

MT The Mackie Match Tea Area

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21 The Whitepark Room

20 The Baobab Room

19 The Gilmour Room

18 The India Room

17 The Butcher Room

16 The George Room

15 The Andrews Studio

14 The Lines Room

13 The Wordie Room

12 The Armitage Room

11 The Gunton Room

10 The Palmer Studio

T H E M E R R I T T C E N T R E O F F I C I A L O P E N I N G & F E S T I VA L O F A R T S

Our Donors Thank you A number of donors have asked to remain anonymous – all others are listed here

Jane Pople (Mrs Adley) Dorothy Byrt (Mrs Ahrens) Mr C R Alderman Peggy Dibble Allen Mrs Diana Allison (Warren) Ann Allsopp Simon & Victoria Andrews Mr J Appleyard Gillian Argyle Shane & Meryl Armitage Mrs Jay Armstrong Lady Plaxy Arthur Rupert & Alexandra Asquith Jane Digby (Mrs Auer) Mr & Mrs Jonathan Baines John & Jacqueline Baker Alison Bell (Mrs Bale) Emily Orford (Mrs Ball) Mr & Mrs Clive Banks Mr D Barber Barber Family Mr & Mrs E G Barham Barke Family Hilary & Michael Barnes Mr & Mrs Charles Bartholomew Mrs A Bawtree Beckly Family Mrs Yvonne Bell Mrs Jennifer Bell Bill Bennette Catharine Cheetham (Mrs Benson) Judith Middleton (Mrs Berger) Mr & Mrs S Berry Biggart Family Family Binladen Jill Todd (Mrs Bishop) Gill Buzzard (Blenkinsop) Mr & Mrs Timothy Bolton Carter Mr & Mrs R H Bond Dr R P Bonner-Morgan Kit Musgrave (Mrs Boot) Mr & Mrs P J Booth Boylan Family Lord T E Bridges Brink Family Mrs Kay Brock CBE LVO John Broke-Smith Mrs M A Brooke Miss R E Brown Mrs Annabel Browne Mrs J C Bryce John Bryden Tim & Josie Budd & Family Mr & Mrs David Budge Clementine Budge Bullard-Smith Family

Isabel Burke Andrew Butcher Butler Family Lady Shaw & Mrs Butler Buxton Family Liz Norman (Mrs Byrd) Meg Campbell Joanna Carson Jennifer Carter Andrea Casati & Chiara Rodriquez Alice Cato Cattermull Family Jane Cazalet (Rew) Cecil-Wright Family Chaloner Family Mr C Chaplin Elizabeth McLaughlin (Mrs Charrington) Chartwells Independent Mr C H Cheong & Mrs L S Wong T K Cheung Family Mr & Mrs Clapp Emma Clark Mr G Clarkson Carol Cleal Malcolm Cockburn Victoria Skinner (Mrs Collier) Althea Collier Anne Walsh (Mrs Colquhoun) Comstive Family Deirdre Condon Joy Congdon Michael J Cooke Mrs Fiona Corben Cotton Family Mr H W C Cottrell Janet Richards (Mrs Couch) Mr & Mrs Cowley Craig-Cooper Family Jill Crampton Cripwell Family Crozier-Jobber Family Rowena Curchod Ms P A L Curtis Mr & Mrs R Curtis Mrs Helen Daltry (Bayley) Vivienne Daniels Dare Family Veronica Goldsworthy (Mrs Dare Bryan) Dart Family Darwall Family Mr & Mrs Ian Davies Lucy Davies & Jessica Davies Charlotte de Grey Hervé & Lizzie de la Morinière Mr D de Mattos Mr C R de Mattos

