We recently caught up with Jo Beadle, Course Leader for Drama and Musical Theatre, to find out about a few of the college’s most memorable performances, so that we can give you an insight of the amazing experiences that you will be a part of.
Without further ado…
2020 - Vuadevillains
Vuadevillains is an excellent musical murder mystery! Our amazing students filmed Vuadevillains during lockdown, rehearsing mainly online and once a week in college when it was possible.
The piece was described as excellent and remarkable by the group’s external examiner, and was a superb example of what could be done under very difficult and challenging conditions. All the students gave an extremely strong performance throughout.
Cast member and student, Ewan, wrote the music for this performance and undertook much of the musical direction. Earlier in the year, we also found out that Ewan was a prize winner, receiving £10,000 in the national musical theatre competition for young composers which was judged by Andrew Lloyd Webber!
2018 – Songs of War
Songs of War was described as a very moving play, combining music and drama which commemorated the 100-year anniversary of the Armistice.
We actually performed Songs of War at Kelham Island, in the industrial museum. The closeness of the audience to the actors, and their ability to walk their watchers through many of the museum’s locations, was outstanding.
It made the audience feel as though they were there in real time, allowing them to connect with the actors and the story. This piece was also staged with a speedy transformation of staging at a few community centres and at The Sheffield College.
To discover our theatre and other performing arts facilities, visit our Open Day on Wednesday 27th April, 4pm - 7pm at our Hillsborough Campus.
2017 - Nicholas Nickleby
Another walk-through performance, this play, based on Dicken's novel was actually our students’ first ever show at Kelham Island in the industrial museum. There were four very successful performances at the museum where the audience, again, moved around with the actors as scenes were played in different locations. By doing this they’re giving their audience the full picture and experience. It’s also great that our students are given the chance to interact with their audience.
Other highlights
There have been so many wonderful performances in our theatre by our students over the years. A couple of others which deserve a very honourable mention include the very successful staging of a few Shakespeare plays, such as Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth and A Midsummer Night's Dream! There has also been a lot of contemporary drama on display, including 'Raw' and 'Taking Care of Baby'. Both were described as disturbing and very exciting modern drama.
If after reading about just a few of the exciting plays our students have re-enacted, and if you feel like the performing arts industry is something you’d really like to be a part of, click here to find out more or to apply today.
