Link Letter - July 2002

01963 32368

CREATIVE ARTS

A Visit to the Ballet

On Friday 26th April 40 students travelled to the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden to see a fantastic performance of Romeo and Juliet. Some time was spent looking around Convent Garden and then admiring the fantastic glass fronted opera house before settling down to enjoy what was a truly amazing performance beautifully danced in stunning costumes by the Royal Ballet. A memorable experience for all of us.

Following the success of this visit Emma Fletcher (Head of Music) is currently organising a trip to the School Prom on Wednesday 6th November in the Royal Albert Hall, London. School children from around the Country will perform in this concert.

Community Play

On Tuesday 25th June Y10 Drama and Music GCSE students took their embryonic community play about Wincanton History to the Balsam Centre to perform for the citizens of the town. The first scene showed six Sedgemore rebels being executed for supporting James, Duke of Monmouth and the grim mood was set by music composed by Ben Darlington. Scene 2 showed life in Wincanton’s workhouse in the 1830s with Carly Gibb’s music reflecting the misery and despair. The final, very moving scene, showed the sacrifice of 9 young Americans who died when their Flying Fortress flew home from France crippled in a bombing raid. 57 years to the day of the crash the young students showed life on the plane and in the town on the day of the crash. American themes played by Nick Allan and Claire McFarland set the mood for this scene. Teachers Jane Dent and Emma Fletcher would like to expand these scenes into a full blown community play involving all the community and will be asking any interested parties to a meeting in the Balsam Centre.

Visit to The Globe Theatre

On Friday 21st June a group of students began a day in London with a visit to the Science Museum and the Trocadero Leisure Centre in Piccadilly. They then went on to the Globe to meet their adopted actor under the Globe’s ‘adopt and actor’ scheme. Peter Hamilton-Dyer who plays Teste in Twelfth Night, is originally from Weston Super Mare and was very informative about his training and rehearsal techniques. The students then watched the performance of Twelfth Night which was given by an all male cast using only material and make up from Shakespeare’s day. Later their was the opportunity to watch the actors being made up and costumed. The production was very funny and the darkness of Teste’s cruelty to Malvolio underplayed to make it all comedy.

Art Department

The Art Department has been very lucky this past year to have four trainee teachers from Exeter University working with us. Lots of different ideas, new methods and practices have been introduced to the department resulting in extensive displays around the school.