Mr Piers & The Hon Nicola de Montfort J de Montigny Deacon Family Hilary Park (Mrs Dennes) Dialectica The Lady Digby Mr & Mrs S Dillon Anne H Dixon George & Prunella Dobbs Sarah & Gerald Dodson Deirdre Donegan Ginny Stephen (Mrs Doran) Christopher Down Sylvia Drinkwater Mr & Mrs C Dudgeon Angela Dudley-Smith Duke of Fife Charitable Trust Caroline Durston-Smith Mr & Mrs M Dwerryhouse Jenny & Adrian Dwyer Ann Earls-Davis M Eastman Mary Elderton Elizabeth & Edward Guinness Charitable Trust Elliott Environmental Services Ltd George Hardy (Mrs Ellis) Rosemary Ellison Rosie Elphinstone Mr & Mrs Michael Else Mr & Mrs B Eschweiler Evans Family Mr & Mrs Mark Ewins Jill Passey Eyre Miss Maria Farry The Lord & Lady Fellowes of West Stafford Jialin Feng Ferguson Family Anabel Fielding Mrs B Filbey Mr K Filbey, CBE Fitzgerald Charitable Trust Flack Family Ghislaine Fluck Folkes Family Fortescue Family Mavora Geoghegan (Mrs Forward) Georgina Foss Julia Foulkes-Roberts Elizabeth Francis Di Franklin Franklin Family Rosabel Fynn (Mrs Fremantle) Sophie de Pelet & Family Christine Cree (Mrs Gabbarelli)

Elizabeth Gaff Gantlett Family Gardner Family Sir John & Lady Garnier Mrs Helen Garton Cristina Brodie Cooper (Mrs George) Chris & Rachel George Mr & Mrs T Gibbon Hazel Fielding (Mrs Gibbs) Philip & Melanie Gibbs Kathy Bracken (Mr & Mrs D Gibson) Charlotte Porter (Mrs Gillan) Gilmour Family Mrs Mary Glasby Patricia Loveluck (Mrs Goddard) Sarah & Jeremy Gordon Hilary Graham Bryan & Angela Gransden Gray Family Patricia Grayburn Camille Green (Mrs Greacen) Mr & Mrs Greenstock Mrs Barbara Greenwood Mr C Greville-Heygate Jean Lynden-Bell (Mrs Grieve) Mrs Jeanette Gueterbock Mark & Melinda Gunton Guy Family Johanna Wood (Hall) Louise Ellam (Hall) Mr & Mrs A Hambury-Tracy Mrs A E Hamilton Hanlon Family Virginia Harding Mr & Mrs R Harding Dawn Dussek (Mrs Hardy) Harris Family Mrs Pauline Hartman Luli Baker (Mrs Harvey) Celia Harvey Penny Hatfield N D & S M Hatherell Hawkins Family Mr & Mrs O C Haydn Taylor Hayton Family Vaughan & Maria Heard Sheena Helyar Celia Macpherson (Mrs Hill) Jenny Hinks (née Knobbs) Mr Simon Hirst Mr & Mrs G Hislop Susanna Gillibrand Hon Family Ann Hopkins (Mrs Hopkins-Clarke) Pauline Hargreaves (Mrs Hordern) Huang Family Dr & Mrs J Hudson Bridgid McClure Williams (Mrs Hughes) Hunt Family Doctor Jean Hunter Joan Hustwitt Javed Family Dr J I Ivimey-Cook Robert & Elisabeth James Jenkins Family John Jenkins Mr & Mrs S A N Jennings John & Celia Bonham Christie Charitable Trust

