On Thursday 23 June a group of Year 10 students took part in the English Faculty’s production of Romeo and Juliet: Play in the Ground. This is an abbreviated version of the celebrated play, performed in A Block and around the large playground. Both the cast and crew had been extraordinarily busy preparing for the production for weeks leading up to the performance.

There were many stellar performances; some cast members learned entire soliloquies and delivered them exceptionally well. A lot of effort was also put in by cast members to learn the sword fighting routines, thanks to Dr Donoho. The accuracy and panache of the final fight scenes were well worth the endeavour, the audience showed their appreciation through lots of exclamations and applause!

The stage management crew made some fantastic props for the performance, including ten sturdy cardboard swords created from left over material from the Product Design Department.

Alongside the cast and crew, there was a team of four Assistant Directors from Year 12 who put in a lot of time and effort in getting the show on its feet. This group of students were involved purely because of their passion for theatre, love of Shakespeare, and eagerness to support the production, which can be seen by one students report below:

For us sixth formers helping with the production of Romeo and Juliet, found it strange but interesting to be on the other side of things, after our own production only two years ago. It was wonderful to be able to help realise what ended up being a roaringly successful performance, thanks in large part to the enthusiasm of absolutely everyone involved and a genuine pleasure to reacquaint ourselves with one of Shakespeare's most famous tragedies, this time with no academic strings attached! Ralph V, 12 Strand

Congratulations to everyone involved for a wonderful performance!