On Wednesday 18th of November, the Year 11 GCSE Drama students at Nonsuch High School performed their second scripted performance as part of their GCSE course.

Surrounded by their parents and peers, the 9 groups of 50 students performed 3 different pieces between them which included: ‘Kindertransport’, ‘The Last Witch’ and ‘The Women of Lockerbie’.

‘Kindertransport’ is a 1993 play written by Diane Samuels which revolves around the British rescue mission in World War Two where over 10,000 Jewish children from various countries were placed in British foster homes. The play jumps between 3 periods of time so all students involved had the challenge of multi-roling characters and incorporating both German and Northern accents.

Written by Rona Munro, ‘The Last Witch’ follows a fantasy storyline of the final execution for witchcraft in Scotland. The motif witchcraft makes this play follow a dark theme with characters having to perform scenes incorporating the devil, for example.

Finally, ‘The Women of Lockerbie’ written by American playwright, Deborah Brevoort focuses around the aftermath of the Pan Am 103 crash in Lockerbie in which an American mother is desperately searching for a remain of her son. It is a poetic drama which looks at the theme of the triumph of love over hate. Students involved in this performance had to be emotionally connected with this heart-wrenching storyline and incorporated both American and Scottish accents and dialects.

These performances had been perfected and rehearsed over 12 weeks so inevitably evening was very successful with all girls able to showcase their extensive hard work.

Madeleine Strom 15, who performed ‘The Women in Lockerbie’, stated that ‘Due to our play being based on the Pan Am bombings, I found that it really opened my eyes to the world around us. Studying the play was extremely enjoyable as unlike the plays we normally study, we could apply to messages and meaning to everyday life’ It was clear that by incorporating plays with relevant themes, students were able to connect more with their characters, allowing for a better, more successful performance.

 

Zahra Ali, Nonsuch High School