Mrs Dione Johnson Johnson Family Jenny Josselyn Elizabeth Juniper Kanjanapas Family Mrs Harriet Kateregga Katon Family Anne Bond (Mrs Kendrick) Roderick Kennedy S Kennedy Mr G Kenny Elizabeth Earle (Mrs Kenton) Serena Kerr (née Vernon) Martin King Judith King Lorna Kingdon Dame Emma Kirkby, DBE Mr & Mrs J E M Kitching Knight Family Diana Bell (Mrs Kruger) Lai Family Miss W Laid Lam Family Ms Sharon Lam Rosie Lamb Lambeth Family Sarah Lane (Schute) & Emily Lane Lane Family Mrs E M Lang Brown Helen Lange Mr & Mrs J M Langham Lucinda Langton Susan Melville (Lady Large) Lauchard Family Mr Eric Law Lawrence Family Mr & Mrs Peter Lawrence Louise Lawson Leach Family Mr & Mrs R A L Leach Mr V K C Lee & Ms Y Lee Lees Family Christopher & Sarah Legge Leonard Family Katya Wassey (Lady Lester) Rt Hon Oliver Letwin, MP Lewis Family Jane Lewis Bridget Lewis & Family Harry & Nicola Lewis Mrs Yvonne Libbey Elizabeth Honnywill (Lindsay-Rea) Scott & Caroline Lines Mr Paul Lloyd & Mrs Natasha Lloyd Susan Lloyd Margaret Lovett Dumo Lulu-Briggs Family Mr Wai Biu Ma Mr & Mrs R I Macdonald Patty Macdonald Donald & Jill Mackenzie Judge D Maclaren Webster, QC Malikov Family Mr & Mrs William Maltby Manson Family Jill Myers (Mrs Marber) Morwenna Simpson (Marks) Anthea Malim (Mrs Marr) Sue Marr

Lt Col & Mrs J M Martin Massey Family Mr & Mrs J Masterton Victoria Wilson (Mrs Mathews) Georgina May Margaret Mayell Mr Andrew Maynard Sally Crane (Dr R J & Mrs S McCaffrey) Neil & Rosemary McCormick Helen McGregor Joyce Walker (Mrs McKeough) Mrs Sarita McLuskie Mr D D Meikle Harriet Meikle (née Chapman-Andrews) Elizabeth Parry-Jones (Mrs Melvin) Gwendoline Merritt Christine & Peter Messervy Micklethwaite Family Dr & Mrs Charles Middle Alison Linton (Mrs Milford) Ms P J Miller Mrs Deborah Miller Augusta Miller Mr & Mrs Richard Miller Mr D H Milles Milne Family Monaghan Family Sir Christopher Morgan Isobel Morley-Smith & Melanie Armitstead Morony Family Barbara Morton D M Morton Sara Morton (née Stephens) Margaret Mundie (Russell-Johnson) Joanna Shaw (Mr & Mrs Munn) Penny Ohlson (Mrs Murly-Gotto) Mr & Mrs Andrew Murray Alison Parry (Mrs Musker) Mrs Sarah Nathan Peter Neal Nettleton Family Mr P T L Newman Mr & Mrs Newton Nicholas Jones Charitable Trust Mrs Rozanne Nichols Mrs Anne Nicholson Jane Reekie (Mrs Nicholson) Mrs Bethia Nickols Tina Nixon (Rodd) Judy Drewett (Mrs Norman) Nicholas Norris Louisa North Jemima & Claudia Norton Claire Wingfield Digby (Mrs O’Donoghue) Dr Gill Oliver Joan Capps (Mrs Orford) Orton Family Mr & Mrs Justin Paines Palmer Family Rosemary Parker Michael Parkin Passey Family Mrs Pamela Patrick Mrs F G Pattenden Holly Pattenden Mr & Mrs R G Patterson Mr & Mrs J Peake

T H E M E R R I T T C E N T R E O F F I C I A L O P E N I N G & F E S T I VA L O F A R T S

Our Donors contd.

