12 December 2011
There has been a feast of drama this term. No fewer than seven productions have been staged, involving over a hundred senior pupils here and at St Helen's and covering almost every genre: opera, music theatre, Shakespeare and the most contemporary of modern drama. The drama festival was a hugely impressive feat of organization by Mr Fraser Mackenzie and his Amey Theatre technical crew, who managed to host five plays a night in different parts of the Arts Centre. Shakespeare's Cymbelineboasted a cast of 12 led by Henry Jenkinson; Neil Labute's The Shape of Things was an intense chamber piece featuring Charlie Bateman and Joe Westcott; Craig Taylor's One Million Tiny Plays About Britain gave Will Nash, Johnny Ainslie and Oliver Bailey a chance to show off their versatility; Alecky Blythe's verbatim plays Come Out Eli and Cruising gave opportunities to another dozen Abingdonians, prominent among whom were Harry Wilder, Tom Sishton, Gabriel and Johnny Burrow. Meanwhile at St Helen's, Dido and Aeneas and Cabaret saw particularly impressive performances from Will Abell, Toby Marlow and Chris Young. Congratulations to all who took part. Next term will bring opportunities for those in Middle and Lower Schools.
