It has been a tremendously busy year again in Drama with the usual trips, workshops, performances and the everyday task of preparing our GCSE and A Level pupils for public exams.

A particular highlight was watching our Upper Sixth perform extracts from Alice Birch plays influenced by the work of the practitioner and director Katie Mitchell. They fully embraced the hypernaturalistic style and gave truly moving and believable performances.

As always, we had a full programme of trips and highlights this year included the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of The Empress and an innovative new production of The Glass Menagerie in the Rose Theatre, Kingston. Another exciting moment was a trip to see a contemporary thriller, Murder in the Dark, which was followed by a private Q&A with the cast including the leading man, Tom Chambers. Two of our very talented Upper Sixth, Mirabel Evans and Finn Cutts spent the year preparing for and attending numerous drama school auditions. It was wonderful to see them progressing through the rounds striving for highly competitive places at prestigious schools.

We are so proud that Mirabel achieved her place for the Bristol School of Acting and that Finn is taking up a place at Mountview drama school in London.

Mrs Sian McBride