Pearce Family Julia Peel Pein Family Susie Penrose Peter Storrs Trust Mrs Angela Phillips Phillips Family Lisa Phillips Phipps Family Miss Angela Pitt Olivia Birt (Mrs Pittet) Mr & Mrs Anthony Pitt-Rivers Eve Pollok (Mrs Pooley) Liz Poraj-Wilczynska Potter Family Mr R Potter, MBE & Mrs Potter Miss Sheila Powell Diana Lentaigne (Mrs Prain) Christine Pratt Sir Ian & Lady Prosser Mr & Mrs Rupert Purser Mrs P Putnam Charmian Dadley (Mrs Quinlan) Mr & Mrs D Rae Mrs V Ramsay Fiona Reay Marion Edmonds (Mrs Rebbeck) Redman Family Simon & Gay Redman Christopher Reeves Clare Whitley (Mrs Rendle) George & Elizabeth Renwick Christine Richards Alastair & Philippa Richardson Mr & Mrs A H Ritchie Mr M Rivero Santana & Mrs I Anglada Gonzalez Mrs J Robinson Robinson Family Mr R Robson Lady Kate Rock Hilary Rogers Mr T G P Rogers Jacqui Rose Caroline Rosoman David & Julia Royds Marina Runnalls Ian Russell Mr & Mrs J A N Russell Lynda Sale Sandars Family Mrs H Saunders, OBE Fiona Philips (Mrs Saunderson) Rupert & Arabella Sawyer & Family Janet Schmidt Mr D J Schneider Gillian Vey (Mrs Schönzeler) Santa Sebag-Montefiore Miss Jennifer Sharp Shelleys The Printers Sherborne Sherborne Old Girls P Shorwin

Ann & Vicky Simon Skelton Family Richard & Lucy Slade Alison Henn (Mrs Smith) Snow Family Padmini Somani Cdr V St John Webster Mr & Mrs G St Pier Stagg Family Judy & Graham Staples Erica Palmer (Mrs Stephen) Cassia & Matthew Stevens Mr & Mrs J M Stevenson Clare Elderton (Mrs Sthyr) Mei-Lee Stocker-Ong Mr & Mrs J Stones Richard Strang Katharine Martin (Stringer) Mr & Mrs J Stronach Stubbs Family Mr & Mrs Toby Stubbs Sui Family Rosemarie Lovelace (Mrs Suter) Mr James & Mrs Susie Suter Ann Gilbert (Dr Tait) C M E Talbot Suzie Talbot Vicky Talbot Rice Tam Family Carolyn Taylor Mrs V L Taylor Charles Taylor Lindsay Lamb (Mrs Taylor) June Taylor Mr & Mrs N H Taylor Joan Taylor Morgan Christopher & Sally Tennant The Alan Cadbury Trust The C H Dixon Charitable Trust The Charles & Alison McGregor Charitable Trust The Charles Skey Charitable Trust The Redlynch Charitable Trust Rolly Thomas Paul & Jane Thomas Vivien Laughton-Smith (Dr Thomas) Toby & Samantha Thomas Mr & Mrs G Thomas-Quarme Susan Dowty (Mrs Thomson) Mrs Daphne Thomson Lady Tidmarsh Titley Family Ian Tomlinson Diana Tory (Hamblin) Dr & Mrs A Tresidder Tricks Family Tubbs Family Turner Family Mr & Mrs M Turner Joanna Udal (The Rev’d Canon Udal) van Moppes Family Mrs Camilla Vaughan

Verdon-Smith Family Charitable Settlement Camilla Bartholomew (Mrs Vickers) Caroline Goodden (Mme Vidican) Caroline von Falkenhausen Felicite Vosper Amber Wakeley Frances Walker Petrena Walley Mr J C P Walsh Mrs M C Walters Judy Walton Mr & Mrs T Wan Jane Lavers (Warby) Mrs Hilary Ward née Tuckett Hugh & Josephine Watkins Watson Family The Watsons Mrs Madeleine Webb Welch Family Wells Family Mr & Mrs W Westlake Rebecca Courtenay (Lady Wharton) Meg Whittingdale Madeleine Wickham (née Townley) Wiggin Family Georgina Robinson (Mrs Wilks) Barry Williams Huw & Fe Williams Ailsa Verity (Mrs Williamson) Lady M J Wilson Sarah Stallard (Mrs Wilson) Windham Family Mary Strong (Mrs Windus) Belinda Wingfield Digby Mrs Bridget Wingfield Digby Mr & Mrs Nicholas Wingfield Digby Stephen & Sylvia Wingfield Digby Iwan & Manuela Wirth Yunie Wong Wong Family Paul & Sarah Wong Wood Family Mr R C Woodall Mr J Woodcock Elizabeth Woods Helen Woolley Wordie Family Wordsworth Family Joanna Wright Mr & Mrs S Wright Graham & Nicola Wright Family Wurfbain Mr T Yap & Ms E Wong Yates Family Siana Yewdall Jane Knocker (Mrs Youle) Charmian Young The Hon & Mrs A S R Younger Hilary Younger Rupert & Catherine Younger Mary J S Yuen Donor list accurate at time of going to print.

Burrell Foley Fischer The Architects

INSPIRATION BEHIND THE MERRITT CENTRE As architects, Burrell Foley Fischer have designed buildings for schools for over three decades.

Many of these have been specialist Performing Arts Centres, including The Menuhin Hall at the Yehudi Menuhin School. As a practice they also design professional theatres and their portfolio includes the refurbishment of the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield and the remodelling of Hall for Cornwall in Truro.

The new Merritt Centre is a combined Performing Arts and Visual Arts facility at the physical epicentre of Sherborne Girls. The school was inspired by the idea of physically linking the creative subjects together and giving them real prominence as it is increasingly clear that being creative is going to be a real advantage in the complicated and competitive world the girls will be living and working in.

The main entrance at first floor level provides enticing views into the warm heart of the building, while the fully glazed foyer areas open up with spectacular views over the playing fields. The lower foyer also looks out onto an expansive south facing terrace. These spaces provide pupils with a social and recreational hub, a social heart linked to the surrounding boarding houses.

The whole arrangement is set in a new landscape setting with wild grass meadows and newly planted trees. The tall volume of the recital hall is necessary to provide an expansive acoustic, in which full orchestral music can bloom, but

the building is recessed into the sloping site thereby reducing its architectural mass. The music school is set on two levels, wrapping around two sides to separate it from recital hall activities, and comprises sixteen music practice rooms, two music classrooms, three studio spaces, a music library, a recording studio, percussion and band room.

An early resounding endorsement to the acoustic quality of the hall was given when former pupil and eminent violinist, Ruth Rogers, performed a stunning violin and piano concert. Acoustic testing has now confirmed that the acoustic criteria for orchestral music has been met with a reverberation time of 1.6 - 1.8 seconds. But the hall also has a variable acoustic designed to accommodate speech and reinforced sound which gives a drier reverberation time of around 1.0 second.

In concert mode, the hall accommodates some 300+ seats, extending into a lowered pit area to provide a vestigial stage riser which improves the setting of the platform.

The platform area can accommodate an orchestra of up to ninety musicians. The variable acoustic in the form of motorised banners and the adaptability of the seating also allows the hall to be used for school assembly where 560 people can be accommodated on raked and flat floor seating. The raked seating can be withdrawn at the push of a button to provide a large flat floor area for a variety of other uses.

The project was led by BFF Principal Mark Foley (top) and the Project Architect was Associate Ian Munton.

THE MERRITT CENTRE

Acknowledgements Headmistresses: Jenny Dwyer, Ruth Sullivan Chair of Governors: Stephen Wingfield Digby, Richard Strang The Governors of the School and Trustees of the Foundation Estates and Infrastructure Governors’ Sub-Committee: Rupert Pilkington, Nicholas Wordie, Maria Wingfield Digby Architects: Tim Ronalds, Burrell Foley Fischer Contractors: Morgan Sindall, QSPM, B&K Structures, Gartell, Price Myers, Max Fordham Arts Centre Patrons: Gill Blenkinsop, Geraldine Kerton-Johnston, Dame Emma Kirkby, Elizabeth Melvin, Augusta Miller, Santa Sebag Montefiore, June Taylor Parent Task Force and the army of volunteers who have supported the school and development team, organised, helped at, and performed in events.

And above all, our generous donors.

Verity Robinson (U6)

Sherborne Girls & Sherborne Girls Foundation Bradford Road Sherborne Dorset DT9 3QN 01935 818320 development@sherborne.com sherborne.com Registered charity numbers: 307427 and 1164053 Company numbers: 306828 and 09637231